Abstract
Invited for this month's cover picture is Dr. Agnieszka Gonciarz and her team. The team′s cooperation began recently when they met at the Military University of Land Forces (MULF) in Wrocław (Poland). Previously, each team member had various experience, in which chemistry played a major role. Dr. A. Gonciarz conducted spectroscopic research on coordination compounds, Prof. J. Zwoździak is a well‐known expert in the field of environmental protection, and Prof. M. Żuber is an expert in the application of chemistry in security sciences. When they met at MULF, the idea of cooperation arose and their research interest was directed toward the possibility of practical application of Schiff bases and their complexes in various areas. Read the full text of their Full Paper at https://doi.org/10.1002/open.201800100.
Is your current research mainly curiosity driven (fundamental) or rather applied?
Our current research covers fundamental issues that allow the structure and properties of a studied compound to be determined in solution. The results will allow us, in the next step, to examine the possibility of using the studied compounds [nickel(II) complexes or Schiff bases] in various practical applications (environmental protection, military applications).
What is, in your opinion, an upcoming research theme likely to become one of the ′hot topics′ in the near future?
There is increasing talk about the possibility of using chemical and biological weapons by terrorists. One of the “hot topics” in science, in the near future, will be the rapid detection of toxic chemical and biological substances, as well as the possibility of their decontamination. These issues represent an important research area also for chemical sciences.
Does the research open other avenues that you would like to investigate?
Our future research will go in two directions. Schiff bases are indicated as effective antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal agents. In the face of a real bioterrorist threat, it would be useful to find a means that could be effective against the pathogens used. Possibly, imines would be those agents. In the second part of our future research, our results will be used to identify the chemicals found in solid and liquid hazardous wastes and to further develop a technological process to recycle them.
A. Gonciarz, M. Żuber, J. Zwoździak, ChemistryOpen 2018, 7, 671.