1988
The determination of the three-dimensional structure of a photosynthetic reaction centre by Johann Deisenhofer, Robert Huber and Michel Hartmut.

1989
The discovery of catalytic properties of RNA by Sidney Altman and Thomas R. Cech.

1990
The development of the theory and methodology of organic synthesis by Elias James Corey.

1991
The contributions of Richard R. Ernst to the development of the methodology of high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.

1992
The contributions of Rudolf A. Marcus to the theory of electron transfer reactions in chemical systems.

1993
The invention by Kary B. Mullis of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method; the fundamental contributions of Michael Smith to the establishment of oligonucleotide-based, site-directed mutagenesis and its development for protein studies.

1994
The contribution to carbocation chemistry by George A. Olah.

1995
The work in atmospheric chemistry, particularly concerning the formation and decomposition of ozone by Paul J. Crutzen, Mario J. Molina, and Sherwood T. Rowland.

1996
The discovery of fullerenes by Robert F. Curl, Jr., Sir Harold W. Kroto, and Richard E. Smalley.

1997
The elucidation of the enzymatic mechanism underlying the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) by Paul D. Boyer and John E. Walker and the first discovery of an ion-transporting enzyme, Na+, K+-ATPase by Jens C. Skou.

1998
The development of the density-functional theory by Walter Kohn and the development of computational methods in quantum chemistry by John A. Pople.

1999
The studies of the transition states of chemical reactions using femtosecond spectroscopy by Ahmed H. Zewail.

2000
The discovery and development of conductive polymers by Alan J. Heeger, Alan G. MacDiarmid and Hedeki Shirakawa.

2001
This year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry is about molecules that exist in two forms that are mirror images of each other. Often it is important to produce only one of these forms because the molecules, despite being so similar, have quite different functions, in our cells, for example.

2002
Living cells consist of myriads of molecules. The large molecules, which include the proteins, interact with one another and with other molecules in a never-resting molecular machinery. How can we understand what is happening inside the cell? One important step is to develop tools to "see" with, and this is what this year's Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have done.

2003
Salt and water are important actors in the chemistry of life. Life on earth, and our own lives, originated in salt water – in the oceans and in the womb. Yet only fairly recently have we understood how water molecules and salt ions are transported in and out through the cell walls.