Innovation Anthology #120: Manager, Research and Development
You may know boron as borax, an environment friendly laundry additive.
Borax is the way the element boron is found in nature.
But Dr. Dennis Hall, an organic chemist at the University of Alberta, prefers his boron in a synthetic form – as boronic acid.
And his research into this often overlooked compound has won him one of this year’s prestigious Steacie Memorial Fellowships.
Dr. Hall is researching ways to make chemical reactions less wasteful, particularly those related to amides used in pharmaceuticals.
DR. DENNIS HALL:
Another discovery was a boronic acid catalyst that allows the formation of amides at room temperature, which was completely unprecedented. And the only waste is water . And this was a huge improvement over classical methods that do generate a lot of chemical waste and render the purification of amide products very difficult. And this is a discovery that we’ve protected with a patent.
Dr. Hall is also researching new molecules containing boronic acid that will bind to carbohydrates and help in the treatment of cancer and other diseases.
Thanks today to Alberta Ingenuity.
FOR INNOVATION ANTHOLOGY,
I’M CHERYL CROUCHER
Guest
Glen Rovang,
Syncrude Canada Ltd, Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada,
Sponsor
Alberta Ingenuity
Established in 2000, the Alberta Ingenuity Fund supports science and engineering research of the highest calibre, to create a prosperous future for the province of Alberta. It draws funding from a $1 billion endowment established in 2000 and managed by the Government of Alberta to build the capacity for innovation, especially in areas with long lasting social and economic impact.
Among its many programs, Alberta Ingenuity supports graduate students and university researchers, industrial research and commercialization partnerships, and has established several Centres and Institutes.
In January 2010, under the new Alberta Innovation Framework, Alberta Ingenuity was restructured and absorbed in the new agency Alberta Innovates Technology Solutions.
Program Date: 2008-03-27