Dr James Railton

Assistant Professor

School: Geography and Natural Sciences

James obtained his PhD at the University of Sheffield (principal supervisor Dr. Marco Conte) researching the synthesis and application of shape-selective alkane oxidation metal oxide catalysts for the fine chemicals industry. After a PGCE at Newcastle University, James was a research fellow at �ֲ��ý��Ƶ under the supervision of Prof. Matt Unthank and Prof. Justin Perry. At �ֲ��ý��Ƶ, James has conducted projects in surface chemistry, sustainability and materials science funded by TransFIRe and Northern Accelerator. As a Research fellow, James independently obtained funding from the TFI Network+ and the Henry Royce Industry Collaboration Program to research surface functionalisation for waste valorisation. In Febuary 2024, James was appointed to a permanent lectureship to continue his work in waste valorisation, and to deliver chemistry teaching to forensic science undergraduates.

Email James

Research Themes and Scholarly Interests

Surface Chemistry

Surface Analysis

Industrial Waste Valorisation

Dematerialisation

Heterogenous Catalysis

Key Publications

Camu camu (Myrciaria dubia) polyphenols modulate rice starch digestibility after thermal complexation but not during storage, Girón-Hernández, J., Carranza Gutierrez, C., Railton, J., Cheung, W., Gentile, P., Benlloch Tinoco, M. 1 Mar 2026, In: Food Hydrocolloids
Classification of commercial inorganic acids used in vitriolage from fibres analysis via FTIR-PCA, Hutchinson, S., Perdue, B., Ponce, J., Railton, J. 1 Feb 2026, In: Forensic Science International
Effects of Polypropylene Waste and Functionalized Polypropylene Waste on the Properties of Sand Concrete and Lightweight Concrete Made with Sintered Fly Ash, Markandu, D., Railton, J., Nagaratnam, B., Ramli, J., Bousbaa, J., Unthank, M., Poologanathan, K. 13 Jan 2026, Proceedings of the RILEM Spring Convention and Conference 2025, Cham, Switzerland, Springer
Green tea polyphenols improve the texture and storage stability of starch matrices with reduced digestibility, Kang, R., Halliday, T., Railton, J., Benlloch Tinoco, M. 1 Jun 2026, In: Applied Food Research
Silica-fume-free UHPC with basalt, dolomite and limestone: fresh and hardened properties and embodied carbon characteristics, Sifan, M., Nagaratnam, B., Railton, J., Thamboo, J., Poologanathan, K., Raman, S. 17 Feb 2026, In: Magazine of Concrete Research
High hydrostatic pressure modulates the digestive properties of rice starch-gallic acid composites by boosting non-inclusion complexation, Rivero-Ramos, P., Railton, J., Rodrigo, D., Benlloch Tinoco, M. 1 Mar 2025, In: International Journal of Biological Macromolecules
Conversion of Contaminated Post-Consumer Polyethylene Terephthalate into a Thermoset Alkyd Coating Using Biosourced Monomers, Thomas, B., Lopez,  ., Railton, J., Bousbaa, J., Perry, J., Unthank, M. 29 Apr 2024, In: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces
Novel multi-scale experimental approach and deep learning model to optimize capillary pressure evolution in early age concrete, Jamali, A., Marani, A., Railton, J., Nehdi, M., Nagaratnam, B., Lim, M., Mendes, J. 1 Jun 2024, In: Cement and Concrete Research

PGR Supervision

Eleanor Gibson Chemical surface functionalisation of waste biomass ash for sustainable dematerialisation of cementitious systems Start Date: 01/10/2025 End Date: 17/10/2025
Eleanor Gibson Chemical surface functionalisation of waste biomass ash for sustainable dematerialisation of cementitious systems Start Date: 01/10/2025

Qualifications