CPE Director, Prof James Durrant receives CBE from Princess Anne

At a ceremony in March 2023, CPE Director Prof James Durrant, received his CBE for services to photochemistry and solar energy research from Princess Anne.

Professor Durrant’s work focuses on a key scientific challenge for the 21st century: the development of renewable, low-cost energy technologies. His group tackles this through the development of new chemical approaches to solar energy conversion – harnessing the Sun’s energy either to produce electricity (photovoltaics, like solar panels) or molecular fuels (such as hydrogen), as well as the related challenge of electrocatalytic fuel synthesis.

His team combines fundamental optical studies into light-driven reactions with materials and device design, to create design principles that help guide technological development.

Professor Durrant is Director of Imperial's Centre for Processable Electronics, and was founding director of the UK's Solar Fuels Network. He also collaborates with industry, leading the Sêr Cymru Solar Initiative and EPSRC programme grant ATIP based at the SPECIFIC IKC, Swansea University. He is also the UK lead for the Mission Innovation Challenge on Converting Sunlight (IC5), which brings together governments, academics and the private sector through a global initiative to discover affordable ways to convert sunlight into storable solar fuels.

Professor Durrant said: “I am very honoured to receive this award. Research is a team effort, and I would like to thank the many wonderful people I have worked with during my career on photochemistry and solar energy research.”