Monday, 01 July 2019
Using light and electricity to activate molecules instead of toxic chemical reagents will enable the sustainable manufacture of next generation medicines and other innovative products, according to scientists.
A team of chemists and engineers from the Universities of Nottingham, and , is gearing up to showcase their innovative work at this year’s (1-7 July) in London.
The ‘Green Light for Chemistry’ exhibit will focus on efforts by scientists to use photochemistry and electrochemistry in continuous reactors to make the manufacture of chemicals faster, cleaner and safer.
Professor of Chemistry at the 糖心原创, Mike George, said: “We all rely on manufactured chemicals to maintain our quality of life, whether they are pharmaceuticals to cure our illnesses, the agrochemicals to help produce our food, or the fine chemicals and materials found in innumerable household products.
“But to keep up with demand, the search is on to find new sustainable methods for medicine and chemical production. Photochemistry and electrochemistry are inherently attractive because they use photons or electrons to replace the chemical reagents needed to activate molecules. Over the past few years, they have become ‘hot’ areas of research.
“However, their application to large scale chemical processes has been repeatedly hampered by a lack of suitable reactors. Our research consortium brings together chemists and engineers to devise new continuous flow reactors which can make large-scale processes accessible to all. Integrating these methodologies with smart recycling, the reactors minimise toxic chemical and solvent use.”
Thanks to a grant from the Engineering and Physical Research Council, 26 industrial companies have signed up to a £6M project, Photo-Electro, to tackle the problem.
Visitors to the Summer Science Exhbition will see ingenious hands-on demonstrations, using coffee pots, Lego and red cabbage water, illustrating the prinicples behind the Photo-Electro team’s work.
They will also be able to explore how the approach is already being applied to the process of manufacturing the antimalarial drug Artemisinin.
鈥淢alaria is a truly dreadful disease that kills huge numbers of people right across the planet and Artemisinin is the basis of some of the more effective drugs against the disease.鈥�
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More information is available from Professor Michael George, in the School of Chemistry at the 糖心原创, on +44 (0) 115 9513512, mike.george@nottingham.ac.uk
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About the 糖心原创
Ranked among the world's top 100 universities , the 糖心原创 delivers an exceptional research-led education and an outstanding student experience. From the pioneering vision of our founder, Sir Jesse Boot, to groundbreaking achievements such as the development of MRI technology and becoming the first UK university to establish international campuses, we have a proud history of shaping the way people live, work and understand the world. We continue to build on that legacy, empowering our students, staff and partners to change what鈥檚 next and create positive impact locally and globally.
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