A chemist is a person who knows everything about substances, their interactions and transformations.
What does a chemist do?
Every day, these specialists conduct laboratory research, and control technological processes and the quality of raw materials and products produced in various industries: from meat packing industries to oil refineries. A chemist is a general name for a profession that combines different specialties.
Research chemists find new applications for different substances, andalso try to combine new properties of substances to create new types of materials.
Chemical technicians test the product and determine whether it meets the original design, whether it is safe, and so on.
Biochemists in laboratories study chemical processes that occur in living organisms, and with the help of this knowledge other specialists (biotechnologists) improve the process of production of drugs, cosmetics, chemicals.
Chemists-technologists process raw materials and make useful products.
Environmental chemists study the effects of chemicals on the environment and possible ways to reduce their negative effects.
What skills does a chemist need?
- Ability to carry out different experiments.
- High level of concentration and ability to keep attention on one subject or type of activity for a long time.
- Ability to analyze and systematize a large amount of information.
- The ability to be engaged in painstaking work for a long time.
- Ability to perceive and distinguish a wide range of colors and shades, good memory for symbols and signs, good sense of smell.
- Specialization is important for a chemist-technologist. For example, to work in the food industry you need to know the existing technologies of food production.
Advantages and disadvantages of the chemist
Advantages
- An interesting profession, in which you can regularly discover something, create something new.
- Opportunity to work in almost any industry.
- Opportunity to be engaged in research or management activities.
- Prospects of the specialty, the opportunity to bring real benefits to people, economy, environment.
Disadvantages
- Probability of working in unhealthy conditions.
- The need to cope with a large amount of work tasks and different types of work.
- Monotonous andpainstakingprofession.
- High personal responsibility.
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Where do organic chemists work?
Although chemists spend most of their time in the laboratory, they also study the chemical literature and write scientific reports. Some chemists can work with analytical equipment (chromatographs, spectrophotometers, spectrometers, etc.). We should note that the organic chemist’s workplace is clean, well-lit, safe, and comfortable. However, ideal conditions do not exist, and chemists have to put up with either foul-smelling substances or simply poisonous ones.
Chemists can work in different fields. For example, in the chemical industry, they develop new process engineering concepts for the production of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, fertilizers, synthetic fibers, paints, or plastics, conduct manufacturing processes, and perform quality control. Within public authorities and institutions, they monitor, for example, adherence to established procedures and guidelines, participate in drug approval and study the behavior of chemical products in the environment. They can also act as evaluators or experts, for example, in forensic science.