Melody Voith

Building with Precaution

Posted by Melody Voith on November 11, 2009 in Chemistry is Everywhere, Where is C&EN?

I’m at GreenBuild 2009 in Phoenix, AZ this week. The very first event I attended was hosted by international architecture firm Perkins + Will. On Tuesday evening, the firm unveiled an online tool for architects – and the public – that highlights “chemicals that are listed by government agencies as having negative health issues and to associate them with the classes of building materials where they might be commonly found.”

The tool, called the Precautionary List, is intended to help professionals who are involved in specifying materials used in buildings to find alternatives to materials that are suspected of causing harm to human health and/or the environment. Perkins + Will Principal Robin Guenther explained in a panel discussion, “It’s hard to imagine that as architects we don’t know what’s in the material we build our buildings with. As licensed architects who are concerned with health, safety, and welfare, we exist in a soup – a stew- of product claims and misinformation.”

The Precautionary List is available free online. It allows users to browse by categories like chemical compounds, indoor air quality, flame retardants, or wood additives and treatments. There are categories that correspond to specifiers divisions or health affects like carcinogens or developmental toxicants. There is also a search option and an A-Z list. The first item in the A-Z list is arsenic, an elemental chemical used in wood treatments that is classified by EPA as a human carcinogen.

The allusion to the ethic of the precautionary principle was not an accident. The intention of the list is to provide information so that architects can strive to use less-toxic materials. However, the panel admitted that the science around actual human health effects of materials used in buildings is not always available. For example, bisphenol A is a suspected endocrine disrupter. But it is not clear to what extent humans are exposed to BPA in adhesives, coatings, paint and other building materials.

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Antimicrobial, Green Products Cause a Stink

Posted by Melody Voith on October 5, 2009 in Ripped From the Pages

Performance materials that go into apparel have really changed since Charles Macintosh marketed his raincoat. In addition to providing protection from drizzle, new performance apparel is now expected to keep us warm (or cool), non-sweaty, and fresh-smelling.

Comfortable performance is much appreciated by extreme outdoors people like mountain guide Todd Rutledge, as illustrated in this week’s cover story Materials for Adventure. Outdoor gear makers are also working hard to green their supply chain so that products made for people who appreciate nature won’t actually harm the environment.

But recent research and lawsuits suggest that the making and marketing of some of these advances is not completely straightforward. Many new antimicrobial fabrics, for example, are made with silver nanoparticles. But what is the eventual fate of these particles in the environment? Britt Erickson reports for C&EN that researchers have found, perhaps not surprisingly, that some of it washes into our water systems. The findings may mean that some manufacturers should think about reformulating their products so the silver particles stay bound to the fabric.

Killing microbes with your wardrobe is apparently all the rage these days. But when The North Face labeled some 70 styles of shoes as preventing bacterial and fungal growth, it found itself on the wrong side of the EPA. According to a Reuters news story, The North Face did not put any pesticide in the shoes, but it is accused of making “unverified health claims.” There was no word on the silver content of the footwear.

When apparel companies claim that their products are “green” they may catch the discriminating eye of the Federal Trade Commission, reports Greentech Media. The FTC is putting more oomph behind its new Green Guide for marking environmentally-friendly products. It recently cracked down on products advertising naturally-sourced fabric. The title of this recent press release tells the story: FTC Charges Companies with ‘Bamboo-zling’ Consumers with False Product Claims. Bamboo-based Textiles, Actually Made of Rayon, Are Not Antimicrobial, Made in an Environmentally Friendly Manner, or Biodegradable.

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The Chemistry Of BBQ

Posted by Melody Voith on August 17, 2009 in 2009 Fall National Meeting, ACS Meetings

One of the great things about ACS national meetings, in addition to the buffet of chemistry research, is the actual buffets.

On Monday night, the ACS Press Office hosted an evening dedicated to the myths and facts, dos and don’ts of grilling and barbecuing. Food (and drink) is always a popular topic, and scientific summer barbecue tips are sure to get some attention.

Our speakers for the evening were food scientist Sara Risch, and her co presenter Shirley Corriher, author of Cookwise and an upcoming book about the science of baking.

Although Sara and Shirley insist that there is no scientific basis for choosing between sweet tomato-y sauces and tangy vinegar ones, they did point out that taste science would direct you to pair sweet sauces with light wines. In contrast, the vinegar in your typical Carolina-style barbecue will assist in wiping the bitterness away from a wine with tannins or a hoppy beer.

While attendees gnawed on ribs and slurped coleslaw, the talk turned to the more serious topic of grilling your meats in ways least likely to cause cancer. Rookie grillers are often impatient and thrill to the sights and sounds of a high flame, thus charring their meat and leaving the inside raw. A Ph.D. in grilling requires mature coals and a slow cook. Less high heat and charring mean less of the possibly cancer-causing heterocyclic amines.

In addition to cooking “slow and low,” the experts now advise marinating meats in red wine and garlic, or rubbing on herbs and spices, all tasty additions that also help stop formation of dreaded carcinogens. Carnivores who eat their meat well done increase their risk of stomach cancer, so it’s key to avoid the gray-throughout look. “Don’t cremate your hamburgers in the backyard,” quipped Corriher.

Posted in 2009 Fall National Meeting, ACS Meetings | 4 Comments »

Innovation: We Know It When We See It

Posted by Melody Voith on June 25, 2009 in Where is C&EN?

Quick – think of an innovative product.

Good. Now think of an innovative service.

What popped into your head? I thought of the iPod and Netflix.

On Tuesday I sat in on a summit called The State of Innovation: Moving Beyond Boardroom and Lab, hosted by Seed Magazine and the Council on Competitiveness. The participants included Chad Holliday, former CEO of DuPont, biologist and writer E.O. Wilson, and digerati leader and investor Esther Dyson, among many other luminaries.

Wilson delighted the summit attendees with his insight on why being innovative is so darned hard. “We have Star Wars vision, Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions, and God-like technologies,” he said.

(more…)

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What Would Henry Ford Say?

Posted by Melody Voith on April 1, 2009 in Chemistry is Everywhere

If the government can fire the CEO of General Motors, pretty soon it will be telling car makers what colors their new models can come in, critics might suggest.

Think it can’t happen? As if car makers didn’t have enough problems lately, the California Air Resources Board is proposing that cars sold in the state come in any color but black. The problem, they say, is that paint colors that absorb solar energy encourage too much use of car air-conditioners, resulting in higher CO₂ emissions compared to cars with reflective colors.

The Board’s goal is to ensure that Californian cars reflect 20% of solar energy by the 2012 model year. Unfortunately for fans of black cars, like Batman or the late Henry Ford, that rules out true black as a choice. That is, for now.

Black is one of the three most popular car colors (according to DuPont, the other two are more climate friendly white and silver). And so it seems that demand for black cars might spur some improvements in coatings technology to avoid the situation where you have to stand in the parking lot with all four doors open whenever it’s sunny so the car can cool down to a temperature lower than the surface of the sun so you can get in it.

So, readers, riddle me this: How would you design a black paint that would meet the 20% reflectivity standard without adding other burdens that outweigh the environmental benefit (toxicity or weight, for example)?

Please enlighten us in the comment section.

Photo: Shutterstock

Posted in Chemistry is Everywhere | 2 Comments »

What’s In Your Company’s Wallet?

Posted by Melody Voith on February 5, 2009 in Ripped From the Pages

In my insights column this week, I write about how the economic crisis has brought laser-like attention to the issue of cash flow from executives and managers. These are the folks who usually spend their time discussing “growth strategies.”

Have you noticed that the bigwigs at your firm have taken a break from quoting Sun Tzu’s The Art of War in favor of Benjamin Franklin’s penny-pinching bromides? What this means to you is that you should take the time learn about your company’s cash position. Remember, over the long-term, positive cash flow is the key to staying in business.

If you know how to spend less than you get, you have the philosopher’s stone.

-Ben Franklin

Let’s look more closely at our example company, Albemarle, to learn where cash flow comes from.

Just like consumers who worry their income may decline in the future, companies in the chemical industry are looking to increase the money they have in the bank. In its fourth quarter earnings statement, Albemarle reported that it has $253.3 million in cash and cash-like equivalents. This figure is $46.1 million more than it had on September 30 (the end of the third quarter).

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Posted in Ripped From the Pages | 2 Comments »

For Love Of Squid

Posted by Melody Voith on August 1, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

Imagine being a deep-sea fisherman off the coast of northern Spain. You pull up your net and find yourself staring into the very large eye of a giant squid. So what do you do?

You get the U.S. Air Force to fly it to the National Museum of Natural History, in Washington, D.C. (You weren’t going to use it for bait, were you?) The Air Force nicknamed the mission “Operation Calamari.” They delivered two squid to D.C.–a 36-foot long, 330-lb female; and a 20-foot long, 100-lb male.

Thursday night, two C&EN reporters were treated to a preview of the preserved squid, which will be on display as part of the new Sant Ocean Hall, opening Sept. 27. Carmen Drahl (pictured) and I learned how 3M worked with museum experts to find a safe preservative that would display the cephalopods in all their tentacle-y glory.

Old-school squid preservers used formalin, not favored today due to its negative health effects, or ethyl alcohol, which is flammable and can degrade the specimen. Luckily, 3M learned of the museum’s quest for a better solution, and offered up Novec 7100 engineered fluid.

Novec has several qualities that make it fit the bill–it is nonflammable, low in toxicity, and gentle on the environment. The fluid is a hydrofluoroether with a low surface tension, and it is usually put to work cleaning very precise instruments, such as medical devices. It works well for museums, too, because it envelopes the specimens without penetrating the tissue.

The tour included a lovely dinner. Guess what they served?

Posted in Chemistry is Everywhere | 5 Comments »

Experimenting With Food

Posted by Melody Voith on June 30, 2008 in Chemistry and Food, Where is C&EN?

I’m in New Orleans at the International Food Technology show. Even before I left D.C., I made sure to tell everyone about it beforehand–“Did I tell you that I’m going to New Orleans for a food show?”–in order to inspire a little jealousy. So, I was having fun even before I got here.

But make no mistake, much like ACS meetings in New Orleans, this one is about The Science. The expo is enormous, and it covers the Alpha to Omega-3 of advances in formulating food with healthy or healthier ingredients.

Speaking of long-chain fatty acids, I met a longtime ACS member while he was trying brownies spiked with fish oil. (They were actually quite tasty.) Bryan Tungland (Isn’t that a great name for a food scientist?) says that if people want to spend less on health care and live longer, all they need to do is radically change their diets.

Almost every exhibitor had samples to try, but today, I am going to avoid the noshing. I got a little carried away yesterday and ended up with a heck of a stomachache.

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Professor Of Corn?

Posted by Melody Voith on April 16, 2008 in Chemistry and Food

It’s a common complaint that “there’s nothing good on TV”. Last night I was clicking through the channels–it was already 10 PM–when I came across a PBS Independent Lens film called “King Corn.”

The movie is about two young guys who drive to Iowa to learn about growing corn in the industrial farm age. I was already intrigued and was deciding whether to stay up and watch when I noticed that the filmmakers were interviewing my college chemistry professor. Steven A. Macko studies isotopes. And he can tell you what your diet consists of by analyzing your hair. “That’s my chemistry professor!” I yelled. “He analyzed my hair!”

Turns out, as “King Corn” illustrates in great and fascinating detail, that most Americans eat so much industry-grade corn in our processed food, soft drinks, and meat, that we are literally made out of corn.

If Steve analyzed your hair, what would he find? Keep in mind that he’s analyzed the diets of dinosaurs and ancient mummies with isotopic analysis. If you’ve been drinking too much Classic Coke, he’ll be able to tell.

You may still have a chance to see the film on your local PBS station. Check it out!

Posted in Chemistry and Food | 3 Comments »