Looking for lithium in oil field brines is a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack. Yet retrieving this valuable metal makes sense in a place like Alberta, the heart of Canada’s oil and gas industry. Find out how it’s being done.
Read More >>Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan are working on an air filter to destroy viruses like the one that causes COVID-19. The idea is to capture airborne water droplets after someone coughs or sneezes, and to render viruses inside the droplets harmless by oxidizing them.
Read More >>Molly Shoichet is a University of Toronto chemical engineer who specializes in the study of polymers for drug delivery and tissue regeneration. Shoichet recently spoke with CICNews editor Sharon Oosthoek in advance of her plenary presentation at the CCEC conference in October.
Read More >>Scientists began reporting microplastic pollution in the ocean as far back as the 1970s but our understanding of these tiny particles’ impact on fish is only just catching up. Their harm is due to factors not generally considered in toxicology testing – the plastics’ size, shape and chemical makeup.
Read More >>Zafra Lerman is an American chemist and President of the Malta Conferences Foundation, which promotes peace by bringing together scientists from hostile countries to discuss science and foster collaboration. Lerman recently spoke with CICNews editor Sharon Oosthoek in advance of her plenary presentation at IUPAC CCCE 2021 in August.
Read More >>More than a year into a pandemic that has brought the world to its knees, the need to quickly and easily detect pathogens is indisputable. University of New Brunswick chemists examine the use of electrochemical sensors to quickly detect highly contagious diseases and biological weapons.
Read More >>Donald Sadoway is a materials chemistry professor at MIT who studies the scientific underpinnings for technologies that make efficient use of energy and natural resources in an environmentally sound manner. The overarching theme of his work is electrochemistry in nonaqueous media. Sadoway recently spoke with CICNews editor Sharon Oosthoek in advance of his plenary presentation at IUPAC CCCE 2021 in August.
Read More >>A glimpse into the world of Feiyue Wang, this year’s winner of our Environment Division R&D Dima Award Feiyue Wang, MCIC vividly recalls the first time a Twin Otter...
Read More >>The toll of pandemic-related plastic waste from discarded PPE is mounting at an alarming rate. Health Canada estimates that between June 2020 and June 2021, 63,000 tons of COVID-19 related PPE will end up as landfill waste. Researchers are investigating possibilities for disinfecting and reusing single-use PPE, including medical gloves and hospital gowns.
Read More >>Alison Flynn, MCIC is an associate professor in the department of chemistry and biomolecular sciences at the University of Ottawa. She leads the Flynn Research Group, focused on learning at...
Read More >>Sneaking medications past our bodies’ blood-brain barrier has always been tricky. McMaster University chemical engineer Todd Hoare recently teamed up with a group of neuroscientist colleagues to make an antipsychotic nasal spray that does just that. The spray could reduce the drug’s often nasty side effects, including weight gain, diabetes, movement disorders and organ damage.
Read More >>When Calgary-based food writer Julie Van Rosendaal asked followers in a social media post last month whether they too were finding butter was no longer soft at room temperature, her “buttergate” musings went viral. But the questions she raised about butter’s chemistry were perhaps just as intriguing as the media storm she unleashed.
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