INTRODUCTION

The essence of research is to seek answers wherever there are questions. Regardless of what the answers are the experiments to be conducted must be carried out with utmost care. For this, one must ensure that the quality of the reactants used and the products obtained are of the highest possible purity. In general terms, one can broadly categorise experimental chemistry and biological chemistry into the following areas:

Isolation and identification of substances (natural products from nature, protein purification and characterisation, etc).

Synthesis of substances (organic, or inorganic in nature; these substances may be known substances or new compounds).

Analysis of substances (this is a key process in the identification of new or known chemical and biological substances. Methods of analysis include spectroscopic methods, derivatisation and sequencing methods).

Measurements of particular properties of a compound or substance (enzyme kinetics, reaction kinetics, FACS, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, assay).

Impressive and sophisticated strategies, in the form of new reagents, catalysts and chemical transformations, are currently available for the syntheses of molecules. In recent years there is a deviation in focus from developing new synthetic routes and reactions to improving methods for carrying out reactions. In particular, traditional reactions can be carried out in new ways such that those efficiencies of reactions are greatly improved. The efficiencies of reactions can be measured in terms of the yields of the desired product(s), or in terms of the time taken to obtain the desired product(s). Some of the new lateral ways of thinking to improve...