Biomedical
Read the Biomedical highlight by Kevin Burgess, Texas A&M University, US in C&I Issue 9 2022.
UK CO2 concerns
CF Fertilisers UK is to temporarily halt ammonia production at its Billingham, UK, site due to the price of natural gas, which has more than doubled in the past year and is forecast to increase further.
Organic chemistry
Read the organic chemistry highlights from C&I Issue 9 2022 written by G. Richard Stephenson, University of East Anglia, UK
AI to improve healthcare
The application of artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential for dramatic improvements in patient healthcare. However, inaccurate AI-based predictions could just as easily lead to negative consequences.
Compostable packaging
Methane emissions from landfill are a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, and many governments worldwide, including in the UK, and the EU, are committing to the introduction of mandatory household food waste collections in a bid to curb this.
Supply chain drama
Reliable logistics are crucial for ensuring robust, cost effective and efficient supply chains. Over the last two years, however, several factors have wrought havoc on chemical supply chains. But for the resilience and adaptability of the people employed in the industry, there might have been chaos.
Critical element
There is a lot of talk about Critical Materials (or sometimes Minerals) – indeed the UK Government has just issued a strategy on the subject.1 The topic is not new, and there have been a number of reports on the topic over the last 20 years. As a chemist, I should probably start by correcting the use of language – we are mostly talking about elements here!
Ultrasound patch
Engineers have designed a small ultrasound imaging device for continuous imaging of the body. The stamp-sized device sticks to the skin and produces continuous ultrasound images of the internal organs (Science, 2022, 377, 517).
Pan-coronavirus vaccine
Researchers at the UK’s Francis Crick Institute have shown that a specific area of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein is a promising target for a pan-coronavirus vaccine that could offer some protection against new virus variants, common colds, and help prepare for future pandemics.
Phage therapy for IBD
Researchers have developed a therapy that can target the bacteria behind inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) without damaging friendly gut bugs. The therapy is based on a combination of bacteria-killing viruses called phages.