Dr John Hardy

Senior Lecturer in Materials Chemistry, Recruitment & Outreach Officer

Research Overview

I am a research active academic with experience in chemistry, materials science, pharmacy and biomedical engineering. I am interested in developing materials that interact with electricity, light and magnetism for a variety of technical applications (e.g. transient electronics) and medical applications (drug delivery, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine). I am particularly interested in bioelectronics (e.g. biodegradable conducting polymers, 3D printable conducting polymers) and biophotonics for drug delivery, tissue engineering and neuromodulation.

Check out my research group's website.

Career Details

I read chemistry as an undergraduate at the University of Bristol, carrying out my final year research project on polymers and colloids under the supervision of Professor Brian Vincent, graduating with an M.Sci. (Hons) in 2002. My PhD on supramolecular chemistry was carried out under the supervision of Professor David K. Smith at the Department of Chemistry at the University of York, finishing in 2005. From 2006-2007 I was an Entente Cordiale Postdoctoral Research Fellow in metallosupramolecular chemistry mentored by Professor Jean-Marie Lehn and Professor Jack Harrowfield at the University of Strasbourg in France. From 2007-2010 I was an Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Postdoctoral Research Fellow in biochemistry and bioengineering mentored by Professor Thomas Scheibel in the Engineering Department at the University of Bayreuth in Germany. From 2010-2014 I was a Postdoctoral Research Associate in bioelectronics and biomedical engineering mentored by Professor Christine Schmidt (in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Florida in Gainesville) and Professor David Kaplan (Tufts University). From 2014-2015 I was an Industrial Research Fellow in biophotonics mentored by Professor Colin McCoy in the School of Pharmacy at Queen's University Belfast. I began my independent career as a 50th Anniversary Lecturer in Materials Chemistry co-appointed in the Department of Chemistry and Materials Science Institute at Lancaster University in August 2015. My group develops materials that interact with electricity, light and magnetism; projects are highly interdisciplinary (typically involving chemistry, biology, engineering and physics) and partnerships with industry are frequent, productive and warmly welcomed.

Consulting:We enjoy working with industrial partners to assist in the development and understanding of materials for a variety of technical and biomedical applications. We have years of experience in chemistry (analytical, materials, polymers, synthesis), engineering (biomedical, chemical), materials science and pharmacy. We offer access to a range of excellent equipment and the expertise to analyse the resulting data. We are happy to plan projects openly discussing the range and scope of deliverables to suit our partners needs. We offer opportunities for both short and long term collaborative work evidenced by intellectual property and publications in the scientific literature with our industrial partners. The contractual and financial arrangements are managed by our Business Partnerships and Enterprise Team, typically via our Business Partnerships Managers.

Research Grants

I have been supported by funding from research councils (BBSRC, EPSRC, MRC, NIHR), charities (Royal Society, Royal Society of Chemistry) and industry (multinationals including Advanced Medical Solutions, GSK, Syngenta, Teleflex, and SMEs including Biotech Services Ltd, My Medical Mask and others).

Current Teaching

BIOL469: Capstone (MSci) Research Project. 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
BIOL470: Capstone (MSci) Project Literature Review. 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CET6064: Enhancing your Employability and Career Potential (Guest lecture). 2016-2017, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CHEM102: Introduction to Organic Chemistry. 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CHEM311: Biological Chemistry and Chemical Biology. 2015-2016, 2016-2017, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CHEM321: Further Inorganic Chemistry: f-block and metals in biology. 2022-2023*.
CHEM371: Advanced Chemistry Practical Skills. 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CHEM372: Advanced Chemistry Practical Research Skills (Pre-Capstone Group Research Project). 2016-2017, 2017-2018*, 2018-2019*, 2019-2020*, 2020-2021*, 2021-2022*.
CHEM381: Capstone (BSc) Research Project. 2016-2017, 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CHEM998a: Part I Chemistry Tutorials. 2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
CHEM998b: Part II Chemistry Tutorials. 2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023.
MBChB202: Special Study Module 2. 2018-2019*, 2021-2022*, 2022-2023.
Personal tutor for undergraduate students at Lancaster University (2016-2023).

External Roles

Committee Service for Learned & Professional Societies:

Controlled Release Society (CRS).
- Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (CRS ED&I) Committee.
  - Ordinary Member (08/2022 – Present).
- Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC).
  - Lancashire Local Section Committee (09/2015 – Present). Elected Programme Secretary of the Lancashire Local Section (04/2016 – Present).
- Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).
  - Membership Committee (07/2017 – Present). Elected Ordinary Member (07/2017 – 06/2021, Co-opted Ordinary Member 07/2021 – Present).
  - Publications Committee (07/2017 – Present). Elected Ordinary Member (07/2017 – Present).
- UK Society for Biomaterials (UKSB).
  - UKSB Council (07/2022 – Present).

Committee Service for Funding Agencies:

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Peer Review College.
- Full College Member (2019 – Present).
- Associate College Member (2015-2019).
Royal Society International Exchange Committee (2017-2023).

Editorial Board Roles:

Archives of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ain Shams University Press (2018 – Present).
Drug Delivery Letters, Bentham Science (2018 – Present).
Exploration of BioMat-X, Open Exploration Publishing (2022 – Present).
Frontiers in Medical Technology, Frontiers (2020 – Present; 2021 – Present as Associate Editor).
Future Science Open Access, Future Science (2015 – Present).
IEEE Open Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology, IEEE (2020 – Present).
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, MDPI (2015 – Present).
J, MDPI (2018 – 2021).
Johnson Matthey Technology Review, Johnson Matthey Plc (2021 – Present).
Journal of Functional Biomaterials, MDPI (2018 – Present; 2021 – Present as Editor in Chief for the Section “Biomaterials and Devices for Healthcare Applications”).
Research Directions: Bioelectronics, Cambridge University Press (2023 – Present).

Web Links

PhD Supervision Interests

I will advertise Ph.D. research projects as funding is secured via jobs.ac.uk.Self-funded students are warmly encouraged to contact me to discuss mutually interesting research projects.