The South African Chemical Institute (SACI) is committed to overseeing and representing the interests of all chemists in South Africa. The 44th South African Chemical Institute’s National Convention took place in the South African Winelands from the 8th to 13th January 2023. The SACI Convention is held every three years and allows for chemists from all fields within academia and industry to collaborate and transfer knowledge. The conference was held at Stellenbosch University in the heart of the picturesque town of Stellenbosch. The locale was conducive to intellectual and social exchanges.

Bruno Steiner Lab Consultancy was honoured to be a sponsor of this event. This conference created an opportunity for chemists to deliver solutions to advance the sustainable development of South Africa and the African continent. Topics discussed ranged from wastewater treatment to toxicology impact of aerosol, from green chemistry to combating diseases, and from electro-analysis to cutting-edge science.

Professor Caren Billing from the University of the Witwatersrand was one of the presenters at the 44th SACI National Convention. Professor Caren and Professor Dave Billing are researchers predominantly focusing their research within the area of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Electrolyte materials. The high temperature ionic conductivity measurements of these materials are one of the key aspects of their work. Some of the instrumentation utilised in their research are the BioLogic Material testing instrumentation, MTZ-35 Impedance Analyser connected to a HTF-1100 (High Temperature Furnace).

The BioLogic VMP300 multi-channel PGSTAT is also used. BioLogic instruments are supplied by Bruno Steiner Lab Consultancy.