Shining a new light on chemistry

Bringing Chemistry to Life

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Entrepreneurship in the blood, a fine mind, and a bold spirit makes for a life of successes and a great podcast episode as well! This is how we would describe Chern-Hooi Lim, a Malaysian chemical engineer who is thinking big and aiming to reshape the way we make molecules through the use of light. Chern-Hooi is an expert and innovator of photocatalysis. His organo-catalysts are a big departure from the more established precious metal-based ones and bring with them the promise of a new deal for synthetic chemistry.

This is a fascinating discussion about the present and future of chemistry. We discover how photocatalysis enables a new paradigm in chemistry, where we depart from fully reduced carbon sources and imitate nature in using oxidized carbon and light as the fundamental building blocks. We explore mild-condition Birch reduction, cross-coupling, and radical reactions.

This is also a story of smart ideas and bold choices and a new perspective on the role entrepreneurship can play in science and technology. Another great discovery of a strong personality and the science that comes from it. more of the conversation!

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About Your Host

Born and raised in Italy, Paolo Braiuca, a PhD in pharmaceutical sciences, co-founded a startup company after conducting research in biocatalysis in Italy and the UK. He transitioned from R&D to business development, working in commercial, product management, and marketing roles in the specialty chemicals, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical markets in Germany and the UK. A busy father of four, if asked, he’ll call himself a “maker” at heart and enjoys inventing electronic devices in his free time.