Mary is currently the Vice Provost for Research and Enterprise and the Armourers and Brasiers’ Chair for Materials Science at Imperial University. Mary leads a large interdisciplinary group focused on understanding nanoscale materials, and nanoscale interfaces in and between materials and their environments. She has a particular interest in the development of operando approaches and has pioneered nanoscale methods in synchrotron science.
Her research on nanoscale materials and interfaces spans diverse application areas including: energy materials (batteries, magnetocaloric cooling devices, photovoltaics, fuel cells and catalysis); nanomaterials for bio-sensors and therapies; the mechanisms that lead to human and environmental toxicity associated with nanostructures, and the potential of nanomaterials for environmental remediation (in particular for nuclear waste). A key aspect of this work is understanding the reactivity and stability of nanostructures in operando in order to maximize efficiency and lifetime of devices and systems.
She was elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2015 and is a Fellow IoM3and of the Institute of Corrosion. She was awarded CBE for contributions to Materials Science in the 2022 Queen’s Birthday honours.