Looking for the hottest topics in chemistry research? Virtual Collections include Virtual Issues, Special Issues and Thematic Collections from ACS Publications journals. These collections reflect important chemistry topics of current scientific interest and are designed for experienced investigators and educators alike. Enjoy our collections of engaging research topics in chemistry from recent months: 3D Printing […]

16 of the Most Engaging Topics in Chemistry

Looking for the hottest topics in chemistry research? Virtual Collections include Virtual Issues, Special Issues and Thematic Collections from ACS Publications journals. These collections reflect important chemistry topics of current scientific interest and are designed for experienced investigators and educators alike.

Enjoy our collections of engaging research topics in chemistry from recent months:

3D Printing of Biomaterials

Reticular Chemistry, the chemistry of linking molecular building blocks by strong bonds to make crystalline open frameworks, has significantly expanded the scope of chemical compounds and useful materials. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) exemplify the manner in which this chemistry is practiced and epitomize the molecular-level control being exercised over matter. This ACS Select virtual issue highlights recent publications in the Journal of the American Chemical Society that shows the richness of the chemistry of frameworks: from backbone design and variation to using the internal space to further control matter on the molecular level and achieve interesting properties, which otherwise are not possible.
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Meet our 2016 Advisory Board Members

In this ACS Select Virtual Issue, we are excited to highlight 27 articles from 2015 and 2016 published in Inorganic Chemistry, the Journal of the American Chemical Society, and ACS Catalysis that present significant progress in the field of molecular electrocatalysis. These articles delve into a range of topics, including recent developments in the understanding of general principles, mechanistic investigations, and new catalysts exhibiting innovative design and uniquely tailored selectivity.
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Photoredox Catalysis in Organic Chemistry

The Special Issue on “Photoredox Catalysis in Organic Chemistry” highlights the renaissance of interest in synthetic applications of photoinduced electron transfer chemistry. This powerful, enabling technology has resulted in the development of a remarkably diverse range of organic free radical and radical ion reactions with broad impact in organic synthesis, materials science and pharmaceutical chemistry. The issue is guest-edited by two of the leading researchers in the field, Corey Stephenson and Tehshik Yoon.
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Building on 25 Years of Green Chemistry and Engineering for a Sustainable Future

Reflecting on a quarter century of advances in the fields of Green Chemistry and Green Engineering, the strong scientific foundation that has been built is worthy of celebration. Innumerable green products and processes have been commercialized, with more than 100 of these scientific and technological advances recognized in the United States with Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. Other innovations have been honored by similar awards in many other nations. As documented in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, and other journals serving the field, the global pace of advances in molecular, process, and systems design, using principles of Green Chemistry and Green Engineering, is accelerating.

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Nanoelectrochemistry

Nanoelectrochemistry is critical for applications in fields ranging from energy to bioanalysis. While electron-transfer reactions occur by definition at the nanometer scale, our ever-increasing ability to control matter with such precision challenges our conceptual understanding and creates enormous opportunities for applications. This Special Issue, guest-edited by Serge Lemay and Henry White, aims at highlighting both fundamental and applied electrochemistry experiments where control at the nanometer scale plays a key role.

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NMR Developments and Applications

This virtual issue focuses on developments and applications in NMR spectroscopy and is a collaborative effort between two journals, Analytical Chemistry and The Journal of Physical Chemistry B & C. The papers have been selected as recent examples of innovative methods and interesting applications of solution and solid-state NMR spectroscopy. The goals of this special issue are to highlight advances in NMR spectroscopy and provide insight into how new methods can be deployed to address a number of important measurement challenges and study a range of materials and biological systems.

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Emerging Investigators in Inorganic Photochemistry and Photophysics

This ACS Select Virtual Issue highlights the recent work of 16 emerging investigators in the areas of photochemistry and photophysics, as featured in Inorganic Chemistry, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Chemistry of Materials, ACS Catalysis, The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, and ACS Energy Letters. The articles below offer a broad snapshot of the exciting diversity of research surrounding the utilization, generation, and/or manipulation of photons. The investigations delve into topics such as surface-bound molecular assemblies, solar fuels photochemistry, and chemical sensing, and range from fundamental in nature, to discovery-based phenomena, and finally to focused applications.

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A Forum on Electrochemical Applications of Carbon Nanomaterials and Interfaces

This ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces Forum is based on selected contributions that were presented at the Symposium on Nanocarbon Electrochemistry and Interface, the Fall 2015 European Materials Research Society (E-MRS) meeting held in Warsaw, Poland. This symposium was organized by Nianjun Yang (University of Siegen, Germany), Chunhai Fan (Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, CAS, China), John S. Foord (University of Oxford, United Kingdom), Greg M. Swain (Michigan State University, USA), and Yasuaki Einaga (Keio University, Japan). This symposium focused on the synthesis, properties (e.g., surface morphology, surface functionalization), and electrochemical applications (e.g., sensing, energy storage and conversion, catalyst, environment) of carbon and carbon-related materials, including diamond, graphene, carbon nanotubes, carbon nanodots, carbon fibers, and carbon nitride.

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25 Most-Cite Articles in the History of JPC

This virtual issue celebrates the 120th anniversary of the founding of The Journal of Physical Chemistry (JPC), which was first published in October, 1896. The editorial provides a brief review of the founding of the journal and its history that led to the four journals we have today: JPC A, JPC B, JPC C and JPC Letters. In addition, a collection of the top 25 cited articles that have been published in the journal is provided, along with brief description of the science in each article.

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A Nanobubbles Special Issue

The main purpose of this special issue on nanobubbles is to gather a series of important works by the leading experts on the subject and to provide a balanced collection of theory and experimental studies on nanobubbles and surface nanobubbles. The issue includes 2 review articles and 30 full articles, which come from 12 countries. It covers methods for making nanobubbles, the characterization of nanobubbles, theory and computation of nanobubbles, applications of nanobubbles, and so on. We hope that it reflects the historical development, most recent achievements, and perspective of nanobubbles.

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Stimuli-Responsive Polymers for Biological Detection and Delivery

Polymeric materials with custom-designed responsive elements have the ability to significantly enhance the delivery of therapeutics and diagnostic imaging agents as well as improve tissue engineering and biomarker detection strategies. Herein, we feature a collection of research articles published in ACS Macro Letters that highlight an array of responsive properties endowing innovative polymers for biological detection and delivery. Collectively, the articles assembled herein highlight a sampling of the innovative research in this field that is making a major impact on advancing detection and treatment strategies that are enabling a myriad of biomedical applications.

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Emerging Applications of Metal-Organic Frameworks & Covalent Organic Frameworks

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are two popular classes of porous materials on account of their unique properties and promising application potentials. While constructing novel MOFs and COFs is still necessary to expand the family of porous materials, exploring their applications is important to push the research field forward for practical uses. This virtual issue showcases 24 publications selected from Chemistry of Materials, Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, Inorganic Chemistry, and the Journal of the American Chemical Society by highlighting some emerging applications of MOFs and COFs. In order to present these research achievements, three major application directions using MOFs and COFs are categorized, including advanced catalysis, selective storage and adsorption, as well as sensing and detection.

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Behavioral Research in Chemical Neuroscience

The field of behavioral neuroscience aims to unravel the neural mechanisms governing the cognitive, emotional, and sensory functions that comprise human and animal behavior. Fundamentally, chemical signaling underlies the manifestation of behavior, as well as behavioral dysfunction arising from neurodegenerative diseases, psychiatric disorders, and addiction. Examining behavior at the molecular level allows us to further understand these diseases and identify new therapeutic targets.

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