Hot Issues in Chemistry

Biomimetic chemical signaling across synthetic microcapsule arrays

Using theory and simulation, Amitabh Bhattacharaya and Anna C. Balazs have designed a system of interacting microcapsules that effectively act like a relay: receiving a chemical signal from one capsule and transmitting this signal to another, so that a “message” is propagated over macroscopic distances. These configurations have the potential to be usedto design biomimetic chemical devices, including chemical oscillators, sensors and waveguides. Basically this means that they are replicating signals and are transmitting them through animal bodies. They send signals through tiny bubbles or capsules that are one beside another, and the signal is sent from one bubble to the next. This is transporting the signal through the body and telling it what to do.

http://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2010/JM/C0JM01682A

COIL (Chemical oxygen iodine laser)

Iodine Oxygen Is mainly used for a military laser called COIL. COIL, (Chemical oxygen iodine laser) is an infrared

chemical laser. Because beam is infrared, it cannot be seen with the naked eye. It is capable of output power scaling

up to megawatts in continuous mode. Its output wavelength is 1.315 µm, the wavelength of transition of atomic

iodine.

How It Works:

“The laser is fed with gaseous chlorine, molecular iodine, and an aqueous mixture of hydrogen peroxide and potassium hydroxide. The aqueous peroxide solution undergoes chemical reaction with chlorine, producing heat, potassium chloride, and oxygen in excited state, singlet delta oxygen. Spontaneous transition of excited oxygen to the triplet sigma ground state is forbidden giving the excited oxygen a spontaneous lifetime of about 45 minutes. This allows the singlet delta oxygen to transfer its energy to the iodine molecules injected to the gas stream; they are nearly resonant with the singlet oxygen, so the energy transfer during the collision of the particles is rapid. The excited iodine then undergoes stimulated emission and lasses at 1.315 µm in the optical region of the laser.”

EXTRA:

COIL was developed by the US Air Force in 1977, for military purposes. However, its properties make it useful for industrial processing as well; the beam is focusable and can be transferred by an optical fiber.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_oxygen_iodine_laser

Global Warming.

I think that the scientist and chemists around the world are doing a great job at what they do and making new inventions every day; but, they are not focusing a lot on a big problem, global warming. Yes, we are talking a lot about what can be done but we are not doing much. I have two easy tasks that the scientists and chemists should be able to do that will help our plaent earth tremendously. One of these is to fix the ozone. ozone, is a molecule called O3. o3 is what manyh drinking water factories use to clean the water. This ozone is kept in a small, but tightly sealed room as to not let the ozone escape. Scientists should