Congratulations to Dr Pei Lay Yap on being awarded the RACI 2021 Cornforth Medal

The School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials researcher has been recognised for her PhD thesis on Development of Advanced Graphene-based Composites for Water Purification.

image of dr Pei Lay Yap

The medal bears the words “For a Thesis on Chemical Research” and recognises an outstanding achievement in chemistry.This represents a significant achievement and cause for celebration by Dr Pei Lay Yap, who said that the award inspires her to continue to pursue her research dreams and overcome challenges to fulfil her passion for science.

“Winning this prestigious award is a great honour and is also a tremendous reflection on the mentor I have had along the way, Professor Dusan Losic, as well as my teammates and my beloved family for their endless support,” she said.

Dr Pei Lay’s research focuses on the development of multifunctional graphene-based composites based on hydrothermal, chemical reduction, thermal and photoinitiated thiol-ene click approaches.

"This work integrates the fundamental understanding and application of knowledge on their surface properties to address the most concerning water pollution challenges," she said.

The Board of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI) awards the Cornforth Medal in honour of the work of Sir John Cornforth AC CBE FRS – who was an Australian-British chemist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1975.

To receive this highly prestigious award, the recipient must be nominated by the deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) of an Australian university. Only one medal is awarded each year, and if the committee considers that none of the theses submitted reach an appropriate standard, no award is made.

View more about Dr Pei Lay’s submission.

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