147: Good to the Last Drop

The history of chemistry in water microdroplets is discussed. We start with the observation by R. Graham Cooks that certain chemical reactions went faster inside ultra-small droplets of liquid relative to beaker-sized amounts. We examine the years-long arguments between Dick Zare and Himanshu Mishra over peroxide formation in microdroplets. We talk a bit about some reasons why reactions may go differently in tiny drops versus bulk amounts, and counter-arguments. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.com Get my book, O Mg! How Chemistry Came to Be, from World Scientific Publishing, https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/12670#t=aboutBook