The Chemistry of Smells
By: Stephanie Ng For many materials, the chemical makeup of the components can help determine the smell that is given off, with slight altercations to the formula causing changes. As a result, a compounds’ structure can determine whether it can be used in a variety of industries, such as food or perfume. One common group […]
Self Assembly and Nanoparticles
By: Stephanie Ng For nanoparticles, self assembly is a useful procedure since it will improve the speed at which they can assemble into a well-defined configuration. Self assembly involves the spontaneous interaction of individual components of a system to form a larger functional unit. In nanoparticles, the well-defined configuration is important for forming units in […]
Microalgae and Sustainability
Stephanie Ng : 5/23/2016 Microalgae are microscopic algae that are typically found in either freshwater or marine systems, and they are unicellular species that exist individually but can also thrive in groups. They are essential to life on earth since they are capable of performing photosynthesis and produce approximately half of the atmospheric oxygen while […]
The Electronic Band Gap
Stephanie Ng : 5/23/2016 The electronic band gap is one of the properties that is relevant in solid-state physics, and it describes the “gap” in the energy range of the solid where no electron states can exist. Since electrons are quantized and can only exist at certain levels, there are natural gaps that occur when […]
Gibbs-Thomson Equation and Chemical Potential
Stephanie Ng 5/23/2016 The Gibbs-Thomson effect is a phenomenon seen when there is variation in chemical potential or vapor pressure when examining a curved surface or interface. Chemical potential is the potential energy that may be absorbed or released during a chemical reaction, and vapor pressure occurs when the vapor exerts pressure while in equilibrium […]