Manchester Uni signs counter-terrorism deal with Home Office

The project itself will form part of the Home Office’s CBRN Resilience Programme first established in late 2001 with the task of “ensuring that, in the event of a terrorist incident, an effective response is carried out with minimal impact on lives, property and the environment.”

The money will be used to finance three separate projects led by members of The School of Chemistry with support from the Chemical Engineering, Earth Science and Materials Science Departments (all of them part of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences). Each project runs for four years.

Professor Francis Livens – an expert in radiation sciences will lead a programme of research on identifying and developing new molecules which can then be incorporated into materials to be used as decontaminants on surfaces and in liquids.

Michael Turner professor of materials chemistry is to lead the development of new types of low cost sensor that use organic semiconductors to detect chemical agents. The aim is to produce a printable sensor that can detect a diverse spectrum of chemicals.

Professor of Biological Chemistry, Roy Goodacre, is to develop a portable device that uses the interaction of laser light with matter to generate a fingerprint capable of detecting and then identifying airborne bacteria.