Important information
Visit the Faculty of Science website for information on admission requirements, financing, and housing.
What is Co-op?
Why choose co-operative study? Find out more at the Faculty of Science website.
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Curious about what recent Chem/Biochem graduates are doing?
Do you know how often you encounter chemistry in your every day life?
Can you describe how chemistry is involved in the following real world products?
Photochromic lenses contain an organic dye that has the ability to darken when exposed to ultraviolet light from the sun as a result of a change in chemical structure. This structural change is completely reversible, which allows the lenses to return to their clear state when indoors.
Airbag inflation occurs as a result of a chemical reaction. Sodium azide (NaN3) will decompose to produce large quantities of nitrogen gas (N2) which will inflate the air bag to protect you during a car accident.
Plastics are a polymer material that we use every day. The chemical structures of several plastics have been re-designed to create bioplastics, which are made of PLA and PHA (and other variations). These new plastic materials are much more environmentally friendly as they can be made from renewable resources (not fossil fuels), and will biodegrade in much less time than traditional plastic materials.
Vancomycin is a potent antibiotic, often prescribed as the “last-resort” treatment for infections that do not respond to other antibiotics. It has a complex chemical structure composed of peptide and glycoside fragments. Vancomycin was first isolated in 1953, and is currently synthesized by medicinal chemists for therapeutic use.
The American Chemical Society and the Royal Society of Chemistry have very good websites that explore various careers in chemistry. Please visit these sites to see the many career options that chemists can pursue.
Visit the Faculty of Science website for information on admission requirements, financing, and housing.
Why choose co-operative study? Find out more at the Faculty of Science website.
Department of Chemistry
C2 280
200 University Ave. W
Waterloo, Ontario,
Canada N2L 3G1
Phone: (519) 888-4567 ext 32129
The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is centralized within our Indigenous Initiatives Office.