Chemistry
Plutonium - nuclear bombs & nuclear power
A radioactive heavyweight associated with nuclear bombs & power, which is powering the Voyager spacecraft, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 60 of Elemental. Audio
Platinum - another pricey precious metal
Platinum is useful in catalytic convertors, is used to treat testicular cancer and will be useful in hydrogen fuel cells, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 59 of Elemental. Audio
Phosphorus - P was discovered in pee
Phosphorus, chemical symbol P, was first isolated as an element from thousands of litres of urine. Also found in guano, aka bird poo. Allan Blackman from AUT has the full story in ep 58 of Elemental.
…Palladium - cleaning up your car's exhaust
Palladium is a pricey precious metal most commonly used in catalytic convertors on car exhausts, says AUT's Allan Blackman in ep 57 of Elemental. Audio
Oxygen - the friendly element
Oxygen is very friendly with other chemical elements & very helpful for life on Earth, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 56 of Elemental. Audio
Our Changing World for 22 August 2019
Does playing different sounds to fermenting yeast change the taste of beer and osmium, the densest chemical element. Audio
Osmium - heavyweight champion of the elements
Osmium is extremely rare and expensive. It is the densest chemical element, rivals diamond as being the least compressible of all known substances & has a distinctive 'pong' according to Allan… Audio
Nitrogen - a vital powerhouse
Most important biological molecules contain nitrogen, even though it takes lots of energy to make or break its chemical bonds, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 54 of Elemental. Audio
Our Changing World for 15 August 2019
Why playing pokie machines can easily lead to a gambling addiction, and the chemical element nickel is in more than just five cent coins. Audio
Niobium - useful at high & low temperatures
Niobium is a metal that is useful at both very high temperatures, as in jet engines, and very low temperatures as a superconductor, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 53 of Elemental. Audio
Nickel - more than just a 5 cent coin
The chemical element nickel is named after a German word for Satan or the Devil, but nickel is now more usually thought of as a North American five cent piece, says Allan Blackman in ep 52 of… Audio
Our Changing World for 8 August 2019
Gadget is a conservation detector dog, trained to sniff out rats, and the chemical element neon is not just found in neon signs. Audio
Neon - the red of neon lights
There are no known compounds of the noble gas neon, which does however produce the brilliant crimson of red - and only red - neon lights. Ep 51 of Elemental with Prof Allan Blackman from AUT. Audio
Neodymium - the secret behind supermagnets
Neodydmium magnets include the strongest permanent magnets known and are found in devices like speakers & headphones, says chemistry professor Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 50 of Elemental. Audio
The most boring chemical element
The Elemental podcast has inspired Prof Allan Blackman from AUT and Dr Rebecca Jelley from the University of Auckland, to publish a paper in the journal Nature Chemistry - here's a quick lowdown on… Audio
Molybdenum - a catalyst at bacterial to industrial scales
Molybdenum has an essential role as a catalyst at microbial and industrial scales and is an important element in enzymes, says Prof Allan Blackman, in ep 49 of Elemental. Audio
Mercury - mesmerising quicksilver
Mercury is the only metal that is liquid at room temperature and atmospheric pressure, says Allan Blackman in ep 48 of Elemental. Audio
Manganese - the 'essential' essential element
The metal manganese is a vital part of photosynthesis and is found in aluminium drink cans, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 47 of Elemental. Audio
Magnesium - loved by everyone and everything
Magnesium is loved by plants, folk suffering constipation and boy-racers, as Allan Blackman reveals in ep 46 of Elemental. Audio
Lutetium - an obscure Parisian
After a fierce struggle for naming rights, the last lanthanoid element to be discovered was eventually named after Paris, says Allan Blackman in ep 45 of Elemental. Audio