Downard's Current Research Areas

1. Carbon surface modification  

Electrochemically-assisted modification of carbon substrates, surface patterning and structuring. Supported by the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology and the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology.

Functionality can be added to carbon materials using recently developed methods of surface modification based on direct C-C or C-N bond formation between the surface and the modifier. The general procedure involves electrochemical generation of radicals in solution at the carbon surface followed by coupling between the radical and a surface carbon. We are interested in the structure and properties of layers formed by these procedures, and in patterning the layers

Assembly of novel bioactives on surfaces and characterization of their structures and functionality. Supported by the Marsden Fund, collaboration with Prof. Andrew Abell.

Prof. Abell's group is engaged in the synthesis of novel peptidomimetics and other shape-constrained bioactives. Our goal is to assemble these on surfaces (at present we are using gold films) in a spatially controlled manner and to examine their structures and functionality.

This research area is also one of the themes in the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials & Nanotechnology.

2. The fractionation and determination of analytes of environmental importance

Diffusive gradients in thin films, for speciation of analytes of environmental interest. Supported by the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, collaboration with Prof. Powell.

Research focuses on the use of the DGT (diffusive gradients in thin films) technique for arsenic fractionation, and other aspects of method development, fundamental to the use of the DGT method for speciation.

3. Electrochemical studies of inorganic complexes

Electrochemistry as a green chemistry alternative to industrial processes. Supported by the Foundation for research, Science and Technology and Canesis Network Ltd.

Electrochemistry can offer an environmentally cleaner method for carrying out industrial processes than traditional wet chemical methods. This research focuses on the use of electrochemistry in the wool industry.

A variety of inorganic systems have been examined in collaboration with synthetic inorganic chemists. Ongoing research includes studies of ferrocene derivatives of phosphine ligands and nickel dithiolene complexes.