Dr Terry Page CChem MRSC

Winner: 2021 Award for Exceptional Service

Consultant

For outstanding service to the Royal Society of Chemistry through our member communities.

Celebrate Dr Terry Page

#RSCPrizes

Removing and replacing transport fuels … excites me because I think that there will be bigger issues to solve if the electric car bubble bursts.

Dr Terry Page spent over 20 years at British Petroleum (BP), working in research and technical service on the hydrocatalytic and thermal conversion of fuel oil containing high sulphur and metals to lighter distillate fractions for blending into transportation fuels. After leaving BP, Terry has worked mainly as a process engineering contractor on projects in downstream oil, and in the nuclear industry.

Terry has been a Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) volunteer for nearly 40 years. His volunteering began when he was asked by BP to represent the company on the committee of the RSC's Process Chemistry and Technology Group (PCTG) as the existing member was leaving BP.

While serving on the committee, Terry organised several scientific meetings on chemical processing and took over the position of Honorary Secretary – a post that he held for 21 years. He has also served on the committees of the RSC's Downland Local Section, the SE Region Education Division, and the RSC's Head Office governance group. Terry has brought chemistry to his local community, organising numerous events and activities on behalf of the Downland Local Section.

Read winner biography

Dr Terry Page grew up in West London and, following A-levels in science, he read chemistry at Imperial College London, graduating with a First-Class Honours Degree. He specialised in inorganic chemistry and, following two years working at the Laboratory of the Government Chemist, he joined Royal Holloway College to research the structural and thermochemistry of mixed chalcogen, gold and halogen compounds, receiving a PhD in 1978. He then joined British Petroleum (BP) and spent over 20 years working in research and technical service on the hydrocatalytic and thermal conversion of fuel oil containing high sulphur and metals to lighter distillate fractions for blending into transportation fuels.

After leaving BP, Terry has worked mainly as a process engineering contractor on projects in downstream oil, and in the nuclear industry.

While serving on the committee, Terry organised several scientific meetings on chemical processing and, on his second meeting, he took over the position of Honorary Secretary – a post that he held for 21 years. At the same time, he became involved with the committee of the RSC's Downland Local Section (serving terms as Chair and Honorary Secretary), the SE Region Education Division (serving as Honorary Secretary), and the RSC's Head Office governance group. Terry has organised numerous activities for his local section, including the Downland Heats and Local Section Finals of the Chemistry Challenge competition, hands-on chemistry events (Kitchen Cupboard Chemistry) at science fairs and for scout groups, organised careers events in schools ('Look what chemistry has done for me') as well as several retired member lunches and lectures.

Q+A

How did you first become interested in chemistry?

In secondary school, I was fascinated by chemistry and pure mathematics, being particularly intrigued by equations which, for me, provided a simple connection between the two subjects. I had an inspirational chemistry teacher who encouraged this lateral thinking but warned me that I needed to be aware of chemical structure and reaction thermodynamics. I thought long and hard about a career in both subjects but chose chemistry because it was tangible and much less theoretical.

What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?

If you want a challenge and have an enquiring mind, then go for it. A degree in chemistry can be a starting point for so many different opportunities and careers. However, don’t become too specialised too early in your career – career changes can be forced upon you at any time and so don’t close too many doors too soon.

Can you tell us about a scientific development on the horizon that you are excited about?

Removing and replacing transport fuels: it excites me because I think that there will be bigger issues to solve if the electric car bubble bursts.

Why is chemistry important?

Chemistry is all around us and we just cannot escape from it. We are all benefiting silently from chemical successes. But human life is chemistry too – it is based upon a set of complex chemical reactions that at present are not fully understood. As our chemical knowledge develops, who knows what may be on the horizon.

What has been a challenge for you (either personally or in your career)?

Being prepared, when necessary, to challenge the experts – they don’t always get things right and good PhDs can often emerge from challenging the claims and discoveries reported in the open chemical literature.

What does good research culture look like/mean to you?

Research methods and practices have changed considerably since I worked in a chemistry laboratory on my PhD: an occasional injury, fire or small explosion sometimes occurred. Laboratories are now working within a strict health, safety and environmental culture with experimentation carried out on a smaller scale, supported by microprocessors, online analysers, risk assessments and method statements. This is all very positive and necessary for good research culture.

How are the chemical sciences making the world a better place?

Through advances in medicine, cleaner air and water, more efficient chemical processes, agriculture, farming and transportation, improved housing, management of raw materials and fossil fuels.

Why do you think teamwork is important in science?

Some people might try, but you cannot be an expert on everything and problem solving definitely requires a multidisciplinary team approach.