What is your main role?

Teaching Chemical Engineering, research focussed on water quality and biotechnology, and university administration.

What part of your job gets you out of bed in the morning?

I never have any problem getting out of bed for work. My job always presents new challenges and gives lots of job satisfaction. There is nothing better than witnessing the ‘penny drop’ when an undergraduate understands a new concept related to chemical engineering.

Briefly, what does your typical day involve?

Check email and diary, then rush off to the lecture halls to teach students in the areas of process control and instrumentation or fluid mechanics. Between teaching classes I like to spend time with my post-graduate students (researchers) in the lab discussing their work, which is in the area of water quality and biotechnology.

What is the most interesting thing you have done today?

Investigated the possibility of sampling for microalgae in the Atlantic Ocean as part of a field research trip in 2008. The screening of microalgae is part of a bio-prospecting process where we looking for new compounds for uses in industry.

What is the most unusual thing you have done as part of your job?

Caught a train from Beijing to St Petersburg as part of a field trip whilst sampling for microalgae in aquatic systems along the way.

What is the one personal ambition you still want to achieve?

To work in the Antarctic.

When you are not at work what is your greatest pleasure?

Outdoor activities, and being with friends and family.

What would the casual observer not guess about you?

That I am obsessed with microalgae.