AI and automation in chemistry

This special collection explores the ways that machine-assisted methods are changing both how chemistry is done and what it means to be a chemist

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Artificial intelligence predicted structures

AlphaFold works with other AI tools to go from target to hit molecule in 30 days

By

End-to-end AI drug discovery process predicts potential inhibitors for a protein implicated in liver cancer

Chemicals waste

Assembling the UN’s new panel on chemical waste

By

Discussions are underway to agree funding, goals and procedures to create an IPCC for pollution

Artificial intelligence

AI model accurately classifies reaction mechanisms

By

Machine learning ‘surpasses chemist experts’ in identifying chemical processes

News

Michelle Donelan

New UK government science department created in cabinet reshuffle

2023-02-08T09:30:00+00:00

Science leaders call for new secretary of state Michelle Donelan to make resolving Horizon Europe dispute a top priority

Johnson's baby powder

J&J subsidiary claims key talc research is fraudulent

2023-02-06T15:58:00+00:00

Complaint alleges study that helped link talc to cancer contained false information

Alex and Dr Ren in the robotics lab

Encoding creativity in drug discovery

2023-02-06T10:00:00+00:00

Machine learning can complement and reinforce human intuition and experience

Deforestation

Resource conflict likely to expand as world heads into ‘low-cooperation era’

2023-02-06T09:30:00+00:00

Critical metals such as cobalt and vanadium could be fought over in the near future, World Economic Forum report claims

Plastic waste

Plastics need a complete redesign to make them easier to recycle, researchers argue

2023-02-03T09:31:00+00:00

Thousands of chemicals used in plastics makes creating a truly circular economy far harder

Research

Tetraquinoline

Tetraquinoline is the newest member of the nitrogen macrocycle family

2023-02-07T14:30:00+00:00

The new saddle-shaped macrocycle shows catalytic activity and affinity to zinc cations

High resolution microscope image

Super-resolution microscopy ditches fluorescent tags for gentler imaging of live cells

2023-02-07T09:30:00+00:00

Infrared laser technique could deliver benefits for study of cells’ biochemistry

Structure

Four new bonds to one carbon atom, in a single step

2023-02-02T19:01:00+00:00

Accidental discovery shows that N-heterocyclic carbenes can act as sources of atomic carbon

Stretchable and hermetic seals for LIBs

Flexible batteries kept stable with stretchy metallic films

2023-02-02T19:01:00+00:00

Liquid metals that block out air and water could improve the lifetime of stretchable electronics

Plastic bag floating in the ocean

Bacterium may help answer mystery of ‘missing’ plastic in the seas

2023-02-02T14:30:00+00:00

Plastic-eating bacteria and sunlight may partly explain why there’s less plastic waste in the oceans than predicted

Voice of the Royal Society of Chemistry

Anju-Massey-Brooker-PLFs-2

The roadmap to a sustainable future for polymers

Voice of , by

Solvent bottles

Themed collection: Sustainable Laboratories

Voice of

Sustainable labs

The Sustainable Laboratories report

Voice of

Anju Massey-Booker

Sustainability applies to all polymers, not just plastics

Voice of , by

  • The roadmap to a sustainable future for polymers

  • Themed collection: Sustainable Laboratories

  • The Sustainable Laboratories report

  • Sustainability applies to all polymers, not just plastics

Significant figures

Celebrating science's forgotten heroes

Betty Harris

Betty Wright Harris’s explosive career

Masataka Ogawa

Masataka Ogawa and the search for nipponium

Elizabeth Fulhame

Elizabeth Fulhame, the 18th century chemistry pioneer who faded from history

William Knox Jr

William Knox, the only Black supervisor in the Manhattan Project

Margaret Melhase

Margaret Melhase Fuchs and the radioactive isotope

Prafulla Chandra Ray

PC Ray: A genius chemist who dreamed of a modern India

  • Betty Wright Harris’s explosive career

  • Masataka Ogawa and the search for nipponium

  • Elizabeth Fulhame, the 18th century chemistry pioneer who faded from history

  • William Knox, the only Black supervisor in the Manhattan Project

  • Margaret Melhase Fuchs and the radioactive isotope

  • PC Ray: A genius chemist who dreamed of a modern India

More...

Features

Get started with lab automation

How to automate your lab

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Whether it’s robots, automation or software hacks, Nessa Carson finds ways for everyone to improve how they work in the lab

The future of AI in chemistry

What does AI mean for chemistry?

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Phil Ball looks at whether letting machines do our thinking for us will change our understanding of chemistry itself

Robot synthesis

The robots revolutionising chemistry

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Researchers working with automated systems are pushing the boundaries of what chemists can achieve in the lab, reports James Mitchell Crow

Salmon fillets

Omega-3s and brain health

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Modern diets can leave us short on essential fatty acids. Barbara Pinho looks into how this is affecting our health and our brains in particular

Upcoming webinars

A modern robotic arm works on an assembly line

Robots in the lab – learn how automation can streamline your workflow

  • Robots in the lab – learn how automation can streamline your workflow