Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
Research activities and interests within the group focus on several different aspects of the synthesis of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts for sustainable chemical transformations and green chemistry.
Our work involves a major synthetic component, most of which is carried out using inert atmosphere techniques. Work utilises solution-state NMR (within the department), mass spectrometry, electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography to probe the structure of the homogeneous catalysts.
Production of biopolymers: In this area my group is developing new initiators for the production of polylactide (PLA), co-polymers and polymers from terpenes. PLA is a biodegradable and annually renewable polymer. We are pioneering new ligands and complexes for the production of isotactic PLA – this work has recently been published in Chemical Science 2015 and Chemical Communications 2014, 2016. These papers describe a new “self-correcting” method of the polymerisation of lactide and illustrate the subtle nature that the initiator has on selectivity and rate of polymerisation.
Catalytic upgrading of renewables:
In this area we are interested in the conversion of ethanol into 1,3-butadiene (a monomer for the production of synthetic rubber). This is driven by the in-stability in the supply and the cost fluctuation of the monomer. There has been a lot of work in this area in the 1920’s, but with the bountiful supply of crude oil the “bio” route fell out of favour. This work has attracted industrial interest, (e.g. a patent has been filed WO2014180778A1) where we have developed a catalyst that is capable of producing butadiene with a selectivity in excess of 70%. There are still significant challenges posed by this research. For example, the selectivity towards ethylene and diethyl ether are relatively high. We are working on new catalysts (understanding how the acid/base properties affect this) to minimise these unwanted side reactions.
Also we are also working on projects involving the catalytic depolymerisation of lignin. This is important in the 21st Century as lignin represents a major un-tapped resource.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Keywords
- biopolymers
- catalysis
- sustainable chemistry
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Projects
- 11 Finished
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Project TUPLA - traceability of used PLA across the supply chain from manufacturer to recycle
Jones, M. (PI)
Innovate UK, Innovate UK Business Connect
1/06/23 → 30/11/23
Project: Central government, health and local authorities
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AP19: Developing Catalyst Strategies for a Truly Circular Plastic Economy
Jones, M. (PI)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
30/11/22 → 28/05/24
Project: Research council
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IAA – Sustainable Recycling of PPE
Jones, M. (PI) & Stewart, J. (Researcher)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
1/09/22 → 30/06/23
Project: Research council
File -
Biodegradable Bioplastics – assessing environmental risk
Buchard, A. (PI), Davidson, M. (CoI) & Jones, M. (CoI)
Natural Environment Research Council
17/11/20 → 31/03/25
Project: Research council
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Novel membrane catalytic reactor for waste polylactic acid recycling and valorisation
Jones, M. (PI), Mattia, D. (CoI) & Plucinski, P. (CoI)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
26/06/17 → 25/09/20
Project: Research council
Research output
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Diversity in zwitterionic metal ammonium tris(phenolate)s for the controlled immortal polymerization of lactide: dramatic activity enhancement and mechanistic insight on expansion beyond zirconium
Davidson, M. G., Frankis, C. J., Jones, M. D., Kociok-Kohn, G., Marken, F., McCormick, S. N., Tipler, J. & Yang, P. B., 14 May 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: ACS Catalysis. 15, 11, p. 9130-9149 20 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Imino‐Pyrrole Zn(II) Complexes for the Rapid and Selective Chemical Recycling of Commodity Polymers
Stewart, J. A., Powell, L. T. W., Cullen, M. J., Kociok-Kohn, G., Davidson, M. & Jones, M. D., 24 Mar 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Angewandte Chemie International Edition. e202502845.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile12 Downloads (Pure) -
Valorization of polyoxymethylene (POM) waste as a C1 synthon for industrially relevant dialkoxymethanes and cyclic aminals
Cullen, M., Davidson, M., Jones, M. D. & Stewart, J., 1 Mar 2025, In: RSC Sustainability. 3, 3, p. 1114-1121Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Zinc {ONO} Complexes for the Chemical Recycling of PET and PLA
Stewart, J. A., Pearce, J. I., Cullen, M. J., Kociok-Kohn, G., Ward, B. D., Davidson, M. G. & Jones, M. D., 1 Feb 2025, In: Catalysis Today. 445, 115037.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access2 Citations (SciVal) -
Sustainable Chemistry: The Future
Jones, M. D., 31 Dec 2024, In: Sustainable Chemistry. 5, 4, p. 273-274 2 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial › peer-review
Open Access
Datasets
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Metal influence on the iso- and hetero-selectivity of complexes of bipyrrolidine derived Salan ligands for the polymerisation of rac-lactide
Jones, M. (Creator), Buchard, A. (Creator), McKeown, P. (Creator), Brady, L. (Creator), Lowe, J. (Creator), Mahon, M. (Creator), Thomas, L. (Creator) & Woodman, T. (Creator), Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre, 2015
DOI: 10.5517/cc1j1ky2
Dataset
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Preliminary DFT study of the isomers of a Zirconium complexe of bipyrrolidine derived Salan ligand
Buchard, A. (Creator), Jones, M. (Project Leader) & McKeown, P. (Project Member), Figshare, 6 Oct 2014
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.1189338, http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.1189338
Dataset
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Aluminium Salalens vs. Salans: “Initiator Design” for the Isoselective Polymerisation of rac-Lactide
Jones, M. (Creator), Davidson, M. (Creator), McKeown, P. (Creator) & Kociok-Kohn, G. (Creator), University of Bath, 7 Jul 2016
DOI: 10.15125/BATH-00220
Dataset
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Advanced optimisations of fac-mer and trans-meso isomers of Zr(3)(OiPr)2
Buchard, A. (Creator), Jones, M. (Project Leader) & McKeown, P. (Project Member), Figshare, 6 Oct 2014
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.1190538, http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.1190538
Dataset
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Dataset for: N-doped Fe@CNT for combined RWGS/FT CO2 hydrogenation
Williamson, D. (Creator), Herdes Moreno, C. (Creator), Torrente-Murciano, L. (Creator), Jones, M. (Creator) & Mattia, D. (Creator), University of Bath, 11 Mar 2019
DOI: 10.15125/BATH-00616
Dataset
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MDPI (Publisher)
Jones, M. (Peer reviewer)
2021 → 2026Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial roles › Editorial activity
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UKRI EPSRC (External organisation)
Jones, M. (No value)
16 Jul 2024Activity: Other contribution to the discipline › Grant peer-review