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About

Dr. Nicola Rankin is a pioneering researcher at the intersection of robotics and materials chemistry, best known for revolutionizing laboratory automation through the development of autonomous chemical systems. Her landmark 2020 paper, "A mobile robotic chemist," has garnered over 1,400 citations and introduced a groundbreaking mobile robot capable of performing complex experiments independently, dramatically accelerating the pace of materials discovery. Rankin's major contributions lie in creating modular, multi-robot platforms that automate solid-state chemistry workflows—a domain historically resistant to automation due to the challenges of handling powders and performing characterization techniques like powder X-ray diffraction. Her 2023 work on a dual-arm robotic manipulator with fuzzy logic control mimics human researchers' dexterity in solid dispensing, achieving autonomous biomimetic operation. Rankin's research demonstrates that automation can transform not only liquid-based organic synthesis but also the traditionally manual processes of materials laboratories. Her achievements include demonstrating the first fully autonomous workflow for solid-state chemistry, significantly enhancing reproducibility and throughput. For students and researchers, Rankin's work exemplifies how integrating robotics with chemistry can unlock new frontiers in high-throughput experimentation and accelerate the discovery of advanced materials.