The changing face of Iowa: wind turbines

It’s windy in Iowa. (I didn’t have to tell you, did I?)

It’s hard to miss Iowa’s new wind turbines. They continue to spring up in Western Iowa along Interstate 80 in areas including one called Windy Hills. The turbines are on both sides of I-80 in Adair , Cass , and Pottawattamie Counties. 

Today we find that Mid-American Energy has over 100 turbines in Pottawatamie County alone where many of the pictures above were taken at the Walnut Wind Project.

Money is blowing in the wind.

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists each turbine will net the landowner $2,000 -5,000/year in royalties. That’s great news in counties where the average farm is near 440 acres and the crop value per harvested acre has been running between $205 – 225/acre.

How are we doing in terms of absolute capacity compared to the rest of the country? We’re doing well; currently we are even with California in absolute capacity. DOE puts us 3rd in the nation; citing Dirk Lammers Yahoo says 2nd, where Texas is first. 

•  Iowa has 2862 MW of capacity (with our population of 3 million that’s about 1 kW/person)
• California has 2868 MW with their population of 36 million
• In Iowa we’re producing 10% of the nation’s wind power. I’m impressed!

Resources for further information

• National Renewable Energy Laboratory (US DOE)
• energy matters (Australia)
• Wind Power A to Z
• You Tube videos on wind energy

photos by James G. Lindberg

Beer, breweries, and food science

Do you think you know everything there is to know about beer? Maybe, maybe not, but you will have a chance on Wednesday night to find out.

Dr. Robert Bates is a food scientist and one smart guy. He will be visiting Simpson College to talk about:

• The Chemistry and Alchemy of Brewing
• Wednesday, March 18, 2009
• 7:30 pm
• 215 Carver Science Center (on the map)
• Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa

Dr. Bates retired in 2003 after a 35 year career at the University of Florida in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. He is such a popular speaker that he has been on tour for the American Chemical Society giving many talks each year. He is visiting as a guest of the Ames Section of the ACS, Iowa State, and Simpson; his local host at Simpson is Professor Cliff Meints of the Chemistry Department (515/961-1828 or cliff.meints@simpson.edu).

Here is the press release on the talk:

Beer making, one of the oldest examples of biotechnology, is a fascinating study of chemistry, biochemistry, and engineering. It combines well recognized and controllable reactions and operations with complex, poorly understood phenomena, including the psychosensory response. Surprisingly, some of the most sophisticated science and technology are employed in the efficient production of mass advertised, mediocre beers. In contrast, traditional alchemy-driven methods can produce exceptional yet under-recognized beers. Fortunately, there is an achievable balance between these extremes. This presentation will cover the brewing process from raw material selection and preparation through fermentation to consumption. Emphasis will be on major pathways employed by brewers to produce a wide range of beers. These are exciting times for brewers and beer connoisseurs in the U.S. Future industry developments of relevance to consumers will be mentioned. With dedication and practice, the average chemist can brew above-average beers; so can the experienced kitchen alchemist.

It’s a short trip. Take advantage.

photo by flickr by pete4ducks

Chocolate? Not always

Will it melt in your mouth or stick to the roof of your mouth?

Maybe they hoped you wouldn’t notice, but The Hershey’s Company changed the formulation for some but not all of their candy. The news broke in September, 2008. Now Hershey’s has changed the names of some of their products because they can’t call them milk chocolate. What’s that slogan again? Is it, “If it’s Hershey’s, you’d better read the label?” I am not sure I have it quite right, but it’s something like that. I’m afraid, we’ll just have to read the label carefully. With an American icon like Hershey’s, I shouldn’t have to do that. Some of it’s milk chocolate; some of it ain’t.

Chemists use the term formula to describe the mixture of particular materials (ingredients) and amounts that go into various products, especially those that are sold to the public. It might be food, paint, steel, medicine, paper, ink, glue, or plastic. The term formulation describes the process of putting it together. Every commercial product has its own formula.

By law you can’t call a product milk chocolate unless it contains cocoa butter. In 2007, according to the New York Times (and elsewhere) in spite of lobbying by U. S. manufacturers to cheapen the ingredients, the FDA held their ground on chocolate.

On Friday when I told a friend of mine about the recent changes in some chocolate-like candy, she talked about her perception of the difference between real chocolate and the chocolate-like candy that looks like chocolate but now lacks the name. She talked about the oily film that formed on the roof of her mouth with some products. We talked about some of the better chocolates including European chocolate. She asked me what brands. When I suggested Lindt’s as one, she happily showed me the Lindt chocolate her husband had given her for Valentine’s Day. Lately I have found European chocolates Lindt, Toblerone, and Ritter Sport and American chocolate Ghirardelli in a lot of local grocery stores.

Of course you can always find great chocolates at Chocolaterie Stam right here in Des Moines too.

If you see a little chocolate on the Purple Wren’s beak this week, it came from Chocolaterie Stam on Ingersoll.

Real chocolate costs a little more, but after all it’s not my lunch, it’s dessert!

photo by flickr by fensterbme and eszter

Des Moines, Boulder, Copenhagen, Grinnell

It’s a very small world.

John Nielsen, international visitor and chemist from the University of Copenhagen, is visiting Grinnell College this week. As we talked this afternoon I found we had some unusual chemistry in common. On a hunch I pulled out the framed group photo on the right and asked, “Are you in this picture?”, to which a surprised John replied, “I have that picture hanging in my office.”

And here is where we get to Des Moines!

The photo was taken at a 2001 conference honoring Des Moines native Marvin H. Caruthers,

• Johnston High School (’58)
• Iowa State University (B.S., 1962)
• Distinguished Professor at the University of Colorado,
• winner of the 2006 National Medal of Science presented by President George W. Bush in 2007,
• co-founder of Applied Biosystems and Amgen, the world’s largest biotech company
• given the National Academy of Sciences Award for Chemistry in Service to Society in 2005 and
• one of the world leaders in biotechnology.

Caruthers has been fortunate enough to be able to reap and share significant financial rewards for his work. In 2007 in honor of his late wife (Jennie Smoly Caruthers), he contributed $20 million dollars to the University of Colorado to encourage collaborative work in biotechnology.

If you look at the photo in this linked story, you will find two local boys, Marvin Caruthers and Douglas Dellinger. Doug Dellinger is a graduate of Hoover High School, Drake University, and the University of Colorado where he earned his Ph. D. under Caruthers while John Nielsen was a post-doctoral student in the same lab.

It’s good to live in a state with only 3 million people. It’s easier to keep track.

photos by Jim Lindberg

Black Henna Tattoos, Hair Dye, and Household Products

There are two kinds of “henna” used in temporary, henna tattoos. The authentic henna is a natural, plant product long used for dyeing skin and hair. The specific chemical reaction linking the dye (lawsone) to the protein in skin or hair is known. These reddish, brown henna tattoos enjoy a certain popularity because they are painted on, and they disappear after a few days as the skin sloughs off.

Then there is the other “henna,” sometimes used in temporary tattoos. It is known as black henna and contains a synthetic (as opposed to natural) chemical called PPD (para-phenylenediamine). Unfortunately about 7% of the population is allergic in varying degrees to PPD; most reactions are mild, a few severe, and there may be unexpected consequences. The FDA approves PPD in hair dyes but not for uses where it is directly applied to the skin (as in tattoos). The on-line news service msnbc reported an article from the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine about a poor soul who was one of the allergic 7%. She got a black henna tattoo, and you’ve got to see the photo. The original msnbc article proved so popular that they linked a second related article later in the day.

Interestingly enough PPD is also found in 2 out of 3 hair dyes. Remember how the FDA approves PPD in hair dyes but not for uses where it is directly applied to the skin (as in tattoos)? Isn’t that a laugher? When is the last time anyone dyed their hair without the dye touching the skin? While few people are allergic enough to produce serious damaging reactions, the PPD used in hair dyes is linked to increasing numbers of allergic reactions. Are you curious whether your hair dye contains this chemical PPD? The US government’s NIH (National Institutes of Health) will tell you. It’s a very long list. The manufacturers of hair dyes intended for home use print a warning. They suggest an allergy test where the person would apply a spot of the solution to their arm and leave it for 48 hours, watching for irritation. If it is not irritated, they say to proceed. I’d bet a lot of money that the level of compliance (that is, running the test before you dye at home) is very low.

While that NIH site lists a lot of household products, it is not very helpful. The site lists many products in the major categories along with their formulations (composition), but the list of products is incomplete. In addition, the safety information is presented in a way that any useful information for the consumer is obscure.

photo by flickr by Wah