There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.

Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

I and i

3.2.3. Hydroformylation 2467 3.2.4. Dimerization 2468 3.2.5. Oxidative Cleavage and Ozonolysis 2469 3.2.6. Metathesis 2470 4. Terpenes 2472 4.1. Pinene 2472 4.1.1. Isomerization: R-Pinene 2472 4.1.2. Epoxidation of R-Pinene 2475 4.1.3. Isomerization of R-Pinene Oxide 2477 4.1.4. Hydration of R-Pinene: R-Terpineol 2478 4.1.5. Dehydroisomerization 2479 4.2. Limonene 2480 4.2.1. Isomerization 2480 4.2.2. Epoxidation: Limonene Oxide 2480 4.2.3. Isomerization of Limonene Oxide 2481 4.2.4. Dehydroisomerization of Limonene and Terpenes To Produce Cymene 2481

Chemical Routes for the Transformation of Biomass into Chemicals

Department of Materials Science, University of Patras, 26504 Rio Patras, Greece, Theoretical and Physical Chemistry Institute, National Hellenic Research Foundation, 48 Vass. Constantinou Avenue, 116 35 Athens, Greece, Institut de Biologie Moleculaire et Cellulaire, UPR9021 CNRS, Immunologie et Chimie Therapeutiques, 67084 Strasbourg, France, and Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche, Universita di Trieste, Piazzale Europa 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy

Chemistry of Carbon Nanotubes

Ionic liquids are composed entirely of ions. Because of the wide range of possible binary and ternary ionic liquids, they offer a potentially wide range of solvent properties. In their Perspective,
 Rogers and Seddon
 review recent progress on developing new ionic liquid solvents for use in chemical synthesis, catalysis, fuel cells, and other applications. Ionic liquids are considered advantageous not only because of their versatility but also for their "green" credentials, although it is important to remember that not all ionic liquids are environmentally benign. One industrial process has been reported, and others may not be far behind. The authors conclude that in the next decade, ionic liquids are likely to replace conventional solvents in many applications.

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/302/5646/792.full.pdf

Ionic Liquids--Solvents of the Future?

Infrared spectroscopy of proteins.

Most of the carbon-based compounds currently manufactured by the chemical industry are derived from petroleum. The rising cost and dwindling supply of oil have been focusing attention on possible routes to making chemicals, fuels, and solvents from biomass instead. In this context, many recent studies have assessed the relative merits of applying different dedicated crops to chemical production. Here, we highlight the opportunities for diverting existing residual biomass--the by-products of present agricultural and food-processing streams--to this end.

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/337/6095/695.full.pdf

Valorization of Biomass: Deriving More Value from Waste

The chemical industry plays a key role in sustaining the world economy and underpinning future technologies, yet is under unprecedented pressure from the effects of globalization and change in many of its traditional markets. Against this background, what will be needed for the industry to embrace efforts to make it “greener”? We explore some of the issues raised by the development of “green chemistry” techniques and identify potential barriers to their implementation by industry.

/pdf/green-chemistry-science-and-politics-of-change-o6ovzowol7.pdf

Green chemistry: science and politics of change.

New Directions in Inorganic and Metal-Organic Coordination Chemistry in Supercritical Fluids

Modern life depends on the petrochemical industry — most drugs, paints and plastics derive from oil. But current processes for making chemical products are not sustainable in terms of resources and environmental impact. Green chemistry aims to tackle this problem, and real progress is being made.

Martyn Poliakoff

Papers

Valorization of Biomass: Deriving More Value from Waste

Green chemistry: science and politics of change.

New Directions in Inorganic and Metal-Organic Coordination Chemistry in Supercritical Fluids

Sustainable technology: green chemistry.

Principles of green chemistry: PRODUCTIVELY