Sustainable cars that run on bacteria have caught the eye of the Women Of The Future Awards judges.
Kylie Vincent, the inventor of the patented technology, took out the gong for Woman of the Future in Science and Technology last night at an awards ceremony in London.
Vincent, a RCUK Fellow in Chemistry at the University of Oxford, said: “Winning a Woman of the Future award is truly overwhelming. Whilst it is always fantastic to receive academic credit for my work this nomination offers broader recognition encompassing the wider aspects of my work, such as the motivation behind my studies and the outreach work I have been doing."
She hoped that her award would help commercialise her academic work and inspire other young women in what is often a very male dominated field.
Vincent said her life-long fascination with science was validated last night.
“I’ve always been fascinated by science – when I was younger it was biology, but as I learnt more about the subject I began to focus on chemistry as I was interested in how things work at the level of individual atoms."
Her work combines her two passions, chemical methods and biological systems: "My work is centred on how we can learn from bacteria living on hydrogen and the implications for developing energy technologies in the future. It is this interface between chemistry and technology development which I am particularly enjoying – as this is what has the potential to really make a difference in the world."
Runner-up for the prize was Suzanne Coogan, Project Manager, Shell UK who received a highly commended.
Vincent has her eyes on a sustainable future: "By exploring the potential of using hydrogen as a future renewable energy source, I am striving to contribute to solving our sustainable energy problems," she says.