Previously I've mentioned triethylammonium acetate, and ammonium carbonate. These are salts formed by mixtures of volatile stuff - triethylamine, acetic acid, ammonia, and carbon dioxide. Awhile ago I made one I hadn't ever made before.

Triacetin is the glycerol triester of acetic acid:

Automated solid-phase synthesis of biomolecules defines 20th century biology. I previously covered a protecting group that is ubiquitous in DNA synthesis, but the Nobel was actually awarded for peptide chemistry.

Chlorinated solvents are great solvents. The polarizability of chlorine, moderate electronegativity, moderate volatility, lack of acidic protons or reactivity - it all adds up to a great reaction medium. However, they usually are toxic.

Niacin is also known as Vitamin B3. Interestingly, it's also called "nicotinic acid," and the similarity of the name to "nicotine" isn't coincidental:

Is paying $5/liter for Fiji water not cutting it? Trying to come up with a more environmentally abhorrent, gauche hydration accessory? How would you feel about $1,000/liter, along with some iffy health benefits?

Oscillating reactions are neat; I should write up one of my favorites sometime... Here, electrons flow from iron metal to mercury (I) sulfate to chromium (VI) oxide. Listen to the video for a step-by step explanation...

A couple previous molecules of the day were in the news today: polylactide and lead chromate.

Phytic acid is an inositol derivative:

Inositol is a sugar: