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2023: Dr Krishanu Dey, Mixed Lead-Tin Halide Perovskites for Optoelectronic Applications

2022: Dr Sam A. J. Hillman, Sulfones and side chains: structure-function-performance relationships in linear conjugated polymer photocatalysts for the evolution of hydrogen from water

2021: Dr Anqi Wang, Functional Polymers of Intrinsic Microporosity for Battery Energy Storage

2020: Dr Michael Sachs, Transient spectroscopic studies of disordered semiconductors for solar-driven fuel synthesis

2019: Dr Harriotte Jessica Pereira, Nanostructured Copper Window and Reflective Electrodes for Organic Photovoltaics

2018: Dr Clementine Chambon, Towards an Economically Viable Ionic Liquids Based Biorefinery: Lignocellulose Fractionation and Value-Added Products from Lignin

2017: Dr Franky Bedoya-Lora, Photo-Electrochemical Reactors with Hematite Photo-anodes for Water and Hydrogen Sulfide Splitting

2016: Dr Abby Casey, Optoelectronic Properties of New Conjugated Materials

2015: Dr Alexander Forse, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Studies of Ion Adsorption in Supercapacitor Electrodes; and Dr Lisa Kleiminger, Solid Oxide Electrochemical Reactors and Processes for Carbon Dioxide and Water Splitting

2014: Dr Oluwafunmilola Ola, Effect of metal Doping and Supports on TiO2-based Catalysts for CO2 Photoreduction

2013: Dr Alissa Cotton, Engineering Scale-up and Environmental Effects of the Calcium Looping Cycle for Post-Combustion CO2 Capture

Applications must be made using the .

Candidates must have been examined and notified of award of PhD (but not necessarily graduated) from a recognised UK or Republic of Ireland university in the calendar year 2024.

The candidate’s PhD thesis should be original work predominantly in the field of chemistry that must have application in the energy sector.

The application must contain:

• Executive Summary of their PhD thesis no greater than 1,000 words, highlighting the relevance of the work to the Energy Sector and the RSC's commitment to tackling global challenges. The Executive Summary should clarify how their thesis contributes to a genuine need of the Energy Sector and explain the work's environmental, economic and social benefits
• Candidates should note that the content of their Executive Summary is not the abstract of the thesis and will be the primary source of the judges’ consideration
• A letter from their main PhD supervisor recommending the candidate for consideration for this prize and confirming that the candidate meets the criteria for eligibility for the competition

A PhD Award Sub-Committee, formed by RSC Energy Sector Committee and co-opted experts, will assess the application and recommend the winner to the Committee for approval. The Sub-Committee may seek the advice of other professionals (academics, industrialists, RSC advisors/subject champions) to assess the merits of an application.

The RSC Energy Sector Executive Committee decides the prize winner based on a recommendation by the PhD Award Sub-Committee and the decision cannot be challenged.

The PhD Award Sub-Committee will base their assessment on the criteria below from information provided in the candidate’s Executive Summary.

The judging criteria will be based on the following:

• The level to which the work (thesis) addresses a clearly identified need in global energy requirements
• The degree to which the work adds significant new understanding to an aspect of the energy sector
• The presentation of the underlying chemistry on which the work is based
• The level to which the work, if implemented, could contribute to quantifiable environmentally sustainable energy provision (COâ‚‚ reduction or abatement, reduction in toxic emissions, etc)
• The dissemination of the results and engagement with the wider community.