Tag Chemistry

New ‘green’ method to help upgrade biomass waste into valuable chemicals

April 23, 2013

University of Wisconsin–Madison chemists have identified an approach to use oxygen gas to convert lignin, a byproduct of biofuel production, into a form that could allow it to replace fossil fuels as a source of chemical feedstocks.

Ten faculty selected for Distinguished Teaching Awards

March 12, 2013

Ten University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty members have been chosen to receive this year’s Distinguished Teaching Awards.

Analytical trick may accelerate cancer diagnosis

February 24, 2013

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison have found a new way to accelerate a workhorse instrument that identifies proteins. The high-speed technique could help diagnose cancer sooner and point to new drugs for treating a wide range of conditions.

High-level commission discusses future of graduate education in the chemical sciences

February 5, 2013

Members of an American Chemical Society commission will discuss the need for radical changes to graduate education in the chemical sciences at a colloquium in Madison Feb. 7.

UW-Madison’s Trisha Andrew honored for energy research

December 19, 2012

Trisha Andrew, an assistant professor of chemistry at UW–Madison, has been named to Forbes magazine's 30 Under 30 in Energy. The list recognizes talented young innovators whose work holds potential for the energy landscape of the future.

Analytical tool is focus of spinoff firm

November 20, 2012

A new company making a high-speed, accurate and user-friendly instrument that reveals the molecular structure of proteins, drugs, and other important materials is the latest spinoff from the University of Wisconsin–Madison chemistry department.

Noted chemistry educator delivers Christmas ‘Science is Fun’ lectures

November 8, 2012

Chemistry Professor Bassam Shakhashiri will give his 43rd Christmas "Science is Fun" presentation Dec. 1 and 2 on the UW–Madison campus.

In static friction, chemistry is key to stronger bonds

November 6, 2012

Inspired by phenomena common to both earthquakes and atomic force microscopy, University of Wisconsin–Madison materials engineers have learned that chemical reactions between two silicon dioxide surfaces cause the bonds at that interface to "age," or strengthen gradually over time.

“Carbon playground” converts atoms into fun

October 30, 2012

A new playground that opened Oct. 25 at the Discovery Center Museum in Rockford, Ill. is the first in the world built around unique structures formed by the element carbon.

Compounds shown to thwart stubborn pathogen’s social propensity

August 21, 2012

Acinetobacter baumanni, a pathogenic bacterium that is a poster child of deadly hospital acquired infections, is one tough customer.

High-speed method to aid search for solar energy storage catalysts

May 25, 2012

Eons ago, nature solved the problem of converting solar energy to fuels by inventing the process of photosynthesis.

UW-Madison chemists win awards at American Chemical Society

April 12, 2012

Four of the most significant awards in chemistry were awarded to University of Wisconsin–Madison professors in a ceremony at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society in San Diego.

Two UW–Madison researchers awarded prestigious Sloan Fellowships

February 22, 2012

Two members of the University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty are among 126 scientists from around the country who have been awarded prestigious Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowships.

Mother of pearl tells a tale of ocean temperature, depth

February 16, 2012

Nacre -- or mother of pearl, scientists and artisans know, is one of nature's amazing utilitarian materials.

Howard Zimmerman, pioneer in organic chemistry, dies at 85

February 16, 2012

Howard Zimmerman, a professor of chemistry from 1960 until his retirement in 2010, died on Saturday, Feb. 11 as a result of a fall.

Christmas Lecture, a Madison holiday tradition, returns

November 17, 2011

Chemistry Professor Bassam Z. Shakhashiri will celebrate a 42-year tradition with his holiday demonstration, “Once Upon a Christmas Cheery in the Lab of Shakhashiri.”

UW professors honored by American Chemical Society

November 8, 2011

Four University of Wisconsin–Madison professors have won awards from the American Chemical Society (ACS) in recognition of research excellence. They will be honored at a ceremony next March at the society’s 243rd national meeting in San Diego.

American Chemical Society honors UW–Madison professors

October 11, 2011

Four UW–Madison professors have won awards from the American Chemical Society in recognition of research excellence.

UW–Madison researchers win White House science award

September 29, 2011

The White House has named a pair of University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers and a recent alumnus to a list of the country's most promising researchers.

Study reveals critical similarity between two types of do-it-all stem cells

September 11, 2011

Ever since human induced pluripotent stem cells were first derived in 2007, scientists have wondered whether they were functionally equivalent to embryonic stem cells, which are sourced in early stage embryos.