September 2009

l’actualité chimique canadienne canadian chemical news ACCN

September|septembre • 2009 • Vol. 61, No./n o 8

Ethics:

Moral Principles for better Chemistry A Publication of the Chemical Institute of Canada and Constituent Societies / Une publication de l’institut de chimie du canada et ses sociétés constituantes

Contents

September|Septembre • 2009 • Vol. 61, No./n o 8

30 Feature

22

26

14

Departments

Ethics and Nano Discourse

By Gregor Wolbring

Articles

4

Guest Column Chroniqueur invité

20

Chemical Interventions and Ethical Side-Effects

6

News Nouvelles

22

The Chemistry of Car Painting

10

Industrial Briefs

26

The Demise of Radiochemistry

By Joe Schwarcz, MCIC

Chemfusion

28

Is Arsenic an Aphrodisiac?

34

Recognition reconnaissance

30

Thinking It Through: The Immiscibility of Recession and Research

38

Events Événements

12

By Murray McLaughlin

By Frederic Gilbert and Simon Outram

By Paul Henshaw

By Don Wiles, FCIC

By David Harpp, FCIC

By Ovie Ekewenu, MCIC

32

Demystifying Chemicals for the Public

By Lucie Frigon

www.accn.ca

ACCN

Guest Column Chroniqueur invité

Executive Director/Directeur général Roland Andersson, MCIC Editor/Rédactrice en chef Terri Pavelic Staff Writer/rédacteur Lee Flhor

Towards a Future Sustainable Society

By Murray McLaughlin

I

recently began working with the Sustainable Chemistry Alliance (SCA) as CEO. It is a not-forprofit business with a mandate to facilitate the commercialization of sustainable chemistry in Canada. The SCA is headquartered in Sarnia, ON, the heart of the Canadian chemical industry for many years. To start, I need to put sustainable chemistry in the right context and how it ties in with “clean and green” chemistry. Sustainability can be either clean or green. All businesses today are looking for ways to reduce their environmental footprint and be sustainable in the long term. Therefore, clean and green technologies can fit their needs in meeting this long term strategy. SCA can be a catalyst to help facilitate the movement to sustainability.

Interestingly the chemical industry in Sarnia has been involved in this aspect of the industry for many years having established the first “Responsible Care” activity in the 1950s. This is a concept that today cuts across every industry. Ethics plays a significant role in the continued evolution of today’s industry. Traditionally, the approach to risk management related to chemicals has been through interventions intended to reduce exposure to products that are hazardous to health and the environment. Today, there is a new approach emerging. It intends to eliminate the hazard itself, rather than focusing on reducing risk by minimizing exposure. This approach is often referred to as sustainable or green chemistry and has been accepted by many of today’s chemists and engineers who have the responsibility of creating and processing new materials.

The American Chemistry Society has developed a Green Chemistry Institute within their society. The Institute has developed “The Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry” which is focused on reinventing chemistry and its natural inputs, products and waste.

Green sustainable chemistry can and will contribute to achieving sustainability in three key areas: • Renewable energy technologies will be a central pillar of a high-technology sustainable society; • Polluting technologies must be replaced with benign alternatives that become innocuous and do not persist; • The reagents used by the chemical industry today mostly derived from oil, must increasingly be obtained from renewable sources to reduce our dependence on fossilized carbon.

These three areas are covered in the twelve principles of the Green Chemistry Institute, and I believe all of us involved in sustainable chemistry need to be aware of them. Sustainable/ green chemistry is bringing chemistry centre stage and creating a new dynamic for chemists— balancing economic benefits with ethical and environmental aspects of chemistry. This balance is critical to success as we move toward a sustainable future for the world.

The SCA is a new organization focused on commercialization of new sustainable technologies. As part of reviewing new projects, the SCA will definitely take into account all aspects of a new technology—ethics, science, environmental and economic. With initial funding from the Centres of Excellence for Research Commercialization, the SCA is positioned to invest funds in partnership with others over the next four years, targeted at emerging technologies in the sustainable chemistry sector. This is one area that cuts across agriculture, forestry and environment as sources for chemistry for energy, food and materials of the biobased economy of the 21st Century. ACCN Murray McLaughlin is CEO of the Sustainable Chemistry Alliance

Contributing writers/collaborateurs Simon Dyer Ovie Ekewenu Lucie Frigon Frederic Gilbert David Harpp Paul Henshaw Simon Outram Don Wiles Gregor Wolbring Graphic Designer/Infographiste Krista Leroux Communications manager/ Directrice des communications Lucie Frigon Marketing Manager/ Directrice du marketing Bernadette Dacey Awards and Local Sections Manager/ Directrice des prix et des sections locales Gale Thirlwall Editorial Board/Conseil de rédaction Joe Schwarcz, MCIC, chair/président Cathleen Crudden, MCIC John Margeson, MCIC Milena Sejnoha, MCIC Bernard West, MCIC Editorial Office/ Bureau de la rédaction 130, rue Slater Street, Suite/bureau 550 Ottawa, ON K1P 6E2 613-232-6252 • Fax/Téléc. 613-232-5862 editorial@accn.ca • www.accn.ca Advertising/Publicité advertising@accn.ca Subscription Rates/Tarifs d’abonnement Non CIC members/Non-membres de l’ICC : in/au Canada CAN$60; outside/à l’extérieur du Canada US$60. Single copy/Un exemplaire CAN$10 or US$10.

L’Actualité chimique canadienne/Canadian Chemical News (ACCN) is published 10 times a year by the Chemical Institute of Canada / est publié 10 fois par année par l’Institut de chimie du Canada. www.cheminst.ca.

Recommended by the Chemical Institute of Canada, the Canadian Society for Chemistry, the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering, and the Canadian Society for Chemical Technology.

Views expressed do not necessarily represent the official position of the Institute or of the societies that recommend the magazine.

Recommandé par l’Institut de chimie du Canada, la Société canadienne de chimie, la Société canadienne de génie chimique et la Société canadienne de technologie chimique.

Les opinions exprimées ne reflètent pas nécessairement la position officielle de l’Institut ou des sociétés qui soutiennent le magazine.

Change of Address/ Changement d’adresse circulation@cheminst.ca Printed in Canada by Gilmore Printing Services Inc. and postage paid in Ottawa, ON./ Imprimé au Canada par Gilmore Printing Services Inc. et port payé à Ottawa, ON. Publications Mail Agreement Number/ No de convention de la Poste-publications : 40021620. (USPS# 0007-718) Indexed in the Canadian Business Index and available on-line in the Canadian Business and Current Affairs database. / Répertorié dans la Canadian Business Index et accessible en ligne dans la banque de données Canadian Business and Current Affairs.

4 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

septembre 2009

ISSN 0823-5228

News Nouvelles famous MP3 player, puts MSDS, as well as structural and property information for over 30 million chemicals, right into the hands of researchers.

The application can be downloaded from the iTunes application store at no cost to the user.

Symyx Technologies

New UBC Technology Addresses Looming Phosphorus Shortage

Chemistry That’ll Move and Groove A new application developed by Symyx Technologies is taking the power of the ChemSpider’s online database and putting it onto your MP3 player.

“ChemMobi is a useful and convenient tool for chemists, biochemists, and anyone else interested in accessing chemical structures and associated information while on the move,” Trevor Heritage, president of Symyx Software, said in a press release. “By integrating mobile communications with new chemical information services from Symyx, we've opened up exciting opportunities for scientists to receive immediate answers to their chemistry questions, no matter where they are.”

The application, designed exclusively for iPhones and iPod Touch versions of the

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have discovered a way to recover phosphorus from sewage, curbing the threat of a global shortage of the valuable natural resource.

Estimates suggest the global supply of mined phosphorus could be gone in as little as 35 years.

“Everyone has heard about peak oil. Soon you'll be hearing about peak phosphate. It's another major sustainability issue looming on the horizon,” University of British Columbia, environmental engineer, Don Mavinic, said in an NSERC press release.

Together with research associate Fred Koch, they began their decade long research project, looking for ways to prevent the build up of a phosphorus product—struvite— which is a multi-million dollar problem for sewage treatment plants when it accumulates on the infrastructure.

The first full scale operation recently went into application in Portland, at Oregon's Durham Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility. The resulting green-fertilizer will be sold under the trade name “Crystal Green”

by Vancouver-based Ostra Nutrient Recovery Technologies.

The pilot plant was placed at Edmonton’s Gold Bar wastewater treatment plant and has been successfully harvesting the highquality, slow-release fertilizer. An expansion is being planned that would expand phosphorus recovery in Edmonton.

NSERC

Videos Released Show Progress at Chalk River Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL) has released new videos, documenting the progress it has made since its facilities at Chalk River were shut down this past May. The videos show some of the work that must be done to the reactor before the actual repair can begin, including how sound waves are being used to measure the thickness of the reaction vessel walls.

The videos have been released as part of the AECL’s National Research Universal Return to Service Plan, developed to keep stakeholders notified about the NRU Return to Service Plan.

CNW Group Ltd.

NEW This award replaces the previous Environmental Improvement­Award.

The new award was established by the CIC Environment­ Division in 2009.

Recognizes individuals for distinguished contributions to the field of environmental chemistry or environmental chemical engineering, while working in Canada.



Chemical Institute of Canada

6 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

septembre 2009

Deadline for application for the 2010 award

October 1, 2009

For details about the award and information on how to nominate, visit www.cheminst.ca/awards or e-mail

awards@cheminst.ca.

News Nouvelles “We recognize the challenges of implementing this vision,” Richard Paton, president of CCPA, said in a press release. “But a firm commitment to upgrading bitumen here in Canada is a step towards what we hope will be a sufficient series of projects that in the aggregate will represent world-scale feedstock opportunities for the petrochemical industry.”

The petrochemical sector in Alberta contributes more than $13 billion toward the economy annually. By reorganizing the industry, they allow more coal to be upgraded, increasing its value by as much as 40 times.

The move is expected to generate more skilled labour opportunities and expands the Alberta economy, generating wealth for both Albertans and Canadians.

Chemical Producers’ Association of Canada (CCPA)

Pending Lawsuits Trigger Operations Suspension New Genetically Engineered Corn Authorized Without Proper Testing The Canadian Biotechnology Action Network (CBAN) has demanded that Health Canada conduct independent tests on the safety of a new type of genetically-engineered corn developed by Monsanto and Dow AgroSciences.

CBAN has also demanded the crop be removed from the market until exhaustive research has been completed on the genetically-engineered crop.

“Health Canada did not conduct or require any testing for this new eight-trait genetically engineered corn and did not even officially authorize it for release into the food system,” Lucy Sharratt, CBAN's coordinator, said in a press release. “Health Canada has entirely abdicated its responsibility and just shrugged off the potential health risks of eating eight genetically engineered traits in one corn flake.”

“Smart Stax,” a genetically engineered corn, is a multi-herbicide-tolerant and

multi-insecticide­­-producing corn that has been authorized by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, but not Health Canada.

CBAN said the move was against regulations set up by the World Trade Organization to test genetically-engineered crops, and could leave Canada without the protection of the WTO, should a dispute arise and the crop be rejected by a trade partner.

CBAN

Alberta’s Plan to Maximize Bitumen Value Endorsed by the CCPA The Canadian Chemical Producers’ Association of Canada (CCPA) has endorsed Alberta’s new plan to manage the province’s bitumen resources. The portfolio approach taken will see the resource divided in thirds, with a portion going to upgrading, while the rest is divided equally between refined and unrefined sales markets.

Operations at the Luyuan Chemical Co. Ltd. have been temporarily suspended by Canadian company McVicar Industries Inc. while they address lawsuits related to the company’s acquisition in 2008.

The plaintiffs are suing for approximately $700,000 in unpaid loans and interest which they say are owed to them, by McVicar and its company, Zhejiang Hongbo Chemical Co. Ltd., who acquired their 80 percent equity interest in Luyuan Chemical Co. Ltd. early last year.

The Luyuan Chemical Co Ltd. said the debts were accrued. The previous shareholder, who is also listed as a co-defendent in the case, has guaranteed all existing and contingent liabilities prior to its acquisition.

A press release issued by McVicar said the closure will not affect current supply, as they have stockpiles for the next six months.

Operations will remain suspended until all pending lawsuits are settled.

The company also said current market conditions, including an order delay from a U.S. customer, have also contributed to the temporary suspension.

CNW Group

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 7

News Nouvelles Released jointly with the US-based Center for Health, Environment and Justice, the guide provides people with alternatives to products that contain PVC. “The release of this guide comes just in time for back-to-school shopping, and will help parents avoid filling their children's backpacks with toxic products,” Rick Smith, Executive Director of Environmental Defence, said in a press release.

In order to make the PVC stable and pliable, it is treated with additives including phthalates, lead, and cadmium.

These chemicals can evaporate or leech out of the PVC and when absorbed by the body, are associated with liver damage as well as damage to the respiratory, reproductive and central nervous systems.

“This guide was created to help parents make informed choices when it comes to back-toschool shopping by suggesting alternatives and offering tips,” Smith said. “Given that many safer PVC-free products are available, parents should try to avoid products made of this chemical concoction wherever­ possible.”

CNW

New Government Investment Targets Local Emissions Programs The Government of Canada has committed $970,000 to help Canadians curb vehicle emissions. The investment will help nine organizations in five provinces educate drivers about increasing fuel efficiency while decreasing emissions, primarily through idling reduction.

“During the summer months, when families are taking advantage of their vacation, it is most important that we practice smart driving techniques to keep our air clean,” the Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Natural Resources, said in a press release. “This investment will help Canadians to reduce emissions by adopting driving habits that lower fuel consumption.”

8 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

The program targets local programs, including a Langley, B.C., program, which is using “anti-idling” ambassadors to educate drivers about the benefits of turning off their vehicle instead of idling.

The investment is part of the Federal Government’s ecoENERGY for Personal Vehicles Program. The program is also supporting local projects in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Manitoba.

Natural Resources Canada

Vinyl School Supplies Pose Toxic Risk For Children A guide released by Canada’s Environmental Defence said parents should avoid purchasing school supplies that contain the compound polyvinyl chloride.

septembre 2009

New Technology Saving Money, Increasing Time, and Large on Small Researchers at UCLA have developed a microchip capable of carrying out more than one thousand reactions simultaneously. The technology uses in situ click chemistry, a technique often used for identifying potential drug candidates.

“The precious enzyme molecules required for a single in situ click reaction in a traditional lab now can be split into hundreds of duplicates for performing hundreds of reactions in parallel,” study author Hsian-Rong Tseng, said in a UCLA issued press release.

“It’s revolutionizing the laboratory process, reducing reagent consumption and accelerating the process for identifying potential drug candidates.”

Using mass spectrometry, the team tested the microchip using bovine carbonic anhydrase and was able to effectively identify potent inhibitors to the enzyme.

UCLA Newsroom



Continuing Education for Chemical Professionals

Laboratory Safety course 2009 Schedule October 5–6

Edmonton, AB

T

he Chemical Institute of Canada

(CIC) and the Canadian Society for Chemical Technology (CSCT) are

• Introduction • Occupational Health and Safety Legislation

the knowledge and working experience of

• Safety Policies, Training and Audits

chemical technologists and chemists. All course

• Hazard Classification Systems

participants receive the CIC’s Laboratory Health

• WHMIS, NIOSH, and beyond

and Safety Guidelines, 4th edition. This course is

• Hazardous Materials

intended for those whose responsibilities include

• Flammable and Combustible Materials

improving the operational safety of chemical laboratories, managing laboratories, chemical

Registration fees

audits of laboratories and chemical plants. During

$550 CIC members $750 non-members $150 student members

the course, participants are provided with an

www.cheminst.ca/ profdev

1

presenting a two—day course designed to enhance

plants or research facilities, conducting safety

For more information about the course and locations, and to access the registration form, visit:

 Day

integrated overview of current best practices in laboratory safety.

• Corrosive Chemicals • Toxic Materials • Reactive Materials • Insidious Hazards • Compressed Gases • Cryogenic Liquids • Radiation

 Day

2

• Physical Hazards

Instructor Eric Mead, FCIC, a former instructor with the chemical technology program at SIAST, has taught and practised laboratory workplace safety for more than 30 years. A former chair of the Chemical Institute of Canada, Mead has been commended for his work on behalf of the chemical industry.

• Fire • Glassware • Electrical Hazards • Machinery • Storage • Chemical Storage • Chemical Inventory • Storage Methods for Specific Hazard Classifications • Chemical Spills and Waste Disposal • Spill Containment and Cleanup



“The chemical field and profession are

• Spill Control Kits

built on a foundation­of trust with society­.

• Properties of Wastes

An integral part of that trust is the safe

• Large Chemical Spills

operation­of facilities­including­laboratories­,

• Hazard Assessment and Control

whether industrial­, academic­or government.

• Identification and Control

The education­of engineers­, scientists and

• Eye and Face Protection

technologists­must reflect that level of trust.

• Head, Feet and Body Protection

We all share in the responsibility­for safe

• Hearing and Breathing Protection

and ethical research­, chemical processing

• Fume Hoods and HVAC

and analysis.­" —Eric Mead

• Machinery

Canadian Society for Chemical Technology

Industrial Briefs

News Nouvelles

Young Chemists Excel at Chemistry Olympiad A group of young chemists are back in Canada after a successful showing during the International Chemistry Olympiad, hosted by the University of Cambridge. The four high school students captured one silver, and three bronze medals.

“It's a real challenge for them,” Andy Dicks, University of Toronto lecturer and Team Canada coach, said in a press release.

“It's the first time they have really been stretched academically.”

Students under the age of 20, with no previous university experience, are tested on material equivalent to that of a second, or third year chemistry undergraduate.

250 students from six countries participated in this year’s Olympiad. The first Olympiad was held in 1968, and has been held annually­ since.

The University of Toronto

U of T ranks as One of the World’s Most Cited Institutions The University of Toronto is among the world’s most cited universities according to a rankings list prepared by ScienceWatch.com.

“Coming on the heels of U of T’s ranking in Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan (HEEACT), this finding by ScienceWatch also confirms that our researchers have a huge impact and compete with the best in the world,” Paul Young, vice president Research for the University of Toronto, said in a press release. “Based purely on the number of citations for papers published, it's a further quantitative affirmation of our world-class research performance.”

U of T was the only Canadian university on the list ranked 13.

Researchers Frances Shepherd, Charles Boone and Geoffrey Ozin were among those who had the greatest share of the more than 55,000 citations.

Shepherd is world-renowned for his research in inorganic material chemistry and is the Canada Research Chair in materials chemistry.

Harvard University topped the list, while institutions including Yale, Columbia and Oxford ranked below U of T. CNW Group Ltd.

ACCN Send the latest

news to editorial@accn.ca 10 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

septembre 2009

Beckman Coulter has completed its acquisition of Olympus’ lab-based diagnostics business. "The completion of this transaction adds considerable product depth and significantly expands our geographic reach and scale. We are confident that the combination of Olympus diagnostics with our business will provide many cross-selling opportunities—the most compelling being promotion of Beckman Coulter's leading immunoassay products to the loyal base of Olympus' chemistry customers.” Scott Garrett, chairman, president, and chief executive officer, said in a press release. The deal, which was announced in February of this year, was worth approximately US $780 million.

Bioniche Life Science Inc. has announced that Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. has obtained the exclusive rights to develop and market UrocidinTM, Bioniche’s new treatment for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. “Endo Pharmaceuticals represents the optimal development and commercialization partner for Bioniche, given its understanding of the bladder cancer market and breadth of pharmaceutical industry experience,” Graeme McRae, chairman, president and CEO of Bioniche said. “We look forward to advancing the UrocidinTM development and commercialization program in collaboration with the Endo team. Equally, we are very excited about the potential returns to Bioniche and its shareholders following commercialization of UrocidinTM.” The treatment is currently undergoing Phase III clinical testing. The licence also gives Endo the option to obtain global rights.

Fielding Chemical Technologies Inc., together with Phancorp Inc., will merge to provide customers “cradle to cradle®” care of chemicals, the companies’ presidents said. “This merge is our response to a growing market demand for green, yet cost effective products and services,” Ellen McGregor, president and CEO of Fielding, said in a press release. “Our combined capabilities will provide customers with a unique partner to meet their chemical needs — from sourcing virgin chemicals to providing the greenest choice to repurpose chemical waste,” Isabel Alexander, Ppresident and founder of Phancorp Inc. added.

Arnold Naimark, Genome Prairie Board chair, has announced that Karen Chad will be joining the board of directors at Genome Prairie. “We are very fortunate to have Chad join our Board,” said Naimark. “Her experience in the health research sector will provide Genome Prairie with important insights as it works to align health, agriculture, and environmental genomics research in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.” Chad is a member of other national boards, including those at the Canadian Institute of Health Research, as well as the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

LAB Research Inc. has announced that it has successfully restructured its Canadian banking arrangements with its major Canadian lender. "Our first quarter results and indications of projected activity have demonstrated our ability to deliver improved results over our 2008 performance, despite the difficult market conditions,” Luc Mainville, president and CEO of LAB Research, said in a press release. “The actions taken in 2008 and 2009 to address our financial performance have been conclusive to date.”

Therapure Biopharma Inc. has announced a multi-year partnership with Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto to use their clean room technology. “The requirements of Mount Sinai are a very good fit with our capabilities,” Thomas Wellner, president and CEO of Therapure Biopharma said in a press release. “We are very pleased that Mount Sinai Hospital has chosen Therapure Biopharma as their partner for these development projects.” Under the agreement, they will provide Mount Sinai with a clean room processing facility with technical staff at their Mississauga facility.

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News  11

Chemfusion Joe Schwarcz, MCIC

A ‘Pallet’able Story

I

was doing a little shopping at Costco, when a fellow customer politely approached me wondering if I would be willing to answer a question. “Sure”, I said, priming myself for one of the usual queries about artificial sweeteners, plastic wraps, or bottled water—But I was on the wrong track.

“Where do you get your ideas to write about every week?” was the question.

“That's easy, just look around,” I said, pointing to the aisles of cosmetics, cleaning agents, packaged foods and electronic equipment.“Chemistry is everywhere, and there is a story behind each item!”

“Really?” My new acquaintance went on, eyeing the surroundings, somewhat unconvinced. “Even these?” he asked, with a hint of a triumphant glimmer in his eye, motioning towards a pile of stacked pallets.

“Yup,” I replied. “Even those.”

Admittedly at the time, I wasn't sure what story lay hidden in those pallets, but I figured there had to be one. And of course, I do like a challenge.

Before long, I found myself venturing into a new world, the world of pallets. A giant world it turned out to be, with billions of dollars in

12 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

play—a world rife with politics, economics and yes, chemistry. Who would have guessed?

Pallets are those flat platforms, roughly four feet on a side, made of wood, plastic or metal, used to transport almost everything we buy, from groceries to tires, from fruits to chemicals.

We see them everywhere, but take no notice.

Piled high with goods, pallets are designed to be lifted and moved around with a forklift.

At any time there are roughly two billion in use, just in North America! Numerous companies are involved in the production, distribution and recycling of pallets, and because of the astonishing numbers involved, it should come as no surprise that pallet storage itself is a huge undertaking requiring vast warehouse facilities. Since the majority of pallets are made either of wood or plastic, both of which are highly combustible, storage always presents a risk of fire.

Not a theoretical risk, a real one. Firefighters battle pallet fires on a regular basis in spite of strict regulations about storage. Warehouses have to be equipped with sprinkler systems with appropriate specifications for the type of pallet being stored. Plastic pallets, which once ignited can cause more damage than burning wood, require a more expensive fire protection system, making plastic pallets more costly than wood.

The wood and plastic pallet industries have always been highly competitive but recently a blazing battle has erupted. One issue centers on the use of plastic resins in the formulation of "composite" wood pallets. These are made of wood chips or sawdust glued together with a urea formaldehyde resin.

Some regulatory agencies suggest that this effectively converts them into a “plastic” material, and therefore requires an upgrade in sprinkler systems, which industry spokesmen claim would cost billions. They argue that the weight of the resin in comparison to the wood is insignificant, and that saying the resin makes a wood pallet a plastic pallet, is like saying nails make a wood pallet a metal pallet.

The plastic pallet industry of course would like to see the woodies saddled with some extra costs. And it would like to see its own fire protection costs reduced by producing a product that can be shown to be harder to ignite. Ether, the brominated flame retardant, specifically decabromodiphenyl ether (Deca).

Incorporating this compound into the plastic, raises the ignition temperature and allows for the legal use of cheaper sprinkler systems.

septembre 2009

The practicality of this approach is somewhat questionable, given that ignition sources in warehouses are generally hot enough so that the retardant has little effect.

Addition of Deca to plastic pallets has also furnished the wood pallet industry with some welcome ammunition. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers have been a popular target for consumer activists. These chemicals are used in all sorts of items ranging from computer casings to textiles, and show up with alarming frequency in the environment. We all have some of these flame retardants in our blood.

And since these compounds have caused adverse health effects in young animals, and since they have some carcinogenic potential, it is understandable that there is concern about their proliferation, even though no human ailment has ever been linked to their use.

Now the Environmental Working Group (EWG), an activist American organization that sees a bogeyman behind every tree, has jumped into the fray and has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to stop the use of pallets made with Deca by the food industry.

Why? Because fruits and vegetables are often subjected to “hydro-cooling” after being picked to prevent spoilage and to preserve nutrients. This process involves dripping cold water over produce stacked on pallets, and EWG claims that Deca leaching out of the plastic can contaminate the food. The fact that there are no studies to show such contamination occurs was apparently no impediment to EWG issuing a press release with the headline “Fruits and Vegetables Potentially Soaked With Toxic Flame Retardant Chemical.”

Soaked? Really? Where's the data? I bet the wood pallet industry is looking for it. But I doubt it will emerge, given that the solubility of Deca is less than 0.1 parts per billion. At the same time, the plastic pallet guys have thrown down the gauntlet and have challenged the wood people to an independent side-by-side comparison examining fire safety, recyclability and environmental impact. All of these of course involve chemistry. So, you see, there was a chemical story behind pallets.

Hope you found it palatable. ACCN Joe Schwarcz, MCIC, is the director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society. He hosts the Dr. Joe Show on Montréal’s radio station CJAD and Toronto’s CFRB. The broadcast is available at www.CJAD.com.



Continuing Education for Chemical Professionals

INDOOR AIR QUALITY course 2009 Schedule November 19–20

British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT)— Burnaby Campus Registration fees

$495 CIC members $695 non-members For more information about the course and locations, and to access the registration form, visit:

www.cheminst.ca/ profdev

T

he Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC) and the Canadian Society for Chemical

Technology (CSCT) are presenting a two-

day course designed to enhance the knowledge

1

• Overview of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Issues • Typical IAQ Parameters: carbon

and working experience of chemical technologists

monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons,

and chemists. This course will provide a range

formaldehyde, moulds, total particulates,

of material which will enable the participants

temperature and relative humidity.

to understand the transformations that take

A-typical parameters such as asbestos,

place in air when pollutants are present, and

radon, sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides

to familiarize themselves with the analytical techniques currently used for air testing. Upon completion of this short course, the participants will be able to perform some of the laboratory

and trace metals.

• Sources of indoor contaminants, chemistry and possible transformations.

• Health effects of indoor pollutants:

analyses for the major atmospheric contaminants

carbon monoxide, organic contaminants,

as required by engineering consulting firms,

particulates, formaldehyde, airborne

private laboratories, and government laboratories involved in pollution analysis.

moulds and others.

• Industrial pollutants: sulphur oxides and nitrogen oxides: sources, effects and detection methods.

• Sampling techniques and instrumentation

Instructor Joffre M. Berry, MCIC British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Berry received his BSc in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin, a doctorate in chemistry and a post-doctoral fellowship from the University of British Columbia. Today he heads the Environmental Chemistry and Waste Management Program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and is an adjunct professor for the departments of chemistry and kinesiology at Simon Fraser University.

Berry is also president of JMB Research Ltd., an environmental consulting firm, where he has managed numerous scientific projects and has applied research programs in the areas of organic chemistry, environmental chemistry and waste management.



Day

used for IAQ studies. Demonstration of several portable analyzers, their principle of operation and limitations.

• Participant use of IAQ instruments in a laboratory setting. Including calibration of air flow meters, sampling for carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, volatile organic compounds, total particulates, airborne asbestos, formaldehyde, trace metals, surface moulds and airborne moulds.

 Day

2

• Participant use of IAQ instrumentscontinued.

• IAQ case studies, interpretation and possible solutions.

• Open Discussion.

Note: the above schedule includes two coffee breaks and 1 hour lunch on each day.

Canadian Society for Chemical Technology

ARticle: nanotechnology and ethics

Ethics and Nano Discourse

By Gregor Wolbring

The code of ethics of the Chemical Institute of Canada allows, and some would argue, requires, the CIC and its members in science and technology to have a very visible role in governance, especially if chemicals are involved. So how visible are they? Gregor Wolbring, assistant­ professor at University of Calgary, explains the case study that exists with nanotechnology, a decades-old field that has been receiving increasing amounts of attention over the last 10 years.4, 25

A

s the scale of technology decreases, a new set of possibilities and challenges increases. The ability to manipulate and create products on the microscale led to whole new industries as well as the demise and restructuring of others. Changes in consumer demands and expectations and change in many social dynamics were also observed. The ever-increasing ability to manipulate, handle and create products and processes on the nanoscale will have the same impact. The discourse around nanoscale technology started with the idea of molecular manufacturing—which was made popular by the

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television show Star Trek and its food replicator and the idea of generating products from the atom level up.5, 10 However, the meaning has moved on since then. According to the International Organization for Standardization Technical Committee 229 on Nanotechnology (ISO/TC229), nanotechnology may be defined as either or both of the following­: 1. Understanding and control of matter and processes at the nanoscale, typically, but not exclusively, below 100 nanometres in one or more dimensions where the onset of size dependent phenomena usually

enables novel applications, where one nanometre is one thousand millionth of a metre.

2. Utilizing the properties of nanoscale materials that differ from the properties of individual atoms, molecules, and bulk matter, to create improved materials, devices­, and systems that exploit these new properties.13 This change in definition comes with consequences as to actions possible under the CIC code of ethics. Many science and technology fields such as biotechnology, information technology, chemistry, physics, synthetic biology and others have nanoscale aspects. A 2001 workshop, organized by the U.S.A. National Science Foundation and the U.S.A. Department of Commerce, and called “Nanotechnology, Biotechnology, Information technology and Cognitive science (NBIC): Converging Technologies for Improving Human Performance”, introduced the convergence of various science and technologies under the umbrella of nanoscale and the focus on human performance enhancement.14 Nanoscale products and processes will increasingly be ubiquitous and will impact every facet of life on earth.21, 22, 24 Many jobs for chemists, chemical engineers and chemical technologist will be generated by the use of nanoscale science and technology products and processes including chemicals and synthetic nanomaterials.

Chris MacDonald15 wrote in Canadian Chemical News, 2004 Issue 56, p. 11–12, “nanoscience is going on in literally hundreds, perhaps thousands, of public and commercial labs in Canada alone—far too many for the public to sanely rely upon centralized government regulation. In this context, the integrity of each and every scientist involved matters.”

However Canadian chemists, chemical engineers and chemical technologists are not very visible in the nano and converging technology ethical environment, social, or safety discourses.

Googling “nanotechnology” and “Chemical Institute of Canada” turns up only 2240 hits; 1030 for Canadian Society for Chemistry and nanotechnology; 624 for Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering and Nanotechnology and for the Canadian Society for Chemical Technology and Nanotechnology, 101 hits.

In comparison, the combination search of Wolbring and nanotechnology gains 9880 hits.

For the case of molecular manufacturing, one could argue that no action might be required as molecular manufacturing is not a working process yet. But the National Science Foundation and others fund research in this area and some say that one will see products in five to 10 years.6, 7 However, many nano-

nanomaterials­? The public needs to be able to trust in how nanotechnology is advanced.16 Jane Macoubrie, a social scientist at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, found in her survey about perception of nanotechnology, major benefits are anticipated. She also found that there is a

“Nanoscience is going on in literally hundreds, perhaps thousands, of public and commercial labs in Canada alone—far too many for the public to sanely rely upon centralized government regulation. In this context, the integrity of each and every scientist involved matters.” 15 formulated chemicals and nanoscale synthetic materials generated by chemists, chemical engineers and chemical technologists are evident and enable the creation of performance enhancement products. The reality that they already exist in various consumer products, such as sunscreen, has triggered medical as well as environmental health and safety debates about nanoscale chemicals and human-made materials and raised ethical, environmental, social and safety concerns. These, under the code of ethics, would require some action by chemists, chemical engineers and chemical technologists and their organizations. However, when between 2001 and 2003, American chemists including Vicki Colvin8 and NGOs11, 12 raised concerns over the lack of toxicology tests for nanoformulated chemicals and synthetic nanomaterials, they were not well received.

Since then, the area of environmental health and safety of nanomaterials25 and the field of nanotoxicology have gained increasing amounts of traction.18, 26 Should chemists, chemical engineers and chemical technologists have been more involved in the nano discourse under the code of ethics points two, eight and 10 (see side bar)? Should they have raised the safety issues long before the NGOs? Should they have demanded the increase in nanotoxicology? Should they be in the forefront of non-medical and environmental safety issues linked to nanochemicals and synthetic

lack of support for a ban on nanotechnology products, there is a high demand for effective regulation, with a low public trust in government, as well as doubts about the industry.

The public wants to be included.16 Sheila Bonini, a consultant at McKinsey and Company, et al., found that consumers are less positive than executives are about the contributions that large global companies make to the public good. They also found that consumers and corporate leaders prioritize different socio-political issues and consumers have no qualms about taking big business to task for what they perceive as failures to meet its social obligations. A trust gap also exists between consumers and corporations, as well as a lack of understanding among business leaders about what consumers really expect from organizations.3 Increase in public trust is seen as an important part for increasing the acceptance level of science and technology products and processes.­9 According to David Rejeski, director at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, trust creates value by allowing companies and society to capitalize on nano advances.19 Debby Bielak from the McKinsey Quarterly, et al., found that chief executives around the world increasingly believe they have a strategic rationale for taking on environmental, social and governance issues. “Upward of nine out of ten are doing more than they did five years ago to incorporate such questions into their core strategies,” they reported.1 september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 15

ARticle: nanotechnology and ethics

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In 1996, the Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC), which is the professional association of chemists­(Canadian Society for Chemistry), chemical engineers­(Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering­) and chemical technologists (Canadian­Society for Chemical Technology) approved the following code of ethics: “Adherence to the following principles is a requirement of membership, As professional chemists, chemical engineers or chemical technologists, the members of the Chemical Institute of Canada and its Constituent Societies undertake: • To dedicate themselves to the highest­ standards­of personal honour and professional­integrity; • To extend fairness and loyalty to associates, employers, subordinates and employees; • To accept and defend the primacy of public­ well-being.

In observance of these commitments, they shall: 1. Practice their professions with honour, honesty, integrity, and dedication to the truth; 2. Encourage and assist others in observing high professional standards; 3. Act responsibly, fairly, and in good faith in discharging obligations to the public, their peers, employers, and employees; 4. Sign and seal only documents that have been prepared by them or under their direct­ supervision; 5. Accept remuneration and credit only for work performed and professional services­ rendered; 6. Undertake only such work as they are competent­to perform, and express opinions only on the bases of adequate knowledge and honest convictions; 7. Decline to undertake any work that is fraudulent­, illegal or unethical; 8. Place the health, safety and welfare of all persons­, and the reputation of their profession­, above any consideration of self- interest­, and resolve any conflicts in favour­of the public good; 9. Recognize and declare promptly any conflicts of interest arising from their professional­activities­; and 10. Seek to promote the understanding of the social and environmental consequences, as well as of the benefits to the public, of the applications of chemistry.”

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The survey by Macoubrie found agreement among participants that government and industry could improve trust through more testing before products were introduced and the provision of more information to the public.16 Michael Mehta at the University of Saskatchewan suggested in 2002 that “early in their training, scientists should be provided with a background in the history and philosophy of science, ethics, and the sociology of science and knowledge. Additional courses in risk issue management and social impact assessment would help round out the education of scientists, enhance their ability to communicate with the public in meaningful ways, and enable them to more fully participate in the development of public policy.”17 However, is the lack of training the reason that CIC members were and are not very visible in the nano discourses, or are there other reasons? What could they be?

Andrea Biondo at Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia, found that the possibility of negative public reactions to nanotechnology is real, and that such reactions are avoidable if serious consideration is given to community involvement in the development and direction of it.2 People with disabilities are one such community. Many nanoscale applications and products are envisioned for disabled people.21 They fall into three categories. Most envisioned and appearing products and applications fall into the category of therapeutic solutions through prevention or cure/normative adaptation.

Increasingly envisioned and appearing products and applications fall into the category of transhumanist solutions, including augmentation and enhancement of the human body.

The least envisioned and appearing products and applications fall into the category of social solutions, including the adaptation of the environment. Despite the many products envisioned for people with disabilities their presence in the nanodiscourse is underdeveloped to nonexistent so far.22 Is action required under the CIC code of ethics to rectify this problem? Although the wording of the code allows for many proactive, innovative, thoughtful, meaningful and well received interventions, reality, it seems, is that the CIC members and the CIC as an organization has not generated much possible and desirable action. The question remains, is action required …

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Reference List 1. Bielak, D., Bonini, S. M. J., & Oppenheim, J. M. (2007). CEOs on strategy and social issues. McKinsey Quarterly, 43, 8–12.

2. Biondo, A. F. (2003). Strategies for Building Community Trust in Nanotechnology.

Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http:// www.actionbioscience.org/newfrontiers/ biondo.html 3. Bonini, S. M. J., McKillop, K., & Mendonca, L. T. (2007). Business in society: Special report. McKinsey Quarterly, 43, 6–17.

4. Buriak, J. M. (2004). Nano facts vs. nano fiction: good science as the basis of good public policy in nanotechnology.

(Cover Story). Canadian Chemical News, 56, 13–15.

5. Centre for Responsible Nanotechnology (2005). Molecular Manufacturing.

Retrieved­ July 17, 2009, from http:// www.crnano.org/overview.htm 6. Centre for Responsible Nanotechnology (2005). Molecular Mnufactoring. Retrieved­ July 17, 2009, from http://www.crnano. org/overview.htm 7. Cientifica (2006). Nanotech and Food The Real Numbers. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www.cientifica.com/ blog/mt/2006/08/nanotech_and_food_ the_real_num.html http://www.cientifica. com/www/summarys/Nano4FoodBrochure.pdf 8. Colvin, V. (2002). Responsible Nanotechnology: Looking Beyond the Good News.

Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http:// www.eurekalert.org/context.php?context =nano&show=essays&essaydate=1102 9. Critchley, C. R. (2008). Public opinion and trust in scientists: the role of the research context, and the perceived motivation of stem cell researchers. Public Understanding of Science, 17, 309–327.

10. Drexler E (1986). Engine of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www.e-drexler. com/d/06/00/EOC/EOC_Cover.html 11. ETC Group (2002). No Small Matter!

Nanotech Particles Penetrate Living Cells and Accumulate in Animal Organs. http:// www.etcgroup.org/upload/publication/ pdf_file/192 12. ETC Group (2003). No Small Matter II: The Case for a Global Moratorium Size Matters! http://www.etcgroup.org/

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ARticle: nanotechnology and ethics upload/publication/165/01/occ.paper_ nanosafety.pdf 13. International Standards Organization ISO (2008). BUSINESS PLAN ISO/TC 229 NANOTECHNOLOGIES. http://isotc.iso.org/livelink/livelink/ fetch/2000/2122/4191900/4192161/ TC_229_BP_2007-2008.pdf?nodeid= 6356960&vernum=0 14. M.Roco, W. B. e. (2003). Converging Technologies for Improving Human Performance: Nanotechnology, Biotechnology, Information Technology and Cognitive Science. http://www.wtec.org/ConvergingTechnologies/Report/NBIC_report.pdf.

Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht Hardbound.

15. MacDonald, C. (2004). The big idea behind small matters: nanotechnology, ethics, and scientific integrity.(Interfaces).

Canadian Chemical News, 56, 11–12.

16. Macoubrie, J. (2005). Informed Public Perceptions of Nanotechnology and Trust in Government Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, The Pew Charitable Trusts. Retrieved July 17, 2009,

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from http://www.wilsoncenter.org/ news/docs/macoubriereport.pdf 17. Mehta, M. D. (2002). Privacy vs. surveillance: how to avoid a nano-panoptic future. Canadian Chemical News, 51, 31.

18. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) (2008). Strategic Plan for NIOSH Nanotechnology Research and Guidance: Filling the Knowledge Gaps.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ topics/nanotech/pdfs/NIOSH_Nanotech_ Strategic_Plan.pdf 19. Rajeski, D. (2008). Nanotechnology and the Trust Gap. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www.nanotech-now.com/ columns/?article=109 20. The Chemical Institute of Canada (1996).

Code of Ethics. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www.cheminst.ca/index. cfm/ci_id/1660/la_id/1.htmhttp://www. chimiste.ca/sections/atlantic/DIRACI/ AppendixII­.htm 21. The Nanoethics Group (2008). Why Nanoethics­? Retrieved July 17, 2009, from

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http://www.nanoethics.org/whynanoethics.html 22. Wolbring, G. (2006). Scoping paper on Nanotechnology and disabled people. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://cns.asu. edu/cns-library/documents/wolbringscoping%20CD%20final%20edit.doc 23. Wolbring, G. (2007). Nano-engagement: Some critical issues. Journal of Health and Development (India), 3, 9–29.

24. Wolbring, G. (2007). Social and ethical issues­of nanotechnologies. ISOFOCUS, 4, 40–42.

25. Wolbring, G. (2008). Environmental Nanotechnology/Nano EH&S (Environment, Health and Safety) bibliography. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www.politicsofhealth.org/wol/2008-4-30.htm 26. Wolbring, G. (2008). Nanotoxicology. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from http://www. politicsofhealth.org/wol/2008-2-29.htm 27. Wolkow, R. A. (2007). The Ruse and the reality of nanotechnology. Canadian Chemical News, 59, 2. ACCN



Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering

Nominations are now open for

The Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering

2010AWARDS Act now!

Do you know an outstanding person who deserves to be recognized?

The Bantrel Award in Design and Industrial Practice is presented to a Canadian citizen or a resident of Canada for innovative design or production activities accomplished in Canada.

The activities may have resulted in a significant achievement in product or process design, small or large company innovation, or multidisciplinary designdirected research or production. The achievement will relate to the practice of chemical engineering and/or industrial chemistry whether in research and development, process implementation, entrepreneurialism, innovation, production or some combination of these.

It may be via a well-known, long-standing reputation for translating chemical engineering principles into design and industrial practice and, through this, contribute to the profession as a whole.

Sponsored by Bantrel.

Award: A plaque and a cash prize.

The D. G. Fisher Award is presented to an individual who has made substantial contributions to the field of systems and control engineering.

The award is given in recognition of significant contributions in any, or all, of the areas of theory, practice, and education. Sponsored by the department of chemical and materials engineering, University of Alberta, Suncor Energy Foundation, and Shell Canada Limited.

Award: A framed scroll, a cash prize and travel expenses.

The Process Safety Management Award is presented as a mark of recognition to a person who has made an outstanding contribution in Canada to the Process Safety Management (PSM) Division of the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering recognizing excellence in the leadership and dedication of individuals who have led Canada in the field of process safety and loss management (PSLM).

Sponsored by AON Reed Stenhouse Inc. Award: A framed scroll and a cash prize.

The R. S. Jane Memorial Award is presented to an individual who has made new significant contributions to chemical engineering or industrial chemistry in Canada. Sponsored by the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering.

Award: A framed scroll, a cash prize and registration fee to the CSChE Conference.

The Syncrude Canada Innovation Award is presented to a resident of Canada who has made a distinguished contribution to the field of chemical engineering while working in Canada.

Nominees for this award shall not have reached the age of 40 years by January of the year in which the nomination becomes effective. Sponsored by Syncrude Canada Ltd. Award: A framed scroll and a cash prize.

Deadline

The deadline for all CSChE awards is December 1, 2009 for the 2010 selection.

Nomination Procedure Submit your nominations to: Awards Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering 130 Slater Street, Suite 550 Ottawa, ON K1P 6E2 Tel.: 613-232-6252, ext. 223 Fax: 613-232-5862 awards@cheminst.ca

Nomination forms and the full Terms of Reference for these awards are available at www.chemeng.ca/awards

ARticle: Neurochemical ethics

Chemical Interventions and Ethical Side-Effects From pedophilia to depression. Where are the ethical boundaries of treating mental illness by neurochemical means?

By Frederic Gilbert and Simon Outram

Pedophilia, Chemical Treatments, and Deviant Behaviour

I

ncreasing biochemical knowledge of sexual functionality and attraction­has allowed researchers to tentatively deduce a chemical cause for pedophilia and initiate various biochemical treatments for this condition. The availability of such knowledge, along with the development of new pharmaceutical treatment options, opens up new legal and ethical questions regarding how to chemically treat sexual criminality and how we, as a society, should reflect upon the use of chemicals in the treatment for other forms of deviant behaviour.

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Evidence of the Neurochemical Basis to Pedophilia and Treatment Options Several factors have been postulated as to the neurochemical basis of pedophilia. Research has indicated that pedophiles may have a serotonergic­dysfunction, most likely caused by the decreased activity of the presynaptic serotonergic neuron and hypersensitivity of the serotonin-2 postsynaptic receptors. Some studies have reported that disorders in serotonin metabolism and increased sympathoadrenal system activity are also related to aggression or violence and impulse control disorder. It has also been hypothesized that disorders in the sero-

tonergic neuron and increased catecholaminergic turnover in pedophilia may lead to aggression or sexual violence.

The potential link between pedophilia and serotonin dysfunction has resulted in the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) to treat pedophiles as SSRIs are primarily used for the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders. SSRIs such as fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline, and fluvoxamine have also been associated with the induction of sexual dysfunction.

However, despite the early evidence of effectiveness in treatment, it is unclear how SSRIs work in relation to the treatment of pedophilia. They are thought to work by reducing compulsive behaviour, reducing general sexual function, or even reducing depression of the patient. This raises the potential of unpredictable neurological and physiological side effects. Despite this, SSRIs may be the best available form of treatment as they appear to have fewer known adverse side effects than antiandrogens or other hormonal treatments which cause chemical castration. Even though this population group is alienated from society at large, the issue of adverse physiological side-effects that go beyond the treatment objective will still need to be explored within the context of medical practice, medical ethics, and legal rights.

The Promise of a Cure A further dilemma raised by the chemical treatment of pedophilia is the expectation of a permanent cure for this form of sexuality.

Studies have demonstrated that pharmacological interventions do not change the pedophile’s basic sexual orientation toward children. This has led researchers to speculate that pedophilia is an independent sexual orientation from heterosexuality or homosexuality. While the combination of pharmacological and psycho-behavioral treatment united with close supervision show a reduction in the probability of reoffending, the interventions do not change the pedophile’s basic sexual orientation toward children. Other interventions, like physical castration, seem definitive in preventing repeated sexual offenses, but, some physically castrated pedophiles have restored their potency by taking exogenous testosterone, allowing them to engage in abusive behavior again. This appears to indicate that pedophilia is a distinct incarnated sexual attraction since pedophiles’ core attraction survives in the absence of neurochemical function. It is therefore imperative that

This appears to indicate that pedophilia is a distinct incarnated sexual attraction since pedophiles’ core attraction survives in the absence of neurochemical function. the use of SSRIs and other forms of chemical treatment for pedophilia are applied with the knowledge that their use acts to inhibit sexual behaviour rather than cure it. This also may provide insight into the temporary or limited nature of chemical treatments of other forms of sexually deviant behaviour.

Ethical Questions Relating to Neurochemical Technology and Deviant Behaviours The evidence of a chemical impact on our daily lives is no longer under dispute. Antidepressants, methylphenidate for ADHD-treatment, and sildenafil citrate for sexual dysfunction treatment are rapidly becoming part of daily life for much of the population. At present, the use of such drugs is restricted by the need for a medical prescription. However, there is strong empirical evidence of an illegal growing market for such drugs to serve a wide variety of educational, occupational, and more general purposes including improving memory, staying up late and improving concentration during exams. A large body of literature explores this market of neurological enhancement. Among other issues including equal access to drugs, authenticity of experiences, and concepts of naturalness, the literature also raises concerns that neurochemical interventions may be reflective of a tendency to be more intolerant to human imperfections and increasingly willing to treat these by chemical means. The literature also raises questions concerning possible legislation against the use of neurotechnologies to enhance cognitive and other abilities above the normal range. Recently, ethical questions have been raised concerning the diagnosis and neurochemical treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Is this the unacceptable face of normalising children for social control, or a legitimate ethical attempt at addressing inequalities both genetic and environmental by raising the ability of an individual to concentrate above their natural abilities? If it is the latter,

why shouldn’t it be legal to use such chemicals to raise the cognitive abilities of other individuals not diagnosed with ADHD? The socio-legal line currently being taken is that using such drugs to treat an illness is acceptable, whereas to enhance a healthy person neurochemically is neither acceptable nor legal.

While such enhancements appear socially and legally distinct from chemical treatments of pedophilia, they open up questions about how we treat deviant behaviours by neurochemical means. The possibility of enhancement also opens up possibilities of dis-enhancement or chemical normalisation, where an existing deviant behaviour is removed through chemical treatment. However, caution is required to make sure that we do not find ourselves dis-enhancing or normalising traits that are simply the tail ends of a normal range of personality traits. Although pedophilia is arguably a crime that society at large—and potentially the pedophile, say justifies the use of chemical disenhancment or normalisation, there are other forms of behaviour that are being found to have a neurochemical component such as propensity to commit violent crime, that are more difficult to distinguish from the normal range. Furthermore, as the case of ADHD-treatment for deviant school-behaviour indicates, it’s becoming the norm to search for a neurochemical cure before reflecting back upon why such deviance occurs.

While this commentary has primarily focused upon one area of criminal behaviour that is subject to potential chemical treatment, such treatment opens up a whole range of questions concerning our abilities to change people on a permanent or temporary basis chemically and how this challenges us to define what we might want to protect from chemical enhancement and dis-enhancement. ACCN Frederic Gilbert and Simon Outram are postdoctoral researchers at Novel Tech Ethics, Dalhousie University.

Acknowledgement: The research for this paper was funded in part by a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 21

ARticle: Automotive chemistry

The Chemistry of Car Painting Automotive coatings present unique challenges in terms of chemistry and process. Innovations in technology are allowing automotive original equipment manufacturers like Toyota, GM and Ford to apply multiple layers of material in a few hours, instead of a few weeks. Each coating must also match, last the life of the car—even when exposed to continuous weathering—and must be aesthetically appealing. The basic composition of these coatings, their methods of application as well as environmental factors are driving innovation­in this industry.

By Paul Henshaw

P

aints have been around for over 20,000 years. Paint, in its simplest form, is made up of pigment and binder. The pigment particles provide colour and the binder holds the pigment in place. Strictly speaking, “coating” is a broader term, and includes formulations without pigment.1 Pre-historic cave paintings used metal oxides as pigments and egg whites or animal fats as binders. 2 The ancient Romans used waxes and gums as binders and as time went on, organic solvents were needed to dissolve viscous resins for smooth application. The resin, or binder, is a long-chain organic polymer that has functional groups to alter its chemical or mechanical properties.

The first automotive topcoats were similarly resinous materials, which required hand application, drying and sanding of up to 25 coats to

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build up the required film. This process typically took between two to three weeks to complete and required car manufacturers maintain a tremendous inventory. After the first world war, the introduction of nitrocellulose binders in solvents meant that paint could be thinned enough to be sprayed on and yet reasonable film builds were obtained in a few layers. Eventually, cross-linking alkyd, phenol and acrylic resins were developed. These binders have greater chemical resistance and mechanical durability because polymer chains contain functional groups which provide sites for connecting to other chains via crosslinking molecules, forming a net. Around 1918, white titanium dioxide replaced lead-based pigments because of its superior hiding power.1 Today, most paints still use TiO2 for hiding, even though the colour is

imparted by other pigments. As well, treated aluminum or mica flakes are added for a shiny appearance.

The total global coatings market was about US$95 billion in 2006, 37 percent of which belonged to architectural coatings, the largest sector.3 Automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and refinish coatings constitute about eight percent of total coatings expenditures. The market for OEM coatings is growing about one percent faster than the rate of new car production.4 Currently, at most vehicle assembly plants, five coating layers are applied to the assembled body panels: pretreatment, electrocoat, primer, basecoat and clearcoat. Each layer has a function and each is devised to interact with the other layers. The pretreatment processes remove oil and grease from the welded body and leave an inert, cathodically-protected surface for the application of subsequent layers. The electrocoat (e-coat) is an organic polymer (usually an epoxy ester6) that provides a seal around the metal to protect against corrosion. In practice, the e-coat resin is suspended in water and the body is dipped into it. When an electric potential is applied, the resin ends up coating the inside of door panels and other cavities which cannot be accessed by spraying. The cross-linking reaction, also called curing, is then initiated by heating the car in an oven. Following this, primer is applied to provide a smooth surface for the topcoats, while also providing ultraviolet protection for the e-coat. The basecoat imparts colour to the vehicle body, while the clearcoat protects the basecoat and imparts gloss. The basecoat and clearcoat (together called the topcoat) may be cured in one oven exposure to provide a durable, aesthetically pleasing finish. In total, each vehicle produced requires about 20 litres of coatings.5 Since 1967, the biggest change driver in the automotive coatings industry in North America has been environmental regulations. Prior to the 1960s, most coatings used volatile organic solvents (VOCs) as solvents.

The function of paint solvents are to keep the pigment and resin apart until the coating has been applied, to allow adhesion to the surface, and to lower the viscosity to allow spraying and levelling. Thereafter, the solvent must be evaporated so that curing will occur. In the 1960s, it was discovered that VOCs catalyzed the formation of ground level ozone (GLO), and in some jurisdictions, the concentrations­

of GLO were high enough to affect human health. For the architectural coatings sector, this resulted in regulations to reduce the VOC content of coatings, because capture of the VOCs during paint drying is impractical. For the automotive sector, the paint processes are a reasonable target for reducing emissions.

Although the final coating only constitutes 0.2 to 0.5 percent of the vehicle mass and one to three percent of the vehicle cost, the paint processes are responsible for 40 to 50 percent of the energy used in an assembly plant and 80 to 90 percent of the emissions.6 In response to regulations to reduce VOC emissions, some OEMs continue to use solvent-borne paints with capture and treat systems, whereas others have changed paint formulation and application methods.

At the vehicle assembly plant, the powder is fluidized and thrown at the car body, which is then baked, causing the powdercoat to sinter, melt and cross-link.

With these new paint formulations, adjustments had to be made to the application processes. High solids coatings require only minor changes to applicators or curing ovens.

Water-borne paints require more energy to remove the solvent. As compared to solventborne paints where the solvent flashes at ambient temperature, water-bornes require a heated flash. Electrostatic application methods (charging the paint and grounding the car) have improved the first-pass transfer efficiency (fraction of paint that gets on the car) for all liquid paints to about 80 percent. Powdercoat, on the other hand, must be applied

The first automotive topcoats were similarly resinous materials, which required hand application, drying and sanding of up to 25 coats to build up the required film. This process typically took between two to three weeks to complete and required car manufacturers maintain a tremendous inventory.

The three most common VOC-reduced formulations are high solids, water-borne and powdercoats. These had US sales of $2.6 billion, $8.3 billion and $1.4 billion, respectively, over all sectors in 20057. High solids paint uses lower molecular weight polymer resins (MW 1,000 to 5,000 as opposed to 10,000 to 40,000 for a typical thermosetting acrylic8) so that a workable viscosity can be obtained at 65 percent solids (pigment and resin) as opposed to 20 percent solids, as was used in the 1950s. Durability and chemical resistance are restored by having more cross-linking between polymer chains. Water-borne paint uses water as the solvent (or diluent if it’s latex), although typically there is a small amount of slowlyevaporating organic co-solvent to ensure that levelling occurs. Water is non-toxic and does not promote GLO formation. Powdercoat has no solvent; the resin and pigment are intimately mixed and ground into a fine powder.

electrostatically­because there is no solvent to create surface wetting and adhesion. Because of the lack of adhesion, the typical first-pass transfer efficiency is only about 60 percent.

However, unlike liquid coatings, powdercoat does not lose solvent during spraying, and therefore the overspray—what leaves the applicator but does not adhere to the part being painted—may be recovered. With powder reclaim, the overall transfer efficiency of the process exceeds 95 percent. Unfortunately, the advantage of reclaiming powder is lost when spraying basecoats of different colours.

During colour changes—which happen many times per day in an assembly plant—the system has to be purged and cleaned to avoid colour bleed-in. Therefore, powder coating is restricted to coating layers which are not changed, such as the primer. BMW has developed a powder clearcoat which seems to have overcome the susceptibility to marring which previously plagued powder clears.9 september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 23

ARticle: Automotive chemistry

C CMembership

Another key factor affecting automotive OEM operations is energy cost. In order to keep airborne concentrations of solvents below worker exposure limits, large amounts of fresh air are needed for dilution. This means large amounts of energy are needed to condition the dilution air. Fully-robotic paint application eliminates the need to attain such low concentrations in the spray booth, resulting in lower air flow. More importantly, if a process can be eliminated (such as drying between coats) the reduction in spray-booth footprint leads to a reduction in fan energy, air conditioning energy and capital cost.

This is the basis behind the Ford “3-wet” process where two basecoat layers and a clearcoat layer are applied without heated flash between.10 Finally, the last driver for change is the increasing prices of petroleum-based feedstocks. The alternative is to use biogenic feedstocks, based on agricultural products.

For example, seed-oil based resin precursors and cashew nutshell liquid-based crosslinkers have been developed.11,12 This is an intensive area of research for some paint component manufacturers. In addition, the U.S. Green Chemistry Act has provided incentive for a number of process changes in the manufacture of paint components which are more environmentally friendly.8 The automotive paint industry has continuously evolved over the last century. New coatings formulae and application methods have been developed to increase throughput, augment durability, reduce environmental impact, and buffer against rising oil prices.

These developments have left a legacy of

analytical capability, standards and fundamental knowledge, which will be used to address future challenges in this industry.

References 1. Lambourne, R. (1999) Introduction. In R. Lambourne and T.A. Strivens (Eds.) Paint and Surface Coatings—Theory and Practice (2nd Edition) (pp. 1–18). Cambridge, UK: Woodhead Publishing Ltd. 2. Armour, A.G. (1995) Introduction. In G. Fettis (Ed.) Automotive Paints and Coatings (pp. 1–8). Weinheim, Germany: VCH Verlagsgesellschaft mbH. 3. Bourne, J. and Graystone, J. (2009) Global market and technology trends: embracing­ the future. CoatingsTech Conference, Indianapolis­, IN: Federation of Societies for Coatings Technology, Blue Bell, PA. 4. Tullo, A.H. (2005) Automotive coatings.

Chemical & Engineering News, 80(42), p 27–30.

5. Ansdell, D.A. (1995) Automotive paints.

In R. Lambourne and T.A. Strivens (Eds.) Paint and Surface Coatings - Theory and Practice (2nd Edition) (pp. 411–491). Cambridge, UK: Woodhead Publishing Ltd. 6. Vachlas, Z. (1995) Primers for the automotive industry. In G. Fettis (Ed.) Automotive Paints and Coatings (pp. 28–71). Weinheim, Germany: VCH Verlagsgesellschaft mbH. 7. Joshi, R., Provder, T. and Kustron, K. (2008) Green coatings: a trend that is becoming­ the rule rather than the exception. JCT CoatingsTech, 5(1), 38–43.

8. Bentley, J. (1999) Organic Film Formers.

In R. Lambourne and T.A. Strivens (Eds.)

Paint and Surface Coatings—Theory and Practice (2nd Edition) (pp. 19–90). Cambridge, UK: Woodhead Publishing Ltd. 9. Kohls, M. (2006) Premium clearcoat at BMW group. 2006 SAE World Congress, April 3-6, Detroit, MI: Society of Automotive Engineers, Warrendale, PA. 10. Endregaard, E. (2006) Dürr supports Ford innovation—Lower CPU with new 3-Wet process [online] http://www. durr.com/en/company/divisions/news/ newsletter-archiv/newsletter-archiv-2006/ duerr-supports-ford-innovation-lowercpu-with-new-3-wet-process.html [2009 May 14] 11. Dallons, J-L. (2007) Coating vehicles with green chemicals. FutureCoat! 2007, October­ 1–5 Toronto, Canada: Federation of Societies for Coating Technology, Blue Bell, PA. 12. Argyropoulos, J., Erdem, B., Bhattacharjee, D. Foley, and Nanjundiah, K. (2009) Natural oil polyols for waterborne polyurethane dispersions. JCT CoatingsTech, 6(1), p 44–49. ACCN Paul Henshaw, PhD., P.Eng. is an associate professor of Environmental Engineering at the University of Windsor. He has been involved in coatings research at the University of Windsor/ Chrysler Canada Automotive Research and Development Centre since 2003.

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24 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

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septembre 2009

ARticle: relevance of radiochemistry

The Demise of Radiochemistry Moving beyond nuclear science to more relevant fields within environmental and organic chemistry. By Don Wiles, FCIC

I

have been musing over the past couple of years about radiochemistry. Once a major field of endeavour, it seems now to have withered, even though its political and environmental importance has arguably increased. What has happened?

Classical radiochemistry started with Marie Curie and her studies on radium, polonium and other radioactive elements. For a number of years, there was a good deal of floundering, with the discovery of radium d, ionium, emanation and other elements whose names are no longer familiar.

Before they were properly identified, along came neutron activation, with the ‘discovery’ of many ‘transuranic elements’, which turned out to be products of nuclear fission.

Nuclear fission was a great boon for radiochemists, even though a lot of it was done in war-time secrecy. Chalk River was one of the world centres of radiochemistry, with Leo Yaffe, Geoff Wilkinson, Bill Grummet, Bernard Harvey and others discovering many new radionuclides that had never been seen and identified before.

By the time I got into the field, nuclear fission was still a major activity. Fission-yield fine structure was beginning to be understood; mass-yields were thought to be coming pretty well under control; charge distribution was beginning to be studied, and the world was exciting. For a few years, hot-atom chemistry was popular, until it was realized that the field is too complex to be resolved by the experimental

Having taught such a course at Carleton for fifty years, I am slowly coming to the recognition that I have become an anachronism. I am teaching a field that no longer exists!

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and theoretical methods available. Mössbauer spectroscopy came and went. With the advent of radioactive traces and thickness gauges, the rising popularity of remote power sources and the consideration of radio pharmaceuticals, practical applications of radiochemistry were becoming known. Gordon Conferences on radiochemistry and nuclear chemistry were exciting annual events.

By that time, many universities were teaching radiochemistry and textbooks on nuclear and radiochemistry were becoming classics. The famous book by Friedander and Kennedy was the dominant textbook, and perhaps still is, in its several later editions, although others have tried to unseat it as the world’s authority.

By this time Chalk River began to diminish in prominence. Leo Yaffe went to McGill and there was quite a bit of activity among the universities in Canada. McGill, McMaster, Carleton, Dalhousie, Simon Fraser, Waterloo and others offered graduate research programs in various aspects of radiochemistry.

But now, where would one go in Canada for an advanced course in nuclear and radiochemistry? Having taught such a course at Carleton for fifty years, I am slowly coming to the recognition that I have become an anachronism.

I am teaching a field that no longer exists!

This is not to say that the need for such courses has disappeared. Far from it! The need for environmental monitors, radiopharmaceutical chemists, nuclear reactor operators and others is increasing as the likelihood of increased nuclear power becomes evident. In particular, the need for general understanding of radioactivity is increasing both among the general public and especially among our politicians and policy makers. This is apparently a world-wide phenomenon.

True, several universities in Canada have courses in nuclear physics and nuclear engineering. But nuclear chemistry is no longer to be found.

The answer to this dilemma becomes clear, now that I think about it. What was called nuclear and radiochemistry has mostly been done. The chemical problems of nuclear science have been largely solved and there is little else for a graduate student to do a thesis on. (Of course, there are those who spend their time developing more new elements, whose half-lives are so short that researchers never produce weighable quantities. But these people are few, and exist only in remarkably wealthy places.)

So what is left? Well, in the same way that thermodynamics has become a part of chemical metallurgy, solid state chemistry has become part of nanotechnology, and activation analysis has become part of analytical chemistry, nuclear and radiochemistry has become an adjunct to other fields of more current relevance. It has essentially split into two parts: radiochemistry and pharmaceutical­

radiochemistry. Neither is practiced by the radiochemist, but by the environmental chemist and the organic chemist, each of whom can learn the problems of working with radioactive nuclides. Thus, the problems of synthesizing radiopharmaceuticals and disposing of nuclear waste can be managed by other chemists whose training most likely includes some study of radioactivity, but whose focus has switched from studying properties of exotic isotopes to the application of this type of chemistry to a wider range of problems.

In the fall semester of 2008, after my 50 years of increasing anachronism, I have given “la Derniere Classe” in radiochemistry, and I hand

over the field to a physical chemist, whose interests are broader than mine are now.

References This was a topic of discussion at a recent international conference (INCC, Cancun, 1 April, 2008) Compare “La Derniere Classe”,

by Alphonse Daudet, a story about a French teacher in Alsace being replaced by another who would teach only in German. ACCN Don Wiles, FCIC, is a chemist-at-large at Carleton University.

A Short History of Radiochemistry In 1898, Marie Curie began delving into the isolation of some ores that had mysterious properties. Having discovered the new element polonium, and subsequently radium, she went on to establish the medical uses (and misuses) of radiation in treating cancers and in photographing broken bones.

The next decade or two saw the development of much important physics: the recognition of the nucleus, the theory of the atom and the recognition of isotopes. The decay products of radium were finally identified. But nothing much else happened in radiochemistry for a couple of decades, until the neutron and its uses were discovered. Then it was realized that nuclear transformation was indeed possible. Enrico Fermi and his group in Rome were among the pioneers, as were Frédéric Joliot and Irène Curie in Paris and Otto Hahn in Berlin. At the same time, the California group developed the cyclotron so that protons and alpha particles could be driven into target nuclei.

During the 1930s, many new nuclides were found, many of them by serendipity, until finally in 1939 Otto Hahn proved that a suspected radium isotope was in fact barium-140. It was Lise Meitner who realized that Hahn had recognized nuclear fission. The genie, now let out of the bottle, was quickly put back into another bottle—that of military secrecy. It was quickly realized that the two new fission fragments would fly apart with very high energy and that extra neutrons produced in this process would lead to a continuous chain reaction. Thus, it was realized, would perhaps lead to a usable nuclear bomb and since the Germans first discovered nuclear fission, they would likely attempt to capitalize on their new process. While the United States was not in the Second World War initially, and was not yet contemplating getting involved, a letter from a group of scientists, led by Albert Einstein, convinced the President of the U.S. to get into the competition. This led to great secrecy and, as is now well known, the development of the bomb.

From there on, much work has been done, both to tidy up those newly-discovered nuclides and to discover more of them, and to develop many more uses for chemical radioactivity.

It could be said that this phase of radiochemistry has run itself out and there is very little else to do except a bit of cleaning up here and there. But no, there is much more to do; however, it isn’t the classical radiochemistry any more. It is now environmental chemistry, medical physiological chemistry and pharmaceutical chemistry. It appears that nuclear and radiochemistry have become things of the past, but as the Phoenix rises from the ashes, perhaps the new disciplines are as vigorous as ever.

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 27

Boook Review

Is Arsenic an Aphrodisiac?

By David Harpp, FCIC

I

s Arsenic an Aphrodisiac? by Professor William Cullen of The University of British Columbia is a superb achievement. The writing is interesting and the coverage of the history of arsenic compounds in just about every aspect of life is as complete as one could hope for.

From the history of the use of arsenic-based molecules in the Middle Ages to the “Magic Bullet” of Ehrlich (salvarsan “606”) for the treatment of syphilis in the early 1900s, the wealth of details in each section of the book is impressive.

The chapter order makes sense and the depth of detail within each section provides the makings of an entire course that could be given with this book as the basic text. I do not know if there are other books that blanket the history and chemistry of any other element in such an engaging and entertaining fashion as this work. It is history, sociology, chemistry and the environment all wrapped into one coherent bundle.

When the word arsenic is mentioned to a non-chemist, usually the first thoughts would focus on arsenic as a poison and there is no shortage of stories in this book that relate to that classic topic.

Fictional accounts and well over a dozen actual poisonings are documented through to the court conclusions. They are all very wellreferenced. In all, there are over 1,500 citations in the book.

Reading this treasure is like reading history with just the right “chemical touches.” Chapter 6 (“Arsenic at War: Mass Murder”) is a case in point. The role of the other chemical agents used in warfare (chlorine, phosgene, nerve and tear gases) is documented along with several different arsenic-based compounds that were employed then.

The style of the writing is very clear, allowing the reader to understand

28 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

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not only the political circumstances of a variety of important conflicts but also the chemistry of the warfare as well as the “antidotes” that were employed.

The last chapter is perhaps the most important as it details the “Accidental Exposure to Arsenic: The Law of Unintended Consequences.”

This summarizes the terrible problems of arsenic in drinking water in Bangladesh and West Bengal as well as a variety of current problems in

Reading this treasure is like reading history with just the right “chemical touches”. other centres in the world. The details again encompass the chemistry as well as the world scene in an up-to-date manner.

There are few criticisms to find in such a special book; even finding typos was difficult. The occasional cartoon was refreshing and there were about a dozen photos, though the book could have benefitted from clearer and even more pictures. A colour reproduction of the classic John Singer Sargent painting, “Gassed,” would have been appreciated; however, these are minor criticisms in a book that is useful now and will continue to enlighten and entertain for years to come. ACCN David Harpp, FCIC, is the MacDonald Professor of Chemistry at McGill.



Canadian Society for Chemical Technology

Nominations are now open for

The Canadian­Society for Chemical Technology

2010AWARDAct now!

Do you know an outstanding person who deserves to be recognized?

The Norman and Marion Bright Memorial Award is awarded to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution in Canada to the furtherance of chemical technology. The person so honoured may be either a chemical sciences technologist, or a person from outside the field who has made a significant and noteworthy contribution to it advancement.

Award: A certificate and a cash prize.

ACCN 2009

October Waste Management­and Recycling­November­/December­ Chemical Burden on the Body

Submit your ideas to

editorial@accn.ca.

Deadline

The deadline for this CSCT award is December 1, 2009 for the 2010 selection.

Nomination forms and the full Terms of Reference for this award is available at www.chem-tech.ca/awards.

ARticle: Recession and research

Thinking It Through:

The Immiscibility of Recession and Research

By Ovie Ekewenu, MCIC

E

xpressions like global recession, restructuring, budget cuts, lay-offs, as well as economic stimulus package and bankruptcy have been used repeatedly by various news media outlets within the last 18 months to describe the current economic situation. Questions repeatedly ruminated by economists and financial policy analysts revolve around the shift in the tectonic plate of the global financial system, how the global economy spiralled out of control and how the measures adopted by various national governments and financial institutions to deal with the current economic problems are hamstrung by the complexity of the global financial system.

The indicators of the current economic crisis include limited availability of credits from financial institutions, vaporization of contributions made to RRSPs and RESPs, closures of manufacturing plants, massive lay-offs; and wage/benefit concessions by unionized employees. Scientific and technological research, which constitutes the bedrock of the world’s major economies, has also taken a hit due to the current economic crisis. Various sectors of the economy have responded to the seemingly endemic economic crisis by adopting cost-cutting measures.

However, these measures have far-reaching consequences.

Lately, most Canadian colleges and universities have been announcing proposed budget cuts to various academic programs.

The Federal Government earlier this year also announced budget cuts to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the three main sources of research grants in Canada. It’s not clear how these cuts would impact on the entrepreneurial, knowledge and people advantage commitments of the federal

Research has contributed to numerous fields of human endeavours over the years including agriculture, industry, communication, national security, clean energy technology, and biomedical sciences, among others.

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government­ as exemplified in the Government of Canada’s Federal Science and Technology Strategy (2007), which is geared towards mobilizing science, and technology to Canada’s advantage.

The current economic problem was the result of inordinate speculation on stock prices coupled with unprecedented expansion of consumer credit resulting in individuals and institutions indiscreetly purchasing what they could not afford to pay for. However, research has contributed to numerous fields of human endeavours over

the years including agriculture, industry, communication, national security, clean energy technology, and biomedical sciences, among others. Since research and development activities are arguably not culpable with respect to the cause of the current global economic crisis, an unwarranted cut to research funding would unquestionably affect science and technology by unwittingly stifling innovation, dampening research enthusiasm and hindering competitiveness among research scientists. The imperatives of a sound national science and technology policy could also be adversely affected by under-funding for research and development­ activities.

The products of the mixture or fusion of various economic stimulus packages devoid of adequate funding for research are fairly predictable. Research and recession are immiscible components. In chemical parlance, the mechanism of reacting to the current economic crisis requires clearly defined reaction kinetics. Reactants such as policy drivers, implementation strategies and monitoring processes need to be carefully selected based on inherent economic realities.

Reaction pathways need to be clearly defined and appropriate catalysts like economic stimulus packages and initiatives required need to be properly injected, in order to ensure the yield of high-quality economic products. They must be measurable using various parameters, including increased funding for research activities, job creation, diversification of investments in different portfolios, national security, environmental sustainability, continental energy security and Canada’s ability to meet its international obligation to assist developing countries.

The message to be reiterated by research scientists and policy makers globally is that research should not be sacrificed for the expediency of budget cuts in response to the current global financial crisis. In fact, research fosters progress and provides the opportunity to explore various options, which are inextricably linked to the economy in one way or another. ACCN



Chemical Institute of Canada

CIC Fellowships Do you know a deserving member? The CIC Fellowship is a senior class of membership that recognizes the merits of CIC members who have made outstanding contributions. Four areas of achievement are considered: • • • •

scientific, engineering, and technical contributions; CIC, CSC, CSChE, and CSCT activities; management of science, engineering, or technology; teaching and promotion of chemical public awareness.

In general, candidates should have made contributions in all four areas; outstanding contributions in one area may partially offset weaknesses in another area. Nominees should be members in good standing for at least ten years.

Nominations for 2010 CIC Fellowship are due October 1, 2009. For more information, visit www.cheminst.ca/fellowship.

Ovie Ekewenu is the president of the Canadian Society of Chemical Technologist and currently works as a science policy analyst for Natural Resources Canada’s Office of Energy Research and Development.

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 31

ARticle: public understanding of chemistry

Demystifying Chemicals for the Public

By Lucie Frigon

C

hemical scientists and engineers in all fields are passionate and proud of what they do. They all share an ultimate goal, to help make the world a better place to live. However, over the years, many have had to develop a thick skin because few of their achievements are known and little positive news about chemistry is mentioned in the media. Instead, we hear a lot of negatives. The frustrating part is that—Perhaps largely because of popular myths, lack of knowledge and misinformation—a significant portion of these negative statements may not be justified.

What can the chemical community do?

The Canadian Chemical Producers’ Association (CCPA) has partnered with the Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC) and Dr. Joe Schwarcz to create the new web site “Chemically Speaking”. It’s an easy-to-understand, go-to source that demystifies the role of chemicals in our daily lives.

Through videos, reference articles and commentaries, the web site sheds light on issues and helps make sense of perceived or real chemical risks.

How often have we heard about this or that chemical in baby shampoo, shower curtains, plastic bottles, and so on? Or, all those chemicals that end up in our blood because of our environment? It always sounds alarming, and people are legitimately concerned about their health and that of their loved ones. Are these serious threats? Can people believe what they hear in the media? Now, when they worry about a chemical-related issue that’s in the public eye, people can turn to “Chemically Speaking”. It will help identify and demystify myths and misinformation in a vocabulary that is accessible to anyone. Often there is not a clear-cut right or wrong answer but it is important to be aware of what’s out there and be able to separate myth from truth. “Chemically Speaking” aims to do that.

“Chemically Speaking” will also help people realize that decisions they make everyday in their house, backyard, car, or workplace have an impact, chemically speaking. For example, did you drink orange juice this morning as your dose of vitamin C or did you choose grapefruit juice

instead? Depending on the type of medication you already take, this decision may have an impact on your health. In the backyard, how do you maintain your lawn? Did you have coffee, and did you have it in a reusable mug, or in a paper cup on your drive to work? What are your kid’s toys made of? How do you package leftovers at home, or carry water around? Do you use sunscreen? These questions are related to decisions people make every day that are associated with chemicals.

“Chemically Speaking” is fortunate to count on a recognized, trusted partner. Joe Schwarcz is the director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society. He is well known for his efforts at interpreting science for the public and for demonstrating the importance of understanding chemistry as it pertains to daily life. He explains facts in straightforward, layman’s terms and has a talent for putting facts in perspective. “Chemicals in and of themselves are not safe or dangerous, there are only safe or dangerous ways to use chemicals” says Schwarcz.

He added that “Many natural substances can be dangerous if taken by the wrong person or in the wrong quantity. Conversely, many chemicals that are perceived harmful may not be when used responsibly. The idea of this Web site is to have a trusted source for making choices.”

“Chemically Speaking” pledges to remain unbiased and will not be influenced by CCPA and its member societies or partners, by the CIC or any other

Now, when they worry about a chemical-related issue that’s in the public eye, people can turn to “Chemically Speaking”.

It will help identify and demystify myths and misinformation in a vocabulary that is accessible to anyone.

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entity. It will remain independent and seek to present facts as they are.

The new Web site is a positive initiative of CCPA that was shared with the CIC. It is now a component of the overall CIC Public Understanding of Chemistry program. Visit it at www.chemicallyspeaking.org. As it develops and grows, we invite you to get to know it and direct people to it whenever they wonder about chemicals in their everyday life. ACCN Lucie Frigon is the Communications Manager at the Chemical Institute of Canada.



Chemical Institute of Canada

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 33

Recognition reconnaissance

New Editor Named for the Canadian Chemical News (ACCN )

Queen’s Univeristy chemistry professor emeritus Mike Baird, FCIC, is the winner of the 2009 Canadian Catalysis Lectureship Award, sponsored by the Canadian Catalysis Foundation­.

Jodi Di Menna, MCIC, BSc (Geology), Masters (Journalism), will take over as editor of this magazine beginning with the October issue.

Di Menna was previously assistant editor of Canadian Geographic magazine and most recently worked on the magazines of the Canadian Wildlife­ Federation­.

Institute of Food Science and Technology (CIFST). Only one fellow is elected annually by the Institute, which is composed of more than 1200 scientists and technologists in industry, government and academia.

Queen’s University chemistry professor Gregory Jerkiewicz has been appointed editor-in-chief of Electrocatalysis. It’s a new, international journal, dedicated to electrochemical reactions.

In Memoriam: The CIC

extends its condolences to the family of Mr. Donald G. Smith, FCIC

The University of Toronto’s Levente Diosady, FCIC, was elected a Fellow of the Canadian

CAE Fellows Named Forty-two new Fellows were inducted into the Canadian Academy of Engineering on July 13, 2009. The ceremony took place in conjunction with the Academy’s 2009 Annual General Meeting. Congratulations to the following three recipients who are members of the CIC. Peter Englezos, MCIC University of British Columbia Peter Englezos is a very active researcher in several industrial and academic areas relevant to two important sectors of the Canadian economy, including energy and paper. He is an international authority on gas hydrates, an important area in the development of innovative clean energy technologies. He has contributed significantly to the field—particularly his work on thermodynamics and kinetics of gas hydrates. He is also a well-recognized expert on several aspects of papermaking chemistry, contributing technology developments that enable high-value paper manufacturing.

His honours include Keio University's Tokyo Electric Power Company Endowed Chair and UBC's Professorship in Advanced Papermaking.

He served as an expert for the Council of the Canadian Academies in assessing gas hydrates as an energy resource and chaired the 6th International Conference on Gas Hydrates in 2008.

Get

Mashahiro Kawaji, FCIC University of Toronto Masahiro Kawaji has devoted many years to research on flow and thermal problems in chemical, nuclear, pulp and paper, aerospace and energy industries. Through numerous industry and government-funded projects as well as many publications, the results generated have had a significant impact on economic development and on sustaining the competitiveness of Canadian industry. He promotes international cooperation in engineering research by organizing and chairing international conferences, serving on scientific, organizing or advisory committees of numerous international conferences, working groups, and government committees.

Hadi Mahabadi, FCIC Xerox Research Centre Canada Hadi Mahabadi has delivered outstanding technical and leadership contributions to

the Xerox Corporation. Highlights among his many contributions include material technology innovations such as reactive extrusion toner and semi-suspension polymerization technologies that were successfully commercialized. His leadership accomplishments include leading successful development and delivery of many material and ink jet technologies including emulsion aggregation toner and next generation of solid ink that has led to the invention of world class products and generated significant value for Xerox. As head of a research centre facility for Xerox and through interaction and participation in various task force committees and organizations, Mahabadi has been a major influence in the development and advancement of Canada’s science and technology agenda, specifically in nanotechnology and green chemistry. ACCN

NOTICED

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Put your message in front of 6,000+ chemists­, chemical­engineers, and chemical technologists every month at a very low cost.

34 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

septembre 2009

Recognition reconnaissance

SAIT Hosts the 2009 Western Canadian CSCT Student Symposium

By Madeleine Ho, SAIT, 2nd year CHT student

O

n April 3, the 2009 Western Canadian CSCT Student Symposium was hosted by Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) at the Orpheus Theatre. The purpose of this symposium was to give students of the chemical technology (CHT) program an opportunity to gain experience in presenting in front of their peers. Participating students and instructors came from Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST), and SAIT. Guest speakers from industry were also in attendance.

Guest speakers included Steve Peck from Matrix Drilling Fluids, a former CHT graduate from SAIT, Phil Edwards from NOVA Chemicals, Leslie May from Baker Petrolite and Roland Andersson from the Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC).

Judges were involved in assessing the quality of posters and presentations.

Poster Presentation Session.

Student Name Malsoon Kim Madelaine McKinley

Rank 1 1

School NAIT SAIT

Poster Topic 2,5-Dimethylfuran as a Biofuel Alzheimer’s

Student Name Rudy Willlick

Rank 3

Dalia El-Mougi

2

Heather Beck

-

Pristine Sotocinal and Shalini Vig Aromatic Iodination of Vanillin Esther Igbokoyi Monique Koski

-

School Presentation Topic SIAST Time Effects on Mercury Analysis­ in Coal SAIT Removal of Mass Spectroscopic Interferences in the ICP-MS SIAST Particle Size Effect on Uranium Leaching NAIT Green Chemistry: Electrophillic

- 1

Prabhu Karki

-

Krystal Handley and Susan Yuan Denielle Mitchell

- -

Oral presentation Session.

SAIT Esters SIAST A Comparative Sorption Study of Some Macro Cyclic CarbohydrateBased Polymers NAIT Need for Sustainable Energy and Possibility of Hydrogen-Energy Systems SAIT Pollen Sampling SIAST Effect of Free Acid on Leaching Process

Funding Chemical Education Call for Proposals Deadline: December 15, 2009

The CIC Chemical Education­ Fund (CEF) is looking to support original and innovative­chemical­-related­ educational­projects. The CEF has sponsored­student­ conferences­, science fairs, chemical outreach­programs­, a Summer Institute, and more.

For more information, contact info@cheminst.ca or visit

www.cheminst.ca/cef.

The event was well put together with an opportunity for students to mix and mingle with others who were taking the same program at different schools. Students also heard words of advice from the guest speakers on potential career ideas, how to find work after graduation as well as skills that would help in the future.

The event could not have taken place without its sponsors. Sponsors for this event included Baker Petrolite, NACE International (Calgary Section), the Calgary CIC Local Section, the CIC Chemical Education Fund, SynerChem, Bri-Chem Supply Ltd., Brinadd Brine-Add Fluids Ltd., ATCO Gas, Matrix Drilling Fluids and NOVA Chemicals. ACCN

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 35

Recognition reconnaissance

Public Understanding of Chemistry 2009 The CIC wishes to acknowledge the following organizations for their generous sponsorship of PUC 2009:

Silver Anachemia Science Boehringer Ingelheim (Canada) Ltd. ERCO Worldwide Recochem Inc. Rhodia Canada Inc.

Bronze Canadian Association of Chemical Distributors Canadian Consumer Specialty Products Association

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septembre 2009

A program of the Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC)

What is the goal? Its aim is to demystify and popularize chemistry in general, to motivate young people to discover it and even consider a career in the field. The program presents concrete examples of success such as major discoveries in the world of chemistry, to work towards eradicating the negative perception the general public often has of chemistry.

What does it involve? Some of the elements of the program are created by the CIC while others are organized­ in partnership­ with other organizations. The following examples showcase the intentions of the program:

• • • • • • • •

Canadian Chemistry Contest; Canadian Chemistry Olympiad; Science Fairs; Canadian Chemistry Milestones; Canadian Chemical Landmarks; Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame; National Crystal Growing Competition; National Chemistry Week.

For details, contact the CIC at publicunderstanding@cheminst.ca

Ichikizaki Fund for Young Chemists The Ichikizaki Fund for Young Chemists provides financial assistance to young chemists who show unique achievements­ in basic research by facilitating their participation in international conferences or symposia.

Eligibility: • • • •

be a member of the Canadian Society for Chemistry or the Chemical Society of Japan; not have passed his/her 34th birthday as of December 31 of the year in which the application is submitted; have a research specialty in synthetic organic chemistry; be scheduled to attend, within one year, an international conference or symposium directly related to synthetic organic­ chemistry. Conferences taking place in January to March of each year should be applied for a year in advance­in order to receive funding in time for the conference.

Deadline: December For more details:

31, 2009

www.chemistry.ca/awards

september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 37

Recognition reconnaissance

The Catalysis Award— Call for Nominations­ The Catalysis Award, sponsored by the Canadian Catalysis Foundation, is awarded biannually­to an individual who, while resident in Canada, has made a distinguished contribution­to the field of catalysis. The recipient of the Award receives a rhodium-plated­­silver medal and travel expenses to present the award lecture at the Canadian Symposium­on Catalysis or the annual conference of the Canadian Society for Chemistry or the Canadian­Society for Chemical Engineering.

Nominations for the award must be submitted in writing to the Awards Manager by October­ 1, 2009, using the CIC nomination form found at www.cheminst.ca/awards.

Previous winners of the Catalysis Award are R.J. Cvetanovic and Y. Amenomiya (1977), R. B. Anderson­ (1979), C. H. Amberg (1982), H. Alper (1984), H. W. Habgood (1986), J. B. Moffat­ (1988), B. R. James (1990), B. Wojciechowski (1992), I. Dalla Lana (1994), M. Ternan (1996), S. Kaliaguine­(1998), G. L. Rempel (2000), M. C. Baird (2002), C. A. Fyfe (2004), S. Brown (2006) and Flora T. T. Ng (2008).

For more information, please contact the Division Chair, Flora Ng, FCIC, Department­ of Chemical Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1; Tel: 519-885-1211­, ext. 33979, Fax: 519-746-4979, email : fttng@cape.uwaterloo.ca or Gale Thirlwall­, Awards Manager, Chemical Institute of Canada, 130 Slater Street, Suite 550, Ottawa, ON K1P 6E2; Tel: 613-232-6252, ext 223; Fax: 613-232-5862; E-mail: gthirlwall­@cheminst.ca.

Appel de candidatures pour le Prix de catalyse Le Prix de catalyse, parrainé par la Fondation canadienne de catalyse, est remis bisannuellement­à un chercheur dont la contribution au domaine de la catalyse est considérée­comme exceptionnelle­ et ce, pour la recherché effectuée au Canada. Le récipiendaire­du prix reçoit une médaille d’argent plaquée rhodium et le remboursement­de ses frais de déplacement pour presenter la Conférence du Prix de catalyse au Symposium­canadien de catalyse ou au congrès annuel de la Société canadienne­de chimie ou de la Société­canadienne de génie chimique.

Les mise en candidatures pour le Prix doivent être soumises par écrit à la directrice des prix d’ici le 1er octobre 2009 à l'aide du formulaire de mise en candidature pour les prix de l’ICC. Les récipiendaires précédents du Prix sont R. J. Cvetanovic et Y. Amenomiya (1977), R. B. Anderson­ (1979), C. H. Amberg (1982), H. Alper (1984), H. W. Habgood (1986), J. B. Moffat (1988), B. R. James (1990), B. Wojciechowski (1992), I. Dalla Lana (1994), M. Ternan (1996), S. Kaliaguine (1998), G. L. Rempel (2000), M. C. Baird (2002), C. A. Fyfe (2004), S. Brown (2006) et Flora T. T. Ng (2008).

Pour tout renseignement supplémentaire, veuiller contacter la présidente de la division­, Flora Ng, FCIC, département de génie chimique, University of Waterloo, Waterloo­ (Ontario)­ N2L 3G1; tél. : 519-885-1211, poste 33979, téléc. : 613-232-5862, courriel : fttng@cape.uwaterloo.ca ou Gale Thirlwall, Directrice des prix, Institut­ de chimie­ du Canada­, 130, rue Slater, bureau 550, Ottawa (Ontario) K1P 6E2; tél. : 613-232-6252, poste 223; téléc­. : 613-232-5862; courriel : gthirlwall@cheminst.ca.

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Events Événements

Canada Conferences May 29–June 2, 2010. 93rd Canadian Chemistry Conference­and Exhibition, Toronto, ON, www.csc2010.ca August 15–19, 2010. 3rd International IUPAC Conference on Green Chemistry, Ottawa, ON, www.icgc2010.ca.

October 24–27, 2010. 60th Canadian Chemical Engineering Conference (CSChE 2010), Saskatoon, SK, www.csche2010.ca

U.S. and Overseas Conferences September 27–30, 2009. Engineering our Future, Perth, Australia, www.chemeca2009.com.

December 15–20, 2010. Pacifichem 2010, Honolulu, Hawaii, www.pacifichem.org.

Saviez-vous Toutes les éditions d’ACCN parues avant 2009 peuvent être lues gratuitement sur le Web à www.accn.ca?



Continuing Education for Chemical Professionals

Risk assessment course

T

he Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC) and the Canadian Society

2009 Schedule October 19–20

for Chemical Engineering (CSChE)

are presenting a two-day course designed to enhance the knowledge and working experience of safety, environmental and process safety professionals. This course is geared to those whose responsibilities include: risk assessment, development of

Toronto, ON

management systems, and providing advice

October 26–27

is to reach a thorough understanding of

Edmonton, AB

Registration fees

$845 CIC members $995 non-members $150 student members For more information about the course and locations, and to access the registration form, visit:

www.cheminst.ca/ profdev

to decision makers. The learning objective integrated risk assessment and management principles and techniques.

During the course, participants will be provided with a broad overview of the technical tools available to assess risk in industrial environments and shown how these tools fit in the broader risk management systems.

Instructor Ertugrul Alp, PhD, PEng, MCIC, principal, Alp & Associates Incorporated, has over 20 years experience in assessment and management of risks to environment,

Day

• Introduction • Major Historical Accidents in Process Industries • Risk Concepts: How to Estimate Risk and Evaluate it’s Acceptability • Integrated Risk Management: Success Factors for High Performance • Risk Management Process • Techniques for Risk Analysis • Qualitative Techniques: Hazard Identification with hands-on applications • Index Methods • Frequency Analysis Techniques, SVA, LOPA (Fault and Event Trees) • Practical Hazard Awareness in Operating Plants

Day • • • • • • • • • • •

health, safety, property and reputation. His experience covers a number of industrial sectors including: chemical, energy, pulp and paper, mining, steel, transportation, and government.



1

• • • •

2

Quantitative Techniques Fault and Event Trees Fire, Explosion, Dispersion Modeling Damage/Vulnerability Modeling Risk Estimation and Risk Presentation Applications to Plant Layout Design Health Risk Analysis Risk Evaluation and Decision-Making Risk Cost Benefit Analysis Elements for Process Safety Management with Reference to US OSHA PSM Regulations Emergency Management with Reference to Environment Canada and other Canadian Legislation Land Use Planning Risk Monitoring Stakeholder Participation Summary and Conclusion

Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering september 2009 Canadian Chemical News 39

PM40021620

40 L’Actualité chimique canadienne

septembre 2009