Resonance: Issue 12

Resonance Issue 12 | Spring 2020

The University of Sheffield’s Chemistry News Team SHAMPOO SCIENCE

NIKE’S VAPOURFLY

THE DESERT GARDEN PROJECT Interviweing Prof A. J. Ryan

Resonance

The University of Sheffield’s Chemistry News Team Editor Courtney Thompson Design Editor Josh Nicks and Courtney Thompson

Resonance

Resonance is a biannual newsletter produced by chemistry students at the University of Sheffield. It aims to provide insights into unheard stories from the department and to engage its readers with issues in the wider scientific world.

Editorial

Contributing Authors Tom Neal Freya Cleasby Courtney Thompson Josh Nicks Naomi Brown Arthur Graf James Harman-Thomas

Copy Editors Courtney Thompson Josh Nicks Dr Jonathan A. Foster Prof Anthony J. H. M. Meijer

Email chem-news@sheffield.ac.uk

Printers Print and Design Solutions Bolsover Street Sheffield S3 7NA

A

s my first issue of resonance as editor, I feel it is quite appropriate to introduce myself first. I am in my second year of study for my PhD as part of the Ry-Myk group. The RyMyk group is a hybrid group, which comprises all of the PhD students associated with both Professor Anthony Ryan and Dr Oleksander Mykhaylyk. My specific project forcuses on shampoo chemistry - a topic you can read more about in this issue!

This issue focuses on polymers, a topic which I am sure you have all heard a lot about recently with single use plastic and micro-plastic concerns being at an all time high. Here in Sheffield polymers are essential to our research as we are the home of the Polymer Centre for Doctoral Training, funded by the EPSRC. But polymers and plastic aren’t the enemy, we need to work to repurpose and rebrand polymers to harness their amazing properties at no detremental effect to the environment.

Some of the articles in this issue shed a new light on such polymers and explain how they can be used and/or adapted for good. One notable article is an interview I conducted with my supervisor Prof Tony Ryan about his new project, The Desert Garden Project. The project was seen recently on BBC news, feauturing in a Yorkshire episode of Inside Out. This article is definitely worth a read.

As a final point I would just like to take a moment to thank all the authors who contributed to this issue. Freya, Tom, and James who provided a stellar insight into their own research. Naomi sharing her experiences on a 6 months PhD sabbatical, and of course Josh for his article on the controversial Nike Vapour Flys.

All of which are a great read!

Until next time,

Courtney Thompson

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Contents

On the Cover

5

In This Issue

Editorial

1

#Redefining Single Use

3

Water Purification on the Atomic Level

4

Shampoo Science Elemental Factfile: Titanium

Shampoo Science Surfactants may only be small but their cleaning power is mighty - this article tells you exactly how they leave your hair squeaky clean.

7 Nike’s Vapourfly The science behind Nike’s new foam technology which aims to enhance athletic performance.

Nike’s Vapourfly

5-6 6 7-8

The Periodic Table of Poems

9

IYPT Hands on Science/ Jenny Burnham’s Big Walk

10

The Desert Garden Project: Interviewing Prof Tony Ryan

11-12

Departmental News

13-14

Placements & Internships

15

Fossil Fuel Combusion with Zero Emission: Is It a Pipeline Dream?

16

Chemistry Crossword

17

This Semester in Pictures

Back

Check Us Out @resonancenews @SheffieldChem

11

@sheffield.chem The University of Sheffield University of Sheffield Chemistry Alumni @Resonance_Sheff

The Desert Garden Project An insight into Prof Ryan’s innovative and inspiriting new project - covered by the BBC!

chem-news@sheffield.ac.uk www http://bit.ly/2weV7M1

The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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Insight

Diamonds in the #RedefiningSingleUse Rough

By Tom Neal

By Tom Neal

I

t is apparent that we live in the age of the “plastic crisis,” an emotive term used to simultaneously promote change for the better and provoke an increase in tabloid paper sales.

Regardless of whether the motive for this poignant tag is moral and right, I believe that generally, the induced change is a good one. New conscious consumers have been created who can no longer buy a 4-pack of Stella without dwelling on the image of a seagull tangled in a plastic web, or consume H2O in anything other than a BPA-free reusable (preferably Love Island branded) water bottle. I say all this with personal experience.

Recently, I faced the guilt that is now associated with forgetting a reusable coffee cup. I asked for my usual... a soy flat white… the hipster’s elixir. The barista scanned my body with her eyes as she asked “to stay in or take out,” looking, ever so hopefully, for the cup.

I replied, “to go”. Her heart sank and my shame sky-rocketed.

Of course, this change in society spans further than Stella-Artois and coffee cups. This new found conscious consumption influences the focus of scientific research. For a many years here at the University of Sheffield, there has been a large focus on sustainability spear-headed by the Grantham Centre. This belief

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that sustainability should be at the forefront of academic research helped secure a UKRI grant to tackle some of the issues associated with singleuse plastics and sustainability. Part of this grant funds a team of Post docs whose backgrounds span across multiple disciplines, from life sciences to geography. Multiple post-doctoral cogs working together to push against the forewarned crisis. I am the chemistry cog. By having a multidisciplinary team, the issue of singleuse plastics can be approached from many different angles ranging from behavioural change, in terms of reuse, to the life-cycle analysis of so-called “green” plastics. Additionally, having several different disciplines, and thus expertise, working in unison allows significant knowledge transfer and collaboration.

Each post-doc on the team has a specific research project that they undertake as well as collaborative projects. My research focuses on issues that surround the recycling of single-use plastics, specifically polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). PE and PP are the world’s most commonly used plastics and contribute to over 50% of the world’s plastic consumption. Therefore, a large amount of plastic waste is made up of PE and PP. This should not be a problem as both PE and PP are readily recyclable. However, the issue stems from the separation of the plastics itself. The crux of the problem is that the solid-state densities of the two polymers are very similar. Their similar densities make separation via the commonly used sink-float method very troublesome, and the reality is that recycled PE will contain

a certain amount of PP contamination and vice versa. Although the chemical structures of PE and PP are very similar, the two polymers will phase separate in the recyclate. This results in a material that has reduced mechanical properties. Therefore, it is important to address this issue to maximise the efficiency in which we recycle our plastic waste.

Chemical Struture of PP (above) and PE (below)

One way we hope to tackle this conundrum is by controlling the crystallisation within the polymer blend using specific processing conditions whereby shear is applied during crystallisation. Applying shear should induce the formation of orientated shish-kebab structures formed as a combination of the two polymers instead of the individual large spherulite crystals. Formation of joint crystals should induce crystalline crosslinks between the polymer phases and increase the mechanical properties of the recycled material. This craved result aims to reduce waste, extend the recycled life of single-use plastics, and save the planet.

1. Mykhaylyk et al., Macromolecules, 2010, 43, 2389–2405.

Research Interview

Water Purification on the Atomic Level

By Freya Cleasby

C

lean, safe drinking water is essential for life on Earth, and is an amenity we take for granted here in the UK. However, because of growing global population, industrialisation, and climate change, freshwater is becoming a dwindling resource. In 2002, a report endorsed by World Health Organisation stated that 3.1% of deaths worldwide was as a consequence of the lack of clean and safe water, proving that addressing the demand for clean, safe water is one of the biggest challenges of our time.

It is well-known that over 70% of the world’s surface is covered by water, so you might ask why is a lack of water even a problem? Only 0.8% of the 70% total is freshwater, and on top of that, large amounts of the water on the planet is inaccessible, trapped in glaciers and underground reservoirs.

This means we must look to more unconventional sources to meet the growing water demand. Seawater is the most abundant source of drinking and industrial water; however, the high salt content means it is not fit for domestic use without treatment.

In developing regions, such as North Africa, filtering seawater to make it drinkable might be one way to provide clean drinking water supply.

Currently, polymer-based membranes are at the forefront of water purification technologies. These systems are often

Percentage of world population using an unimproved drinking water source by country.

cheap and environmentally friendly to manufacture, the nature of the material makes them flexible and easy to handle. However, as with any material, polymer membranes have their drawbacks. The tradeoff between flux (how fast solutions flow through the membrane) and selectivity in rejection is the limiting factor.

One way to improve this fluxselectivity trade off is by adding a filler into the membranes during the manufacturing process. Metal-organic materials are a type of inorganic material that can be used as a filler in polymer membranes to improve their performance. Metal-organic materials consist of metal nodes or clusters linked together by multitopic

The general synthetic route for coordination polymers, and their different possible architectures.

organic ligands to form large extended networks. These structures are rigid with intrinsic pores of a specific size.

This topology allows small molecules to easily flow through, while selectively rejecting larger molecules. Allowing water to flow through at a high flux while rejecting the unwanted salt ions.

My research project aims to use these metal-organic materials combined with commercial polymer membranes to form an active layer that improves the performance of water filtration membranes.

1. Y. H. Teow and A. W. Mohammad, Desalination, 2019.

2. The World Health Report 2002: Reducing Risks, Promoting Healthy Life, 2002.

General water purifcation mechanism

The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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Feature

Shampoo Science

By Courtney Thompson

O

ften in the shower you may find yourself gazing at the back of the shampoo bottle at the long list of ingredients. However, the cleaning of your hair is in fact mainly carried out by one miracle component known scientifically as a surfactant.

The term ‘surfactant’ is derived from the phrase ‘surface active agent’.

By definition surfactants have a preference to adsorb to an interface (the boundary between two phases i.e. the gas-liquid interface, commonly referred to as the surface) as this helps to reduce the overall Gibbs free energy of a system. This preference is driven by the molecules’ amphiphilic nature.

Schematic of surfactant interaction at the air/water interface

General structure of a surfactant

The hydrophilic section is often referred to as the ‘head group’, which can be charged or highly polar allowing it to interact with water. The hydrophobic section or the ‘tail group’ is often comprised of a hydrocarbon chain, which does not form favorable interactions in water and thus orientates itself into the air phase.

Schematic of surfactant molecules arranging themselves into a micelle structure

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This amphiphilic quality allows for surfactants to form aggregates in solution. Aggregation is a spontaneous process that can begin to occur once the interface has become fully saturated by surfactant molecules.

The driving force behind this process is a desire to adopt the lowest energy configuration in solution to minimize the unfavorable hydrophobic tailwater interactions. The hydrophilic headgroups orientate themselves to maximise the favourable polar interactions with each other and the surrounding water molecules, forming a shell-like structure. The hydrophobic tails orientate themselves to point inside the structure, interacting in a non-polar environment with each other.

This aggregate is referred to as a micelle. These structures form once a critical concentration has been reached - known as the surfactant’s critical micelle concentration, or CMC. This concentration can be defined as the minimum amount of surfactant required to be present in for these aggregation structures to be formed.

The formation of micelles is essential in the removal of soils from the hair.

Micelles aid the removal of soils as the soil particulates are hydrophobic, so the micelle is able to encapsulate the soil within the core and remove it with rinsing.

Schematic of the general cleaning mechanism via ‘dirt’ encapsulation

Feature With the consumer demand for multifunctional shampoos at an alltime high, cationic polymers play a vital role in a shampoo. They provide the conditioning properties that are now commonplace in a standard shampoo formulation.

Cationic polymers are often referred to in the personal care industry as ‘deposition polymers’.

Deposition polymers can be made synthetically or derived from renewable biological sources. The latter of the two is the preferred route as most companies move towards more renewable product sources. For this reason, most deposition polymers are modified cellulose or guar gum derivatives. Both of these are extracted from plant products and can form polymers with sturdy water-soluble backbones.

The deposition polymer acts to enhance the properties of the hair directly by precipitating onto the hair strands.

When in the shampoo the deposition polymer is charge stabilized by the presence of the surfactant, through Coulombic interactions. This leads to a fully solubilised complex in which the cationic polymers charge is more than compensated for in the presence of excess surfactant, which is above the CMC. Upon rinsing, the shampoo is diluted and the concentration of surfactant in the system drops below that of the CMC.

The charge on the cationic deposition polymer is no longer fully stabilised by the surfactant and the polymer itself is able to form Coulombic interactions with the anionic hair strands. The deposition polymer is therefore left behind after rinsing as a coating on the hair.

1. D. F. Evans et al, The Colloidal Domain, Wiley & Co, 1999.

General chemical structure of Cellulose (left) & Guar Gum (right)

Elemental Factfile: Titanium No, I’m not talking about the smash hit by David Guetta. I mean element 22, found on the top row of the transition metals, with an atomic weight of 47.867. Titanium is as strong as steel, but 45% lighter and resistant to corrosion, making it the ideal metal for aviation application. A single Boeing 777 airliner is made of around 59 tonnes of titanium, so it’s a good job it’s the ninth most abundant element on Earth! Titanium’s resistance to corrosion comes from the oxide layer that forms on the surface when it does ever so slightly corrode.

Unlike iron, where rust flakes off to reveal fresh metal ready for further corrosion, an oxide layer forms, effectively encasing the titanium underneath, acting as a protective film prevents further corrosion from taking place. This oxide layer starts at a couple of nanometres

thick and grows to a maximum of ~25 nanometres in 4 years. This effect is seen in titanium even in highly corrosive environments such as seawater, which is why titanium is a go to material for oil rig supports, submarine hulls, and other maritime applications.

The resistance to corrosion means titanium is highly inert and nontoxic. This, coupled with the high strength to weight ratio, makes it the ideal candidate for prosthetic body parts. It is often used for hip replacements and as pins and plates for mending broken bones and fractured skulls. The thin oxide layer is believed to be the reason titanium integrates so well with living bone. For this reason, all medical titanium is treated with high-voltage electricity before it goes into the body. This removes the surface covering and allows a fresh

22

Ti

47.88 6 protective layer of oxide to form.

C

A vicar and amateur geologist from Cornwall, William Gregor, 12.011 first discovered titanium in 1791.

He extracted it from black sand he found in a local parish stream and named it menachanite after said parish. 4 years later a German scientist, Martin Heinrich Klaproth independently discovered the element and gave it the name we all know today after the ‘Titans’ of Greek mythology. Perhaps he foresaw what a mighty element titanium would become.

Titanium ore in its raw form

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Feature

Foam Wars: Nike Strikes Back

By Josh Nicks

C

hemical science is everywhere. From our food and medicine to our transport and technology. But you might be surprised to hear that chemistry plays a vital role in the world of performance trainers. Find out how your favourite brands are using polymer chemistry to win the race to make the world’s fastest trainers.

Introduced in 2016, Nike’s Vaporfly 4% trainers caused some controversy last year after two outstanding marathon performances.

Eliud Kipchoge, a Kenyan marathonrunner, made headlines when he broke the 2-hour marathon barrier in the 2019 London marathon. The very next day, fellow Kenyan Brigid Kosgei won the 26.2 mile Chicago Marathon with a world record time. But despite their nationalities, the most striking similarity between the two was on their feet. Both runners were kitted with Nike’s Vaporfly 4% trainers, that can “increase athletes energetic efficiency by 4% or more”. This begs the question, how can a seemingly simple pair of trainers help two completely different runners break such longstanding records? The answer, of course, is chemistry!

Kipchoge celebrating his victory in the 2019 London marathon.

The vital components of the Vaporfly 4% model, is a precise pairing of two layers of “uncommonly compliant and resilient” midsole foam and a carbon-fiber plate which helps the

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foam compress and expand rapidly and with ease. The combination of these materials makes for a more efficient run. A percentage of the energy a runner applies when striking the ground is absorbed by the sole and then recycled. The energy that is saved builds up and pays off, say over the course of a marathon.

The molecular structure of ethyl vinylacetate.

Your typical running trainers would use an ethylene vinyl-acetate, or EVA foam. Something you’ll often find in pool noodles and flip flops. As the name suggests, it is a copolymer of the monomers ethylene and vinyl-acetate, and its properties depend on the percentage of VA used. The EVA used in sportswear usually has an energy return of about 65%. The Vaporfly, however, is estimated to return a whopping 87%. This huge increase is attributed to the unique and nonEVA based “midsole foam” that Nike uses – which they have aptly named “ZoomX”.

This foam is a “closed cell crosslinked

foam of a copolymer having polyamide blocks and polyether blocks and a [specific] density”.1 This foam is derived from a material that was originally used in the aerospace industry because of its lightweight nature, and appears to be the vital component responsible for the success of these trainers.

EVA had been the industry standard for years; lightweight, relatively cheap, and capable of providing the soft cushioning necessary of such performance shoes. However, designers were always seeking an alternative, as EVA is limited by its temperature-dependence, and its relatively low energy return. It may suprise you to learn that it was one of Nike’s main rivals that first made a breakthrough foam.

Sportswear staple Adidas and chemical giants BASF worked in collaboration to design and synthesise a brand new foam, with the opposing benefits of both soft but highly responsive cushioning - the holy grail for performance trainers. The foam was a thermoplastic polyurethane, or TPU, consisting of linear segmented block copolymers with both hard and soft segments. This unique and customisable combination of properties leads to improved flexibility, comfort, and most importantly, energy return.

Feature

Thermoplastic Polyurethanes TPUs: TPUs are “block copolymers”. Block copolymers are formed when the two monomers cluster together to form 'blocks' of repeating units within a polymer. TPUs consist of alternating sequences of hard segments, using diisocyanates and chain extenders, and soft segments, using long-chain diols.

By varying the ratio, structure and/or molecular weight of the reactant compounds, a wide variety of different TPUs can be produced. This allows chemists to design the polymer's structure to obtain the desired final properties of the material.

This takes us to the present day, with Nike releasing ZoomX, a Polyether block amide, (PEBAX)-based foam produced by Arkema. Much like TPU, PEBAX is also a thermoplastic elastomer. However, Nike’s foam is claimed to be 20% lighter than those based on TPU, thus producing energy savings otherwise unparalleled by rival foams. With Nike playing their hand, the so-called “foam wars” will continue, as other sportswear giants such as Under Armour and Fila are all looking to stake their claim as the manufacturers of the world’s fastest trainers. We don’t know who will take the lead next, but we do know they’ll need the help of polymer chemists to do it!

The (in)famous Vaporfly 4% shoes, with a profile look at the ZoomX midsole foam.2

PEBAX: PEBAX is a tradename for a polether block amide, a type of thermoplastic elastomer.3 Much like TPUs, PEBAX is also a type of block copolymer, synthesised by polycondensation of a carboxylic acid polyamide with an alcohol termination polyether.

PEBAX’s are often used to replace more common elastomer examples, such as TPUs and silicones, to obtain specific properties for a target application, such as lower densities or superior mechanical properties – or in Nike’s case, energy returns!

1. thefashionlaw.com/nikes-move-in-the-race-for-a-breakthrough-foam-the-vaporfly-4-a-sneaker-that-makes-athletes-runtoo-fast/ 2. nike.com/gb/running/vaporfly 3. extremematerials-arkema.com/en/product-families/pebax-elastomer-family/key-properties/

The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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Insight

The Periodic Table of Poems

By Joanna Buckley

2

019 was designated by UNESCO as the International Year of the Periodic Table, marking 150 years since Dmitri Mendeleev published the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements in 1869.

Here in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Sheffield, we’re continuing to celebrate Mendeleev’s legacy throughout 2020 and beyond with our own unique take on the Periodic Table.

At the start of the new academic year, Dr. Joanna Buckley (who teaches in the Kroto Schools Lab) put a call out to everyone in the Department to pledge to write a poem about a specific element. Lots of people got involved and so far, about half the elements are filled. But the poem is only part of the project.

We know not all chemists wear white coats, but Jo will often ask students to draw what they think a chemist looks like, and the stereotypes are still evident. That’s why it’s important to showcase the diversity we have within our Department. Not only has Jo been asking for a poem, she also asks for a short biography (often including a weird or wonderful fact) and a photograph that best sums up the author.

These poems, biographies and photographs will be forever immortalised on the ‘Periodic Table of Poetry’ website.

But we’re only half way there, so need more writers to fill each element.

You’ll see every poem is as different as the person who wrote it. If you’re reading this and thinking poetry isn’t really my thing, then do not fear.

Your poem could be a short limerick, a sonnet, an epic poem, a 3-line haiku, free verse whatever you like. It doesn’t have to rhyme; let your imagination run wild. The only rule is that it needs to be factually accurate about that specific element.

If you’re interested in being part of this project or would like some more information, drop Jo an email on Joanna.Buckley@sheffield.ac.uk and she will allocate an element to you, and point you in the direction of some useful facts that will help get you started. Let’s all be part of celebrating what we love and what makes us different.

If you would like to have a sneak peak at the website you can find it at: https://periodictable.group.shef. ac.uk/

A sneak peak of what the completed website will look like.

Joanna Buckley in her natural habitat

Jo spends most of her time working for the Royal Society of Chemistry and sees the reality of how students perceive chemistry and chemists. Relatable role models are vitally important. However, they’re not often apparent, unless you know where to look for them. Jo knows the value of role models as none of her family have a science background. So, like many others in her situation, she was inspired to study chemistry by her school teacher.

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News

IYPT Hands on Science

By Arthur Graf

T

he science club in Stocksbridge (organized by Beryl Sharp and James O’Neill) invited the Chemistry Department of the University of Sheffield to help with an event, that aimed to demystify chemistry and celebrate the international year of the periodic table. RSC Outreach supported the event with a grant. The exhibition took place on November 2nd, 2019, at the Inman Pavilion in Stocksbridge and had the presence of around 50 local children and parents.

Dr. Julie Hyde, in charge of the outreach team of the Department Of Chemistry, asked Arthur Graf (Ph.D. student) to lead the volunteers and organize the demonstrations.

Samantha Peralta (Ph.D. student), Ellie

Richards (Undergraduate Student), Tabitha Esqulant (Foundation Year), and Dr. Thomas Anderson composed the volunteers team.

Ellie demonstrating on the night

The local kids could enjoy a range of experiments: Non-Newtonian

Fluids, Smells Guessing Game, Skittles Colourants and a delicious liquid-Nitrogen Ice Cream. These experiments focused not only on kids enjoyment, but also on showing the chemistry and general science concepts such as water properties, atoms and molecules and that chemistry is present in daily life.

Dr. Tom Anderson contributed a fantastic talk about the periodic table and its history, showcasing great names of science to familiarise the kids with.

The science club members showcased molecules made from Lego, cookies with atom sprinkles and a metals exhibition. By the end, both children and volunteers had a wonderful time, spending an afternoon with science.

Jenny Burnham’s Big Walk O

n Friday 28th June 2019 our very own Dr Jenny Burnham completed the arduous 37 miles that comprised the Big Walk, which proved to be both a mental and physical battle. The walk was in aid of DARE – (Development, Alumni, Relations and Events), who strive to sustain and grow the relationship between the university and their global supporters, while also endeavouring to provide student scholarships, which is something Jenny herself feels very passionate about.

The fundraising total was £150 for each Big Walker. Jenny chose to raise the money through regular cake sales in the chemistry department common room. As she baked regularly anyway, it was no extra hardship. Jenny baked consistently for 5 months reaching a grand total of £212, which far surpassed her target!

The walk itself started bright and early from the Octagon at 6:30 am, taking a long trailing path out of Sheffield city centre via Ringinglow, Fox House and Ladybower before heading up onto the moors and back down to Bradfield, Crosspool and eventually finishing at the University Arms for a well-deserved BBQ.

walkers with unlimited flapjack and refreshment stations, the Our Cow Molly ice cream pit stop which gave her a much need boost of energy and a pep talk from her husband during her lunch break. Jenny arrived back at the University Arms at 8:00 pm after a long 14.5 hour walk, ready to put her feet up. I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate Jenny on an outstanding fundraising effort and on her completion of the Big Walk.

Our Cow Molly pit stop

Jenny said she was spurred on by the brilliant volunteers who provided the

Jenny maintaining high spirits

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Interview

The Desert Garden Project: P

rofessor Anthony. J. Ryan, OBE, is a professor of physical chemistry and a founding director of the Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures. His research centres around his passion to improve the lives of others whether that be sustainable solutions or just simply a route to happiness.

One of his more recent projects goes by the title of “The Desert Garden Project”.

The lauch was picked up by the BBC back in February and the project has been picking up pace ever since. BBC’s Inside Out aired an episode which features Tony’s recent visit to the refugee camp where it all started...it’s definitely worth a watch!

I had the opportunity recently to sit down with Tony and ask him a few questions about the motivations and processes behind the project. It was very enlightening.

What is the Desert Garden Project?

Desert Garden is the development of what started as green beds. It came from a visit I made to the Zaatari refugee camp in 2016. I was taken there by Helen Storey the artist I work with a lot.

What was the inspiration behind it?

The inspiration behind it is that Helen had made a dress out of a UNHCR tent that had come from a refugee camp. I’d see the dress on the way to the Paris climate change talks. It had been to the UN headquarters in Geneva. It had been to the UN in New York. They were really pleased with the project and wanted her to go back to the original place the tent for the dress had come from. So, she said to them “well, I’m a dress designer, I won’t be any use to the people there.

So can I bring my pet scientist with me because he’ll be able to do something about recycling etc”. So out I went to the refugee camp. I had some ideas, but everything changes when you get there. Eventually, when they took me into a warehouse full of mattresses, I knew instantly what I wanted to do.

How did it all get started?

Harry Wright, who is a Chemistry PhD student in the Grantham Centre, was about to start his PhD using

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polyurethane (PU) foams as a growth medium. So, we knew that we could grow things in PU foam. I brought a piece of the PU mattress foam back with me and sent it over to Animal and Plant Sciences, where they grew some tomatoes in it. I knew that there was tin and bromine in the foam from the flame retardant and catalysts. So we tested the tomatoes and they were clean. At this point we knew that growing things in foam was possible.

The second time we went to the refugee camp I took people with me from various departments; Aldous Everard from Physics, Patrick Fairclough who is now in Chemical Engineering and Grant Wilson from Chemical Engineering. We did all sorts of projects, but the one that stuck was growing things in foam.

My PhD student Harry came on this trip to teach people how to do it. It didn’t really work at this point. We went back several times and we took Moaed Meselmani with us, he’s a Syrian refugee. He and Harry worked together on growing the project and teaching the refugees. The people in the camps are often, in fact, farmers.

They are used to growing under harsh conditions, but in the camps, they can’t grow things in the ground because they are in the desert. Once Moaed and Harry had got a few

people in the camps to successfully grow things, they started to believe in it. We employed some people from the university who were based in Jordan, working wiht the UN in the refugee camp.

How did you get the inital funding?

So far, we have trained 500 people and about 150-200 of them are coming back to collect foam and plants from us. I funded it from all sorts of different places. Some of it is money I earnt from consultancy, a big chunk of it from the university’s GCRF. Moreover, we can’t pretend it is research any more because we are now at the stage that we are helping people.

So now that it can no longer be funded as research how are you continuining?

The funding page is all about having the money in bank. So, that we can keep Moaed going, keep the people on ground running the programme, help the refugees, supporting them in training new people and just getting it out into other refugee camps.

Currently we have enough money in the bank to keep it going for another 3 years. We will get it to every refugee camp in the Middle East and we have already started talking to Africa and in South East Asia.

Feature

Interviewing Prof Tony Ryan What impacts has the project had so far on the refugees?

The biggest impact it has is on people’s well-being and mental health. It doesn’t provide food calories as such, but it does provide some quality of life. It gives them fresh greens, fresh fruit and veg, all sorts of herbs, mint for mint tea. But most importantly, it gives people hope. Most of these refuges come from an environment, where they had a farm. Even if they were lawyers, doctors or chemists, they had a big garden and were able to grow their own food, which is important to them. It also provides the opportunity for the children, who have never lived anywhere else but a refugee camp, the opportunity to share in their family’s culture of growing things, which is great.

What direction are you hoping the project will go in next?

We are going to go out to every refugee camp in Jordan. I’ve recently spoken to a company that makes flavours and fragrances, to work with Helen Storey on making soap and perfume in the camps. Hopefully we

can build a hydroponic greenhouse farm adjacent to the refugee camp to give people employment and to grow aromatics that can be used to extract essential oils by steam distillation, which ideally will be solar powered.

This is the best opportunity to get some training and take some skills back to Syria, if they are able to. However, also gives them an opportunity to develop livelihoods in the host community.

Because of this we are also working with the towns around the refugee camps to put urban agriculture into these places too.

Has the project had an impact on any of your other research?

Back in Sheffield, we have also learnt a lot from the Syrian refuges who have been able to grow so much in a very harsh environment. It’s helping us, because one of our ambitions for the hydroponic research is that we put PU foam into commercial hydroponic greenhouses as it has less environmental impact, and it can be recycled. Hopefully, it will replace the mineral wool that they are currently using.

So, what are the main lessons from what you have found so far?

So, there are three tracks. Really helping people with their livelihoods in the refugee situation. Providing access to food and farming in the urban environment for disadvantaged people and on top of that top-ofthe-range high-tech expensive highvalue produces grown in the urban environment, where they need to be super fresh, so servicing restaurant trade. There are many developments coming out of the observation that things will grow in the PU foam, because essentially by accident they can provide all things a soil can provide.

A little girl from the refugee camp Tony visited

If you want to find out more then please find below QR links to the BBC Inside Out Episode that featured The Desert Garden Project and the Just Giving page set up by Tony and his team.

BBC

Inside Out Yorkshire Lincolnshire Episode

&

The Desert Garden Project ‘Just Giving’ Page

The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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News

News from the

Global Women’s Breakfast 2020 F or the second year running the department celebrated women in science by hosting the IUPAC “Global Women’s Breakfast.” The event was held simultaneously around the world providing an opportunity to expand contact networks in science both locally and globally.

This year’s breakfast featured plenary

Martsinovich group. Heather Carson, one of the event organisers also took the time to prepare a quiz, the lucky winner was Prof Anothony Meijer.

Who scored full marks!

Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to all those who came along.

Hope to see you all next year!

talks packed full of insight from Dr Jenny Clark, from the Physics department and our very own Dr Sandra van Meurs. Both offered advice and shared their own experiences with the difficulties associated with being a female in the world of science.

Along with a plentiful breafast buffet those who attended also heard oral presentations from some of our brilliant female chemists - the winner was a presentation given by Kezia Sasitharan from the Foster group. Poster presentations were also given, the winner being Manazi Mulay from the

Some of the attendees of the Global Women’s Breakfast 2020

Poster Prizes W

e would like to celebrate our recent success at the SynBIM synposium, held 22-23rd January in Manchester. The symposium focused on “Bridging the gap between bio-inspired nanomaterials and sustainable manufacturing”. Covering topics such as materials inspired by nature & nanomaterials harnessed from market.

Poster prize winners left to right: Laura Foster, Dave Ashworth & Manzi Mulay

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The department was particularly successful with three of the attendees bringing home poster prizes: Laura Foster (Staniland Group), Dave Ashworth (Foster Group) and Manazi Mulay (Martsinovich Group).

Congratulations to all three!

News

Department Cancer Killing Compounds R esearchers at the University of Sheffield have synthesized a new compound, which could improve the success rate of photodynamic therapy when treating cancer.

The key to photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a compound known as a sensitizer, a light-sensitive medicine given to the patient, which, when activated by light, produces highly reactive oxygen-based species, which kill the cancer cells. However, current PDT treatment has two main drawbacks, when it comes to killing tumours.

First, currently used sensitizers are only activated by light energies that do not penetrate tissues, like skin, very deeply. Second, many tumours have low amounts of oxygen. Thus, photoactivated sensitizers cannot generate the toxic compounds which kill cancer cells.

Now scientists at the University of Sheffield have developed a new compound, which solves both of these problems in one go. Not only is the new compound activated by infrared or red light, which can penetrate deep into the tumour, but it also directly damages DNA within cells without having to rely on oxygen.

The compound has been tested in skin cancer tumour models and it has been observed that it killed cancer cells deep into these model tumours.

The next step in the research will look at skin models, testing whether the compound can kill the tumour, but leave healthy skin undamaged.

Professor Jim Thomas, from the University of Sheffield’s Department of Chemistry, who led the study said: “PDT is potentially a very attractive way to treat diseases such as skin cancer as it only works when the laser light is applied, so the effect can be focused into a specific place on or in the body.

1. bit.ly/2R0hv2e

Image of tumour model showing live cells in green and dead cells in red.

Image on the left is before PDT and right is after.

BBC Inside Out Ft. Prof Ryan O ur very own Professor Tony Ryan has been featured twice on recent episodes of BBC’s Inside Out, a regional news programme.

The first episode detailed Tony’s efforts working with dentists in the NHS to reduce the use of single-use plastic in the medical industry, opting for more sustainable alternatives.

Inside Out episode one (top) and episode two (bottom)

The second episode focused on Tony’s more recent project, which works to use discarded matresses as growing media in refugee camps across the Middle East. The project goes by the name of “The Desrt Garden Project”.

Both episodes can still be accesed on BBC Iplayer.

1. https://bbc.in/2WeMHAI 2. https://bbc.in/38K3w9a The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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Insight

Placements & Internships

For 6 months last year I undertook an internship in

the position

of Research

officer at a

technology transfer startup, called IN-PART, based in Sheffield. IN-PART is a match-making platform, which enables university technology transfer teams to access a global network of research and development companies, who have the capacity to commercialise university research and if not, feedback as to whether the technology is viable. In 2018, they initiated over 2,000 conversations between universities and industry R&D professionals.

Why did you apply for an internship?

The reason I applied for the internship, initially, was that I wanted to investigate my career options postPhD. During my PhD, I have realised

that I enjoy discussing other people’s research across a breadth of scientific disciplines. This internship was a chance to get a taste of working outside academia, but still with a science focus.

What did your internship involve?

Within my role as research officer, I received cutting-edge areas of technology each week and performed online research to initially gain an understanding of the science and the key companies within the area.

The topics I covered were from a broad range, anything from artificial intelligence to novel cancer treatments.

Then I would showcase this research to companies worldwide. My role also included liaising with colleagues to create communications strategies that included social media and occasionally contributing to an online blog.

the experience. It can be hard for excellent university research to make it into real-world applications. At IN-PART, I really enjoyed seeing the connections being formed between academic researchers and industrial scientists. I also had the opportunity to develop many skills, including some I was not expecting. For example, I learnt about marketing to different audiences in the scientific community and how important it is to tailor your communication depending on who you are talking to.

- Naomi Brown PhD Researcher in the RyMyk Group

Would you recommend an internship to other PhD students?

Yes, definitely! I really enjoyed

I found my year in industry a very useful learning curve, because it was a real job. Even though I knew what sort of job a Chemistry degree could take me to, experiencing the job was a real taste of what I could go on to do after completing my studies. One thing that I found challenging at first was getting used to the fact that, in research, things do not always turn out the way you expect them to. After I got a hang of that, I enjoyed researching so much that I made up my mind that I wanted to do a PhD soon after my 4th year.

- Soneni Ndlovu, Scott Bader.

The most useful thing about a placement year to me the ability to develop employability skills much faster than on the straight degree course. These skills come in handy for the final year projects as well as being applicable to whichever career you go onto after graduation. Personally, I loved my placement and it has helped me to decide that pharmaceuticals is the industry I want to go into. However, knowing which aspects of a job you enjoyed or didn’t enjoy can inform future decisions. Moreover, it gives you connections, networking opportunities and references for the future. I would say the most challenging part of the year is balancing a job with the university work you have to complete. Though as long as you stay organised and don’t leave things until last minute, you will be fine!

- Sarah Patrick, GlaxoSmithKline.

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Fossil Fuel Combustion with Zero-Emissions: Is it a Pipeline Dream?

Research

By James Harman-Thomas

G

lobal warming is a pressing issue, yet with emissions continuing to rise and the slow uptake of renewable power sources, the challenging fight is looking increasingly uphill. However, is it possible that the solution to reducing emissions and meeting our power demands could be through the combustion of fossil fuels? In 2018 the NetPower 50 MW natural gas pilot plant went into operation. The plant will pave the way for a full-scale 300 MW demonstration plant slated to begin operation in 2022, which inherently captures 100% of its carbon dioxide (CO2 ) emissions.

An aerial view of the NetPower piolet plant.

The NetPower Plant achieves this by utilizing the Allam cycle, a thermodynamic cycle in which methane is burnt in an environment of oxygen and a high dilution of supercritical CO2 .

The CO2 is in its supercritical state due to the 300 atm pressure and 1000 K temperature of the combustion chamber. The heat produced from combustion heats CO2 which acts as the working fluid, turning a gas turbine to generate power. This is advantageous compared to normal gas turbines and steam turbines as supercritical CO2 is more energy dense and turns the turbine with a greater efficiency, generating more

mainly to the smaller plant size

A schematic depicting the Allam Cycle for the combustion of methane.

power. The important part, however, is the carbon capture, which is made simple, because of the oxyfuel conditions used in the Allam cycle, oxyfuel meaning burnt in a O2 and CO2. This mixture means that the only products of the reaction are water and CO2. A high purity stream of CO2 can be produced simply through condensation of the water following combustion. As no nitrogen gas was present at combustion, there is no need for NO removal stages.

CH4 + 2O2 (+ CO2) - CO2 + 2H2O (+ CO2) The high-purity CO2 is pipeline ready, already at the high-pressures which are required for pipeline transportation of CO2. From here, it is ready for storage or utilisation. Thus, this turns CO2, the emissions source that we are so desperately seeking to avoid, into a saleable by-product and increases the profitability of the plant.

Does it sound too good to be true?

Well, the advantages don’t stop there.

NetPower claim that their full-scale plants will produce at electricity at a lower price than their traditional gas and steam turbine competitors, even without carbon capture. This is

a smaller capital investment will be required. Using supercritical CO2 as a working fluid removes the need to have large cooling towers required for steam plants. Moreover, because the pressure is so great and because of the increased energy density of the working fluid, smaller plant components are required.

There are significant drawbacks.

Firstly, the oxyfuel conditions mean that oxygen must be separated from air. This is an energy-intensive process, which requires cryogenic cooling to remove nitrogen and argon, which account for approximately 78% and 1% of air by volume respectively.

Secondly, NetPower are planning to sell the CO2 produced to companies, using it for enhanced oil recovery. The process of enhanced oil recovery is to pump supercritical CO2 into depleted oil wells to remove more oil and store CO2 underground. The NetPower plant is an interesting alternative approach to reducing emissions from the power industry. With current CCS projects only capture 0.01% of global emissions, the pipeline dream could form part of a promising solution for clean, reliable energy.

1. bit.ly/39MA2bQ

The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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Crossword

Chemistry Crossword This crossword is designed to challenge even the most seasoned chemists. If you think you’ve completed it, take a picture and send it to chem-news@sheffield.ac.uk. We’ll announce you as the chemistry crossword winner in the next issue., if you are the first Well done to Heather Carson and all those who contributed to completing the issue 11 crossword with her at teabreak!

ACROSS

DOWN

5 The green colour seen in a firework displays is due to the chloride salt of...?

8 What is the name of a material that can be permanently deformed by heat and pressure?

10 Which alkaloid is naturally found in coffee, cocoa and cola nut?

14 Which well known scientist won Nobel prizes in two different fields?

15 A compound or molecule that has the ability to behave as either an acid or a base 16 What is the process of hydrolysing fat with a solution of strong hydroxide known as?

18 What is the monomer of polythene called?

19 Which chemical element has the lowest boiling point?

20 By what better name do we know acetyl salicylic acid?

1 The existence of an element in two or more forms in the same physical phase is known as...?

2 Which scientist was responsible for discovering the photoelectric effect?

3 What is the process of improving the quality of rubber by heating it with sulphur called?

4 Name the thermodynamic state function that is a measure of randomness 6 What name is given to non-superimposable mirror image forms of a chiral compound?

7 What would a polymer of amino acids more commonly be known as?

9 The process of a solid converting directly into a gas 11 What is a Poise a unit of measurement for?

12 Who’s principle states that position and velocity can not both be measured exactly at the same time 13 What is the SI unit of illumination?

17 Which term can be defined as a mixture having continuous and dispersed phases?

17 Resonance Issue 12

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Resonance NEEDS YOU!

Virtual Event and Seminar Listings

Interested in writing for us?

Thinking of a career in Science Communication?

Have you enjoyed reading this issue of Resonance?

We would love for you to get involved in our next issue! We welcome anyone interested in writing or researching articles, designing or contributing to our social media presence, regardless of experience or year of study. As a bonus, contributing to Resonance is HEAR accredited.

If you are interested email the team at:

chem-news@sheffield.ac.uk

Don’t forget to follow us on Social Media to keep updated.

Every Thursday in Semester 2 Departmental Seminar 1pm - 2pm Hosted on BB Collaborate CRS Coffee Mornings Usually 10:30 - 11:30am Hosted on Google Hangout Keep an eye out for emails!

Head of Department Q&A July 23rd 2:30 - 4:00pm Hosted on BB Collaborate More details can be found at: sheffield.ac.uk/chemistry/events

Resonance Contributors We would like to thank the following students who have contributed to Resonance over the past issue and will graduate with HEAR accreditation: James Harman-Thomas Soneni Ndlovu Sarah Patrick Resonance could not exist without their dedication and hardwork.

The University of Sheffield || Resonance Issue 12

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This Semester in Pictures