Chemistry in its Element: Compounds

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  • 3d rendering of a subsea cable on the seabed
    Podcast

    Gutta percha

    29 March 2018

    Kat Arney on the tree sap that once insulated transatlantic cables

  • Maitotoxin structure
    Podcast

    Maitotoxin

    9 March 2018

    A giant marine toxin with a total synthesis story to tell

  • Blue lobster
    Podcast

    Astaxanthin

    2 March 2018

    Colourful crustaceans and the story of a ubiquitous biological pigment

  • A man using a ultraviolet tanning bed
    Podcast

    Melanin

    22 February 2018

    A family of biological pigments that make life more colourful

  • Rolex submariner, dial glowing in the dark
    Podcast

    Strontium aluminate

    1 February 2018

    A glow-in-the-dark compound that defies naming conventions

  • Imperial topaz
    Podcast

    Topaz

    26 January 2018

    A tale of adventure on the high seas, and the treasured topaz spoils

  • Blood bags containing blue coloured blood
    Podcast

    Methaemoglobin and diaphorase 1

    19 January 2018

    Kat Arney discovers the biological chemistry behind a colourful blood disorder

  • Grenadine-based drinks
    Podcast

    Fructose

    21 December 2017

    Super-sweet and packed with preserving power, Mike Freemantle discovers that fructose can help keep things fresh long after the sell-by date

  • Free radical concept illustration
    Podcast

    TEMPO – (2,2,6,6-Tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl)oxyl

    15 December 2017

    Katrina Krämer speaks to organic chemist Daniel Allwood about a multi-talented molecule that proves that not all radicals live up to their name

  • Aluminium chloride AlCl3 anhydrous (yellow) with some AlCl3x6H2O (hexahydrate) white.
    Podcast

    Aluminium chloride

    7 December 2017

    Brian Clegg becomes a sleuth to investigate the uses of a deceptively simple Lewis acid