GDCh zeichnet Michael Grätzel mit August-Wilhelm-von-Hofmann-Denkmünze aus
Die Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker (GDCh) zeichnet Professor Dr. Michael Grätzel, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne, CH, mit der August-Wilhelm-von-Hofmann-Denkmünze aus. Die Goldmünze erhält der Chemiker für seine besonderen Verdienste um die Chemie: Der Photovoltaik-Pionier entwickelte die nach ihm benannte „Grätzelzelle“ – eine Farbstoffsolarzelle, die die natürliche Photosynthese erfolgreich nachahmt. Die Verleihung erfolgt am 30. August im Rahmen des 7th EuChemS Chemistry Congress in Liverpool, UK.
Grätzel leistete Pionierarbeit bei der Erforschung von Elektronen- und Energietransferreaktionen. Unter anderem entwickelte er die Farbstoffsolarzelle (englisch dye-sensitized solar cell, DSSC) – die „Grätzelzelle“ –, die zur Absorption von Licht organische Farbstoffe, zum Beispiel den Blattfarbstoff Chlorophyll, verwendet. Mit diesem revolutionären Ansatz hat er den photovoltaischen Umwandlungsprozess der natürlichen Photosynthese erfolgreich nachgeahmt. Farbstoffsensibilisierte Solarzellen können zum Beispiel als leichte flexible Zellen für die Stromversorgung von tragbaren elektronischen Geräten dienen.
Michael Grätzel wurde 1944 in Dorfchemnitz in Sachsen geboren und studierte Chemie an der Freien Universität Berlin. Er promovierte 1971 an der Technischen Universität Berlin und habilitierte sich 1976 an der Freien Universität Berlin in physikalischer Chemie. 1977 trat er eine Stelle als Associated Professor für Physikalische Chemie an der École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) an, bis er 1981 als Professor und Direktor des Laboratory of Photonics and Interfaces an der EPFL berufen wurde. Grätzel, der zu den meistzitierten Chemikern weltweit zählt, erhielt für seine Arbeit bereits zahlreiche Preise und Auszeichnungen.
Die GDCh verleiht Michael Grätzel die August-Wilhelm-von-Hofmann-Denkmünze im Rahmen des diesjährigen Kongresses der European Association for Chemical and Molecular Sciences (EuChemS) in Liverpool vom 26. bis 30. August 2018. Im Anschluss an die Verleihungszeremonie am 30. August gibt der Preisträger in seinem Plenarvortrag „Molecular Photovoltaics and Perovskite Solar Cells“ Einblicke in seine Forschung.
GDCh Pressedienst / David Spichiger, SCS
06.06.2018
Free Webinar: Getting the most from your data to increase yields and reduce costs; June 19
Topic: Getting the most from your data to increase yields and reduce costs.
With Stan Higgins. Stan Higgins was awarded the OBE (Order of the British Empire) for his services to the Chemical Process Industry. Until his retirement in 2017 he was Chief Executive of the North East Process Industry Cluster.
Registration: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5287717834872847363
David Spichiger, SCS
04.06.2018
CHIMIA Issue 5/2018 is available as open access issue
To establish and underline the partnership with the Swiss Chemical Society and to push the open access approach in publishing, MDPI sponsored the whole CHIMIA issue 5/2018 and make it available for free. You can download the full PDF issue by clicking on the link below:
MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, www.mdpi.com) is an open access publishing house based in Basel, Switzerland with roots in Swiss chemical research. The chemistry roots are still reflected in the MDPI logo.
Dr. Shu-Kun Lin, President of MDPI, reported to us about the beginning of MDPI and it's development in the last 20 years:
Having previously received my doctorate in organic chemistry from ETH Zurich, in 1996 I founded the Swiss Verein MDPI (Molecular Diversity Preservation International) to preserve rare chemical samples that were being thrown away from retiring chemists’ laboratories. Our first journal Molecules was launched in 1996 as a free online journal to support the chemical samples collection and distribution. The publishing side was a forerunner of what has become known as open access (OA). Over 190 journals have been launched to date, with a portfolio expanded from chemistry to cover all major disciplines. In 2017 we published over 35,000 articles, of which 60% are chemistry and materials science, including in the well-established journals Molecules, International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Materials, and Polymers. We are not alone in Switzerland: Frontiers (www.frontiersin. org), another OA publisher, publishes several well-known biomedical journals.
When I was a chemistry graduate student in Zurich, I heard stories about fast publishing in Helvetica Chimica Acta and my PhD work was also published there very quickly in two papers from 1991 and 1992. At MDPI, we seek to run fast, simple and efficient processes. We aim to allow the latest research results to be published and made available to research communities as soon as possible, frequently with less than 40 days from submission to publication. The concept of sustainability underpins much of what we do. Our journal Sustainability covers sustainable chemistry topics. The publication of research results is still complemented by voluntary deposit of samples (for Molecules and Molbank).
Looking to the future, open access is firmly establishing itself, although it may take different forms in the coming years. We live in exciting times, with significant moves on a global scale towards embracing of open access model. We have recently seen the implementation of national payment systems to replace article processing charges, the emergence of preprints to make work available before peer-review, and increasing discussions around open science and open data. We are excited about the future. We are also proud to have grown into one of the largest open access publishers, but recognise that this has only been possible through the support and collaboration of the research communities. Moving forward, this support will continue to be crucial to our success. Switzerland has been a leader in implementing open access, with strong policies and funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF). The benefits of barrierfree access to knowledge for researchers, industry and the general public are starting to be realized. By reducing the focus on high levels of selectivity in what is published, open access contributes to efforts to promote transparency and reproducibility, including the publication of so-called negative results. In addition, open access goes beyond simply being free to read: reuse of content in a variety of contexts and licenses that allow data and content mining are also important. As the available literature grows substantially, different ways of reading and machine-readability will become increasingly important.
Switzerland is the best place either to conduct research or to run a successful company. One of my chemistry theory papers entitled “Correlation of entropy with similarity and symmetry” published 22 years ago was still cited 8 times since last year. I do not think I can return to my research, but I will certainly lead MDPI to serve the community of chemists by offering them an excellent OA publishing service in a typically Swiss way.»
Dr. Shu-Kun Lin, President of MDPI
MDPI AG
St. Alban-Anlage 66,
CH-4052 Basel Switzerland
www.mdpi.com
Links and further information:
- SCS-MDPI Partnership: Profit from discounts for your OA publications
- OpenScience : Strategy and Policies by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Open Science in Switzerland
- Website of MDPI
David Spichiger, SCS
28.05.2018
Live Webcast of the 2018 Kavli Prize Laureates Announcements
Date: May 31, 2018, 14:30h (CEST)
Webcast and program: http://www.kavliprize.org/
Watch the live webcast of the 2018 Kavli Prize laureate announcements by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters Oslo, Norway, and live coverage of a special Prize program from the World Science Festival in New York City, including a special keynote address by the Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson Ph.D., President, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
The Kavli Prize recognizes scientists for pioneering advances in our understanding of existence at its biggest, smallest, and most complex scales. Presented every two years in the fields of astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience, each of three prizes consists of USD $1 million and a gold medal. Laureates are nominated by committees whose members are recommended by The Chinese Academy of Sciences, The French Academy of Sciences, The Max Planck Society (Germany), The National Academy of Sciences (US), The Royal Society (UK) and the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. First awarded in 2008, the Kavli Prizes have so far honored 47 scientists from 11 countries – France, Germany, Japan, Lithuania, The Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. Winners receive gold medals in Oslo, Norway, in a ceremony presided over by His Majesty King Harald. A banquet takes place at Oslo’s famed City Hall, the venue of the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. The Kavli Prize is a partnership between the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, The Kavli Foundation (USA) and the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research.
About the Keynote Speaker: The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D., has served as the 18th president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute since 1999. Described by Time Magazine as “perhaps the ultimate role model for women in science,” Dr. Jackson has held senior leadership positions in academia, government, industry, and research. She served as Co-Chair of the United States President’s Intelligence Advisory Board from 2014 to 2017 and as a member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology from 2009 to 2014. Before taking the helm at Rensselaer, Dr. Jackson was Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission from 1995 to 1999. In 2016, Dr. Jackson was awarded the National Medal of Science for her work in condensed matter physics and particle physics and for science-rooted public policy achievements. Dr. Jackson holds an S.B. in Physics, and a Ph.D. in Theoretical Elementary Particle Physics, both from MIT.
David Spichiger, SCS
08.05.2018
APPLY NOW! Clariant CleanTech Award 2018
Clariant, the Swiss Chemical Society and the University of Basel once again are partnering to award the Clariant CleanTech Award Switzerland on the »Clariant Chemistry Day« at the University of Basel on 4 October 2018. The Clariant CleanTech Award Switzerland is endowed with a total of CHF 10'000. The first prize is endowed with CHF 5'000.
This award program honors outstanding scientific achievements of Master students, PhD students, and Postdocs in Switzerland in the field of Clean Technologies and Sustainable Chemistry covering topics such as resource efficiency, renewable energy, renewable raw materials or green technologies and environmental protection.
Conditions for Participation
The Clariant CleanTech Award Switzerland is available to successful Master students, PhD students, and Postdocs who have distinguished themselves with outstanding scientific achievements at the departments of chemistry and adjacent disciplines of universities, universities of applied sciences and institutes in Switzerland in areas of Sustainable Chemistry such as resource efficiency, renewable energy, renewable raw materials or green technologies and environmental protection.
Master students, PhD students, and Postdocs will be considered with regard to their different levels of training.
Applicants are requested to submit their curriculum vitae, a brief description of the scientific results (max. 5 pages), and an expert assessment from a supervisor by 24 August 2018 via:
David Spichiger, SCS
23.05.2018
Page 78 of 295