These ordinary chemical products contain the ingredients for a groundbreaking chemical innovation. This is a pack of sweetener containing the amino acid phenylalanine. The bottle contains acetone, which can be used to remove paint. David MacMillan's research team combined these two molecules to make the first example of a new type of catalyst: an organocatalyst. Two everyday, inexpensive and sustainable substances that could be combined to make a catalyst for a diversity of chemical reactions.
David MacMillan donated the sweetener and acetone to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2022.
This cap for a gas tube served as a mascot for David MacMillan’s research team. They called the mascot Nabo. MacMillan is not particularly fond of Nabo, but his colleagues loved sneaking him into various contexts. For example, he appeared at MacMillan’s Nobel Prize lecture. Nabo represents MacMillan’s warm relationship to his many colleagues. But now, Nabo has joined the Nobel Prize Museum’s collection.
David MacMillan donated the mascot to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2022.
