Safety in the Lab
A Catalyst article about practical chemistry experiments and the risks involved. The article helps in identifying, assessing and controlling the risks involved, it also includes a guide to the warning signs, labels and symbols used in laboratories. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2004, Volume 15, Issue 1. Catalyst…
Chemistry in a Blast Furnace
A Catalyst article about chemical reactions that occur in a blast furnace during the steelmaking process. This short article features a diagram of a blast furnace showing the active ingredients used to produce iron from ore. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2006, Volume 16, Issue 3. Catalyst is a science magazine…
Gertrude B. Elion
A Catalyst article about the life and work of Gertrude B. Elion a pioneer in anti-viral drugs. The ground breaking research methodology she used and her work in creating and investigating purine compounds lead to the development of drugs which are used in the treatment of leukaemia. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science…
Forensic Science - Careers
A Catalyst article about careers in forensic science covering the work of the reporting officer. The article explains what it takes to become a forensic scientist and what qualities are required to join this profession. This article is from Catalyst: GCSE Science Review 2005, Volume 16, Issue 1. Catalyst is a science magazine…
Fats, Oils and Soaps
A Catalyst article investigating a few of the uses of naturally occurring oils. These oils are extracted from animal fats or plant seeds and can be turned into a variety of compounds including soaps, fuel and margarine. The article looks at oils as fuels, their use in paint and detergents and problems with their use. This article…
Alchemy
A Catalyst article about alchemy, the study of eternal life, salvation, and the answer to the ultimate questions about life, the universe and everything. It flourished for more than 1500 years until, in the late 1600s, the beginnings of modern, scientific chemistry edged it aside. The article looks at what was alchemy and who the…
Cool Chemistry
A Catalyst article about the work of a scientist from the British Antarctic Survey, gathering data about climate change by studying ice cores from Antarctica. One of the areas of research was to find out whether it is possible to learn how much sea ice there was around Antarctica in the past by measuring how much sea salt is in ice…
Catalysts
A Catalyst article about how catalysts affect the rate of reactions and why catalysts are important in nature and in industry. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2008, Volume 18, Issue 3. Catalyst is a science magazine for students aged 14-19 years. Annual subscriptions to print copies of the magazine can…
What Is Chemistry?
A Catalyst article about the many roles of chemists at work. The links with biology, physics and geology are examined as are many other subjects. The article looks at some of the areas in which chemists work and it explores what makes it distinctive from other sciences. This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2009,…
Natural Born Healers
A Catalyst article providing examples of some drugs derived from natural substances. Many drugs which are commonly used today are similar to naturally occurring compounds which have been used for centuries to treat illnesses. Chemists have identified and purified these substances. By determining their molecular structures they can…
Careers in the Pharmaceutical Industry
This Catalyst article describes the work of five young people who work in the pharmaceutical industry. The industry employs more than 70 000 people in the UK in a variety of roles including drug development and scientific research, manufacturing and making the medicines, IT, statistics, testing the drugs and clinical trials, human…
Process Chemistry
A Catalyst article describing how process chemists work in the pharmaceutical industry, devising methods of making new drugs. Process chemists are a link in the chain from an initial idea to a new drug making it to the market. It generally takes at least 10 years from an idea by a medicinal chemist to a new treatment for patients…
Dorothy Hodgkin - a Life in Science
A Catalyst article about Dorothy Hodgkin who was a pioneering scientist, a peace activist, a mother of three and a Nobel Prize winner. The article looks at her life and work in science. She did valuable work as an X-ray crystallographer and in finding the structure of biologically important molecules such as antibiotic penicillin…
Chemistry in a Cage
This Catalyst article explains how zeolites, sponge-like materials developed from naturally occurring minerals, are used as chemical sieves and as catalysts. Zeolites have incredibly widespread applications. They are used in consumer products such as washing powder and cat litter while many of the petrochemicals used to make plastics…