Thursday, May 19, 2011

Silicones

An interesting new article came out a couple of weeks ago in the latest Chemical and engineering news.
What does everyone think about this? Overblown? Worth considering?

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Twin Cities Society of Cosmetic Chemists Meeeting

I had this post worked up in my drafts folder, but was unhappy with it. Well, seeing a new issue of C&E news, I'm adding it in.
C&E news did a piece on plasticizers, particularly pthalates, and some of the negative press they've been getting. Do they deserve that bad press? The article implies no, and I do generally support the ACS in saying that no, not everything "chemical" or made in a lab is dangerous, and plant derived compounds can kill you just as well. But, here is the link
though you have to be a member.
However, bad press leads to interesting new discoveries
A bit over a month ago I went to a meeting of the Twin Cities Chapter of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists.
The talk was about a company, Segetis. They make a variety of levolinic acid ketals. They make a variety of compounds that can be used for plasticizers and solvents. They do not make them through fermentation, as many green companies do, they make them through thermochemical conversion. This allows a much simpler scale up process, and generally a cleaner distribution of products. Their process creates an alternative to petroleum products.
This chemistry is green, and hopes to replace some toxic plasticizers like pthalates.