The use of these methods and the unrivalled computational facilities at Manchester will allow us to make a unique contribution to this problem. In addition to interacting with experimentalists at Shell, we shall be collaborating with the group of Professor Pilling at Leeds who is an expert in combustion kinetics. The modelling of the structure, motion and reactivity of proteins and enzymes using both molecular mechanics and quantum mechanics is providing new insight at a molecular level into important biological processes. Such studies have application in the design of new catalysts, particularly those used for organic synthesis. Studies in this area are being carried out in collaboration with Professor C.R.A. Catlow of the Royal Institution of Great Britain.
Joint projects involving the two research groups are available.
In order to understand chemical reactivity and physical rate processes from a fundamental molecular point of view, it is essential to understand the dynamical motion of the colliding atoms and molecules. The emphasis is on the development of new theories and their application to realistic problems.