Hulme group alumna Dr Edith Sandström returned to the School of Chemistry in September 2024 to share her heritage science research with students and staff We were delighted to welcome Edith back to the School in September 2024 to deliver the 2024 Fraser and Norma Stoddart PhD Prize Talk.Before starting her talk, Edith was officially presented with the 2024 Fraser and Norma Stoddart PhD Prize by Head of School Professor Jason Love, in recognition of her outstanding research and contributions to the School of Chemistry community. Edith then described her journey to Edinburgh and her successful PhD research. The purpose of her research was to analyse the dyes present in a collection of Renaissance embroideries housed at the National Museums Scotland. Her focus was on developing analytical approaches that reduced the impact of the analysis on the object while maintaining the level of information collected. As Edith conducted her research both within the University of Edinburgh and National Museums Scotland, she was able to work with a broad range of chemists, historians, curators and conservators. The first part of Edith’s PhD focussed on the development of a sample preparation workflow for chromatographic analysis that allowed for simultaneous processing of up to 96 samples and minimised the use of solvents. The second part of her research involved the development of a desorption electrospray ionisation source for mass spectrometry, which made it possible to analyse early synthetic dyes from a textile without any sample removal and without any visual damage. Read more about Edith’s research Students and staff also learnt about Edith’s ‘Workshop in a Box’ outreach work with former student Dr Katie Grant and collaborators. The workshop has engaged high school students in heritage science through an innovative ‘Historical Hoax’ task, which included using analytical techniques to determine whether an item was a genuine medieval artefact. The workshop has reached around 2,630 pupils across 51 high schools in Scotland.Edith closed by sharing her words of alumni wisdom with current PhD students. She described how she has come away from Edinburgh not only pleased with her research and the transferrable skills that she has developed, but also with the lifelong friendships that she has built. Students were advised to talk to others beyond their group – both organic and inorganic – and Edith encouraged them to close the gap between art and science by collaborating with researchers outside of their own fields.Edith is continuing to develop her skills in analytical chemistry within her current role as postdoctoral researcher at the Maastricht MultiModal Molecular Imaging Research Institute (M4i) at Maastricht University in the Netherlands. Dr Edith Sandström with her PhD supervisors, Dr Lore Troalen and Professor Alison Hulme We were delighted to welcome Edith back to the Joseph Black Building to present on her successful research. Her work will no doubt inspire the many students who attended, some of whom have just started their PhD journey. Congratulations Edith! Professor Euan K. Brechin Head of Graduate School The Fraser and Norma Stoddart PhD Prize The annual Fraser and Norma Stoddart PhD Prize was established in 2013 by internationally renowned chemist Professor Sir Fraser Stoddart, who studied Chemistry with his wife Norma in Edinburgh in the 1960s. Sir Fraser Stoddart went on to share the Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with Ben Feringa and Jean-Pierre Sauvage in 2016 for the design and synthesis of molecular machines. This prestigious prize honours PhD students who best remind us of the outstanding science, service and humanity that Fraser and Norma have brought to science.Candidates are expected not only to have demonstrated superior research accomplishments throughout their time at Edinburgh but they should also have contributed to the life of students within the School of Chemistry and beyond. More about the Fraser and Norma Stoddart PhD Prize in Edinburgh Friends Publication date 05 Sep, 2024
