Sniffing out our industry's origins
Bristol & South West Regional Group: Smells and bells, or stinks and inks – The origins of the chemical industry, Clifton College, Bristol, UK
 As well as presenting regular lectures on a wide range of illuminating topics to audiences of SCI members, undergraduates, postgraduates and university staff members, the Bristol & South West Regional Group also makes a concerted effort to educate school pupils about both the science of chemistry and the existence of SCI.
It was with this laudable aim in mind that Ian Donaldson found himself presenting his thoroughly enjoyable SCI schools lecture ‘Smells and bells, or stinks and inks – The origins of the chemical industry’ on 10 March before a 20-strong mixed audience – in more ways than one, though age and scientific experience were the main factors!
Dominating the small stage, and with a table in front of him that strained under the weight of the chemicals and geological samples that accompanied the talk,
‘Smells and bells, or stinks and inks – the origins of the chemical industry’ was equal parts geology, chemistry, geography and history |
Donaldson – a member of the SCI Bristol & South West Regional Group Committee – gave a talk that was equal parts geology, chemistry, geography and history lessons. Starting from the time of the Roman occupation of Britain and travelling right up to the modern age, Donaldson showed how the demand for, and manufacture of, different materials and chemical substances had driven the development of the modern chemical industry.
Chemistry in history:
Roman lead pipes, cements, quicklime, metal alloys, clear glass, pyrites, copperas (to make inks and dyestuff for medieval monks), aqua fortis and aqua regia, large-scale acid manufacture, fertilisers, nitro-glycerine…
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Donaldson kicked off with mining and use of lead by the Roman settlers, and followed on at a sometimes breathtaking pace to the development of strong cements, the use of quicklime, the creation of metal alloys, the hunt for clear glass, the discovery of gunpowder, the investigation of the pyrites family of ores, the use of
copperas to form the basis of the inks and dyestuff business for medieval monks, the production of aqua fortis and aqua regia, advancing to large-scale acid manufacture, the growth of the fertiliser industry and all the way to the development of nitro-glycerine. Donaldson continually infused his tales with local knowledge and experience, including a tale relating back to the lecture’s venue itself, linking Clifton College to the growth of the Bristol glass industry.
Samples galore
All of these examples were accompanied by a treasure trove of samples, from passing around mineral ore samples – allowing the audience to feel the textures, see the glint of crystal structures or smell the sulphurous odours from a newly-smashed sample – to practical demonstrations of appearing and disappearing inks, or the amazing action of concentrated acids on sugars, with accompanying smoke!
Given the younger audience at which it was aimed, this was a wonderfully-pitched lecture – simple chemistry, interesting background material, and entertaining experiments at regular intervals to maintain the interest throughout; so much so that everyone in the room was taken by surprise when the stately school clock chimed out to signal that time was running out, leaving everyone contented and possibly wanting just a bit more than time had allowed.
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