Wooden windows
Wooden windows? Wood, not for the frame but for the transparent part, instead of glass? Yes, modern research has shown that we can make transparent wood with a relatively benign chemical treatment. A new application for this biobased material! Windows made from transparent wood are good insulators – interesting because glass is not good at
100 years of chemistry vs. bacteria, episode 5. A colourful foreplay
Many of our readers will know the prominent role played by Germany in the development and the many applications of synthetic dyes. They will also know the name of Justus von Liebig, the ‘founding father’ of coal tar research. This marks the start of industrial chemistry; dyes are made from coal tar and are the
Chemicals and materials industry needs to innovate
‘The chemicals and materials industry is going to see more dramatic change over the next 20 years than it has in at least the last 50,’ says Anthony Schiavo, Senior Analyst at Lux Research. They just completed a report on start-ups that are going to disrupt the chemicals and materials industry. Any company in the
Cheap energy storage speeds up
Costs of producing renewable energy keep coming down; and technologies for cheap energy storage keep evolving. Therefore, the eternal problems with solar and wind energy appear to be more and more outdated (‘what to do if the sun doesn’t shine and the wind doesn’t blow’). In the past, we already devoted our attention to this
100 years of chemistry vs. bacteria, episode 4. The rise of chemistry
For those living in the 19th century, it was by no means evident that we could use chemistry as a weapon against bacteria. Chemistry was a young science. It found its applications in polluting and dangerous industries. The mere idea that chemical processes dominate living nature as well, was new. Project ‘100 years of antibiotics’
