Hidden catalysis: Abrasion transforms common chemistry equipment into reagents
The chemical industry is one of the largest on the planet, essential for supplying us with pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, materials and more. Great care is taken to optimize reagents and conditions for each reaction, striving for efficiency and, increasingly, sustainability. A growing field of synthesis is mechanochemistry, in which reagents are mixed using mechanical force, making for greener reactions with less solvent usage and enabling access to a wide array of essential chemicals.
In a typical mechanochemistry setup, the reagents are placed in a jar ...