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Rolled out raw cookie dough with three round cookies and their corresponding holes. There is a fourth round hole being cut out but the cookie cutter but the cookie is star-shaped.

Feature

The curious case of disappearing polymorphs

2026-04-13T10:15:00+01:00

From crystallographers’ beards to billion-dollar lawsuits, the phenomenon of disappearing polymorphs has puzzled chemists for decades. Now researchers are finally unravelling the science behind why stable crystal forms suddenly vanish – and discovering how to bring them back

Rolled out raw cookie dough with three round cookies and their corresponding holes. There is a fourth round hole being cut out but the cookie cutter but the cookie is star-shaped.

Feature

The curious case of disappearing polymorphs

From crystallographers’ beards to billion-dollar lawsuits, the phenomenon of disappearing polymorphs has puzzled chemists for decades. Now researchers are finally unravelling the science behind why stable crystal forms suddenly vanish – and discovering how to bring them back

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Rolled out raw cookie dough with three round cookies and their corresponding holes. There is a fourth round hole being cut out but the cookie cutter but the cookie is star-shaped.

The curious case of disappearing polymorphs

From crystallographers’ beards to billion-dollar lawsuits, the phenomenon of disappearing polymorphs has puzzled chemists for decades. Now researchers are finally unravelling the science behind why stable crystal forms suddenly vanish – and discovering how to bring them back

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A firefighter sprays foam from a hose over a blaze on some chemical containers

Innovative SMEs and start-ups can be the Change Makers we need to tackle PFAS

The Royal Society of Chemistry is offering support to early-stage ventures that aim to solve problems associated with forever chemicals

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How my master’s reshaped my view on higher education chemistry

After three relentless undergraduate years, the fourth year provided space to immerse myself in the subject

A cartoon of a man and a woman both wearing lab coats on a balanced set of scales. They are both standing on piles of coins but the man's pile is a lot higher.

Women and early-career researchers bore the burden of NIH’s funding disruptions

Almost 58% of the studies the US National Institutes of Health suddenly cancelled last year were female-led

A single water droplet creates ripples on a serene lake surface at sunset

Two states of water & science sleuths

In this episode, we discuss the two-state model of water, how science sleuths are fighting disinformation, and hear the latest headlines.