The True Power of Organic Chemistry

What comes to mind when you hear the term "organic chemistry"? Organic chemistry is sometimes called "kamenoko" (turtle shell), and it is indeed the study of organic compounds with benzene rings or six-membered ring structures. Someone with a bit more knowledge might reply, "It's research for making medicine, right?" One of the industrial fields where organic chemistry is utilized is the development and manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, such as the influenza wonder drug Tamiflu, and many graduates from the chemistry departments of the Faculty of Science and Technology are active in such companies. But the contributions of organic chemistry don't stop there. For example, our modern lives would be impossible without smartphones and computers. The display device that serves as the interface for both is a liquid crystal display (LCD). Television monitors are also no longer in the era of cathode-ray tubes; almost all are now LCDs. LCDs are made of laminated layers of various chemical substances, specifically organic compounds. The main component is the liquid crystal compound, which contains asymmetric carbon atoms. The display function is achieved when a multitude of liquid crystal molecules align in the same direction in response to an electrical signal. The liquid crystal molecules are sandwiched between polymer films called alignment layers. All of these are technologies made possible by highly advanced, molecularly designed organic compounds. Furthermore, recently, large-scale structures are being built quite commonly. Long-span bridges like the Yokohama Bay Bridge and Tokyo Rainbow Bridge, the Skytree, and undersea road and railway tunnels like those in Tokyo Bay—while much of this is certainly due to advances in civil engineering, the development of organic materials supports the technological foundation. Large structures are made of steel, but steel rusts. To prevent loss of strength due to rust, they are painted. The paint is a polymer, but when exposed to strong ultraviolet rays from sunlight, organic compounds can crack, allowing water to seep in and cause rust, so they must be repainted periodically. Conventional paints have a lifespan of four to five years, so scaffolding had to be erected each time for workers to repaint. This might be manageable for the 333-meter Tokyo Tower, but for the over 600-meter Skytree, the cost is significant, isn't it? Therefore, new paints, molecularly designed with a thorough understanding of chemical bonding properties, have emerged. They are maintenance-free for 40 years, which has advanced the practical application of massive structures. In undersea tunnels as well, the development of rubber for waterproof gaskets has been a foundational technology. There's more. Car bumpers, long ago, were made of metal, but recently they are made of plastic that matches the body color. The function of a bumper requires it to be moderately soft to absorb the shock of a collision. The first resin bumpers were made by using a soft urethane resin as a cushion over a hard polystyrene frame, with the surface laminated with another resin that holds paint well. However, different types of plastics cannot be recycled together. Today, thanks to advances in polymerization catalyst technology, it is possible to use only polypropylene to serve as a structural material, a cushion, and to have paintable color properties, realizing an environmentally friendly material that can be recycled.

Both are supported by organic chemistry.

In this way, organic chemistry has become a foundational technology in all aspects of modern life. Organic chemistry makes it possible to rationally supply target substances by understanding the properties of compounds, molecularly designing compounds that exhibit the required functions and physical properties, and developing synthetic reactions and catalyst technologies that minimize environmental impact. Since modern times, Japan has been a world leader in organic chemistry. Functional molecules with desired properties will continue to emerge one after another. Along with this, the development of new organic synthesis reactions will also continue to be in demand. Why don't you join the world of organic chemistry too!