A young scientist from the University of Nottingham has been named as a 2025 Laureate of the prestigious Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK.
Professor Liam Ball from the School of Chemistry has been has been awarded a prize of £100,000 in unrestricted funds in the Blavatnik Awards that celebrate Britain's greatest young minds in their fields.
The Blavatnik Family Foundation and The New York Academy of Sciences offer the largest unrestricted prize for UK scientists under the age of 42 and Professor Ball was chosen from a shortlist of nine finalists, representing some of the brightest young scientific minds across the UK.
Professor Liam Ball is transforming chemical synthesis by developing innovative tools for making pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals with reduced environmental impact. His pioneering work with bismuth, a non-toxic element, has enabled safer and more efficient herbicide development and drug production, including a streamlined process for the anticancer drug golvatinib.
Professor Ball has also made advancements in the synthesis of phosphine ligands, a critical tool for speeding up reactions through catalysis, making the process safer and more sustainable. By focusing on understanding reaction mechanisms. This research drives greener chemical processes, advancing medicine, agriculture, and sustainable manufacturing on an industrial scale.
It's an unbelievable honour to receive this award, which is a huge recognition of the hard work, support, and enthusiasm of so many people: my group, my colleagues, collaborators and mentors, and the incredible support staff here at Nottingham. It comes at the ten-year anniversary of my research group at Nottingham, and will be a jewel in the crown as we celebrate our reunion this summer. I'm excited to see how we can build on what we have developed and learned in our first decade, and what discoveries lie in store for the next phase of our research.
The Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists are the most substantial unrestricted awards available to UK scientists under the age of 42. Since their establishment, the Awards have recognised over 70 honourees from more than 100 research institutions. To date, the Blavatnik Awards have contributed more than £3.1 million to UK research.
Sir Leonard Blavatnik, Founder of Access Industries and the Blavatnik Family Foundation said: "We created the Blavatnik Awards to honour promising scientists, early in their careers, where unrestricted financial support and public recognition will give them the confidence to take bold risks in their scientific research that address the world's most complex and urgent scientific challenges."
Liam is an outstanding member of our school here at Nottingham, his passion to deliver next generation solutions to impact some of society's most pressing challenges and his absolute commitment to scholarly excellence is inspiring to us all.
