Science Cafe - Arumugam Jayaraman, Ph.D.
When
Office/Remote Location
Description
Science Cafe is held the first Wednesday of every month at McMullan's Irish Pub (4650 W. Tropicana Ave). Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with trivia and the presentation starting promptly at 7 p.m.
Bring friends and family for informal public discussions with leading scientists on interesting topics. Grab some dinner while listening.
Arumugam Jayaraman, Ph.D., an assistant professor at UNLV's Chemistry and Biochemistry Department will be giving a talk titled, "What If Common Atoms Could Do Extraordinary Chemistry?"
Abstract:
Catalysts quietly shape our lives, helping make medicines, materials, food, and clean water. In nature, enzymes perform this work with remarkable precision, acting like tiny molecular machines that speed up life’s essential reactions. Due to the increased demand, for decades, chemists have used precious metals such as gold, palladium, and platinum to achieve similar work in labs and industry. These metals are powerful, but they are also rare, costly, and difficult to rely on sustainably at a global scale. My research asks a simple question: can we keep the power of precious-metal chemistry without depending on precious metals? In my group, we explore inexpensive, abundant atoms such as carbon, boron, aluminum, and phosphorus, tuning them to behave in ways once thought possible only for precious metals. Join me to explore how ordinary atoms can be designed to do extraordinary chemistry and help build a more sustainable future for the synthesis of value-added chemicals.
Admission Information
Open to everyone, under 21 allowed.