Scientists in Israel have shown that non-biological chiral crystals are much more abundant than previously thought and their findings could clear up a possible confusion over the term ‘chiral’.
‘Chiral’ describes an object whose mirror image cannot be superimposed, for example human hands are chiral. Chirality is important to understand and recognise, as the production of a chiral molecule can lead to both mirror images – or enantiomers – being produced, and these often have very different chemical properties. Chiral crystals selective for one enantiomer that could be used for separation or as catalysts are therefore highly sought.
Read the full article in Chemistry World
Link to journal article
On the abundance of chiral crystals
Chaim Dryzun and David Avnir
Chem. Commun., 2012, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C2CC17727G
