In this talk, Dr Petersen will share some of his experiences working under such conditions in Africa, as well as describe his research endeavours toward achieving sustainable and energy efficient syntheses of therapeutically relevant small molecules: mimicking photosynthesis and using light energy in pursuit of chemical synthesis perfection. ‘How will we make critical medicines if some resources are no longer available - say in the middle of a blackout?’ In a world of rapidly declining resource, both in terms of energy and materials, a very sobering question emerges: Many of these methods utilise rare and expensive metals and/or require significant heating processes. Small Molecule Synthesis in an Energy Deprived World: Experiences from ‘Loadshedding’ (Blackout) South Africa.Ĭhemists have provided the world with an abundance of enabling synthesis methods for the construction of molecules significant to human life specifically crucial medicines. Join us for the Royal Society Rising Star Africa Prize Lecture given by 2023 winner Dr Wade F Petersen. Rising Star Africa Prize Lecture: Dr Wade F Petersen
