Patrick Walter

Peter Atkins, Catherine Housecroft and Jonathan Clayden guide us through the changing world of textbooks Source: © Royal Society of Chemistry Everyone remembers the textbooks they worked with at school or university. For me, Lubert Stryer’s Biochemistry was my constant companion, a heavy tome to heft around. They hold a special place in our heart whether we read them deeply or just consulted them for help with tricky concepts.

This week, we discuss the latest milestone in quantum computational modelling and reveal the common laboratory item causing strange results in microplastics research – with Frankie Macpherson and Patrick Walter. This week’s headlines Featured stories For a long time, quantum computing lived firmly in the realm of theory and lab experiments. But in recent years, the field has accelerated dramatically – and real-world applications are starting to come into view.

This week, we are celebrating Chemistry World’s Battery Week with a special battery-themed episode! We discuss the race between cathode materials for electric vehicles and a new photocatalyst that can utilise old car battery acid to recycle plastics into and other useful chemicals, with Neil Withers and Patrick Walter. Featured stories With the growing popularity of electric vehicles and the push for renewable sources of energy, interest in lithium batteries has surged.