Doing chemistry with the sun

"I derive great joy from teaching young scholars how to tickle out Mother Nature's secrets and how to invent," says Emory chemist Craig Hill, winner of the 2009 Herty Medal. During the Sept. 17-18 celebration of the prize, given to an outstanding chemist by the Georgia Section of the American Chemical Society, Hill will give a series of talks to young scientists.

The theme will be green energy, including a description of Hill's recent work on developing the first prototypes of stable, molecular water oxidation catalysts – a critical component to make solar energy cheap and efficient enough to go mainstream.

“People love the idea of doing chemistry with the sun to create a source of energy that is sustainable and not damaging to the planet,” Hill says. “It’s an idea at the nexus of need, scientific invention and creativity.”

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