The Center
The National Microscale Chemistry Center™ (NMCC) was established at Merrimack College in 1993 in cooperation with the Environmental Protection Agency, the Toxics Use Reduction Institute of Massachusetts and the National Science Foundation to develop new techniques in microscale and implement/disseminate microscale chemistry throughout the world for education and research.
The mission of NMCC is “to integrate the ideas of chemical use reduction, air quality improvement, exposure limitation, recycling, and waste reduction into every chemical worker’s and every student’s thinking.” To accomplish its goal, the center has developed training courses in microscale chemistry techniques and microscale methodology.
The center offers programs to educators at all levels, from elementary school through college. NMCC participants have written textbooks on microscale techniques, laboratory manuals and hundreds of academic papers, and have conducted presentations and workshops.
The work of the NMCC continues at Merrimack College, where we continue to employ microscale chemistry methods in our classrooms and laboratories, bringing Merrimack’s long history of microscale to the next generation of scientists.
What Is Microscale Chemistry?
Microscale chemistry is often referred to as small-scale chemistry. It is a pollution prevention method using the smallest possible level of chemicals at which an experiment can effectively be conducted. It aims to reduce chemical waste without compromising the quality and standard of chemical applications.
