NEWS OF THE WEEK INSTRUMENTATION
PORTABLE MRI Optical magnetometer detects magnetic resonance image offlowingwater
A
MAGNETIC RESONANCE IM-
aging (MRI) method developed at the University of California, Berkeley, requires neither high-field magnets nor cryogenics. Such a method could be used to develop portable, compact, and inexpensive imaging devices for nonclinical applications. The technique "is the latest in a growing field of alternative measurement techniques for magnetic resonance that aim to make lowfield magnetic resonance a viable alternative to conventional highfield approaches," says Andrew G. Webb, director of the Huck Institute Magnetic Resonance Centre at Pennsylvania State University.
FLOWING Magnetic resonance images detected with a magnetometer capture the flow of water through two microfluidic channels. 0 G
1 si
EUROPEAN
Such detection methods are made possible by separating the three stages of the M R I experiment—polarization of the nuclear spins, spatial encoding, and detection. Each stage can then be optimized independently. A team of researchers led by UC Berkeley chemistry professor Alexander Pines and physics professor Dmitry Budker used an optical magnetometer to obtain a magnetic resonance image of water flowing through two microfluidic channels (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, D O I : 10.1073/ pnas.0605396103). The magnetometer determines the magnetization of the sample by measur-
BUSINESS
ROBUST GROWTH European chemical industry enjoys strong second-quarter earnings
T
HANKS TO GOOD ECONOMIC
conditions in much of the world, the European chemi-
SECOND-QUARTER RESULTS Most European firms show strong improvement % CHANGE EARNINGS3 FROM 2005 ($ MILLIONS) SALES EARNINGS
SALES
PROFIT MARGIN11 2006 2005
Akzo Nobel
$4,567.2
$461.3
BASF
15,7^7.6
1,175.7
16.5
18.3
Clariant
1,700.8
13.1
-77.5
DSM ICI
2,716.8
200.6
2,422.3
177.5
2.1 7.5 8.5
827.4
40.9
23.1
1,943.3
219.7
nm
6.8
33.7
10.3
Kemira
6.6%
Rhodia
1,688.1
115.0
4.5 4.5
Solvay
3,051.6
314.4
14.8
Merck KGaA
98.4% 10.1%
5.4%
7.5 0.8 7.4 7.3
7.4 3.5 6.7 7.1
66.7
4.9
39.9
11.3
3.6 8.4 def 8.8
18.0 11.6
NOTE: Converted at exchange rates on June 30: $1.00 U.S. = 0.783 euros, 0.541 British pounds, 1.225 Swiss francs, a After-tax earnings from continuing operations, excluding significant extraordinary and nonrecurring items, b After-tax earnings as a percentage of sales, def = deficit, nm = not meaningful.
18
C&EN
/ AUGUST
7,
2006
cal industry performed buoyantly in the second quarter. T h e earnings improvement was led by Akzo Nobel, where net earnings nearly doubled those of second-quarter 2005. Akzo Nobel executives attributed the surge primarily to improved operational earnings, led by its human health, coatings, and chemicals businesses. The quarter was particularly satisfying for Rhodia, which turned in a profit of $115 million from continuing operations. That was a dramatic turnaround from the net loss of $123 million the company showed in the comparable period of 2005. Rhodia revealed that it has reclassified its European industrial fibers unit as a discontinued operation.
ing its effect on the polarization of a laser beam shining through rubidium vapor. The components of the magnetometer are small and potentially inexpensive. "The optical method needs no high-field magnet or cryogenics, so it should be relatively straightforward to rniniaturize and maybe multiplex," comments N M R expert M. Daniel Raftery of Purdue University. "You can think about making a portable device that can do some very interesting imaging experiments." Budker hopes that such portable devices could be used in places such as Africa that might not be able to afford expensive instrumentation. "We see this as a first step in that direction," he says. Pines cautions that such a technique will never compete with conventional MRI. Instead, he sees it as being useful for applications in microfluidics, geology, and cell biology.—CELIA ARNAUD
Sales growth among European firms was led by Kemira. According to the company, nearly $110 million of its sales increase was the result of acquisitions, including the purchase of Lanxess' paper chemicals business in early April. Similarly, acquisitions accounted for 2% of the increase in BASF's sales, the rest coming from improved volumes and sales prices. In the quarter, the company added Engelhard and Degussa's construction chemicals business. Chairman Jurgen Hambrecht said he was "pleased to present new records for the second quarter and first half of 2006." Meanwhile, cost savings of more than $100 million at Clariant could not counter the company's increased raw materials and energy costs, said CEO Jan Secher. Following the sale of its pharmaceutical fine chemicals business this summer, Clariant is now considering the sale of its specialty fine chemicals business, which is experiencing 'Very difficult market conditions."—PATRICIA SHORT WWW.CEN-0NLINE.ORG
