Bioinorganic Introduction: Periodic Table

Submitted by Sheila Smith / University of Michigan- Dearborn on Tue, 09/13/2011 - 16:05
Description

I use this introductory exercise at the beginning (the very first thing) of my one semester topics course in Bioinorganic Chemistry and as the first exercise in my Bioinorganic unit in my senior level Inorganic Course.  The exercise is a very simple one, but generates a lot of great discussion, requiring students to access knowledge from prior chemistry and biology courses, as well s common knowledge from sources external to their academic career.  Students are often surprised to see how much they know before a topic is covered.  

Chemistry Ethics Discussion: Professor Americium and the Case of the Dreaded Kink

Submitted by Hilary Eppley / DePauw University on Fri, 07/08/2011 - 16:25
Description

This collaboratively developed inorganic chemistry-based ethics case study has been designed for use with general science students (not necessarily chemistry or inorganic chemistry students).  It could be used as part of a research ethics training program for undergraduates or as a stand-alone research group meeting on ethics or class assignment on data integrity. In this particular case study two data points are suspected of being in error because of a student mistake in labeling samples.

Hard-Soft Acid-Base Theory in Action: A New Ion-Exchange Material for Sequestering Heavy Metals

Submitted by Maggie Geselbracht / Reed College on Sun, 06/26/2011 - 00:30
Description

This paper from Chemistry: A European Journal by Manolis Manos and Mercouri Kanatzidis (link provided below in Web Resources) describes the ion-exchange chemistry of a layered sulfide (KMS-1) that exhibits an enhanced preference for soft metal cations (Cd2+, Pb2+, and Hg2+) replacing K+ in between the metal sulfide layers of KMS-1.  Not only does this paper provide a practical application of hard-soft acid-base theory (HSAB), but it provides an accessible introduction to the technical literature for undergraduates, par

Demonstration on tempering of iron

Submitted by Lee Park / Williams College on Sat, 06/25/2011 - 15:01
Description

This is a simple and quick demonstration of the process oftempering of a solid, and the dramatic

Letters of recommendation

Submitted by Lee Park / Williams College on Sat, 06/25/2011 - 13:55
Description

This is a document that I hand out to every student I have, outlining what I

Understanding phase diagrams of solid state alloys: Application to archeological studies

Submitted by Lee Park / Williams College on Sat, 06/25/2011 - 13:43
Description
This paper from the Journal of Archeological Science describes the analysis of silver-copper artifacts found in Machu Picchu.  The archeological samples were compared to various control samples prepared from different compositions and under varying processing (thermal treatment) conditions.  Using analytical methods (mechanical hardness testing, micrographic analysis of microstructure and morphology, elemental analysis), researchers were able to offer hypotheses concerning the source materials and fabrication methods used by Inca artisans.

Periodic trends in atomic size and electronegativity based on MO calculations

Submitted by Rob Scarrow / Haverford College on Sat, 06/25/2011 - 13:38
Description

In Haverford College's course Chem 111:Structure and Bonding, we have included a workshop exercise that guides students through their first experience using electronic structure calculations.  We use the WebMO interface along with Gaussian03, but the exercise could be adapted for other electronic structure programs. The general structure of the exercise is as follows:

Synthesis of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles and Characterization by Powder X-ray Diffraction

Submitted by Catherine Oertel / Oberlin College on Sat, 06/25/2011 - 13:16
Description

I designed this lab experiment to introduce students to the uses of powder X-ray diffraction in the context of the synthesis of a technologically relevant material. Zinc oxide nanoparticles can be synthesized readily with reagents that are inexpensive and relatively benign with regard to student use and waste disposal. Two experiments described in J. Chem.

Spectroscopy Tutorial

Submitted by Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College on Tue, 03/22/2011 - 23:28
Description

I just found this neat little web-based tutorial at the University of Alberta.  It goes through UV-Vis, IR and NMR.  Its coverage of IR is almost exactly what I expect my students to know.  In typical "stretch and release" fashion, I teach more, but if my students could do the practice problems on the website, I'd be happy.

The site was put together by Greg Nilsson, Enrico Fok, June Ng and Jason Cooke of the Department of Chemistry.

There are also has some great problems for multinuclear NMR.

The site has a tutorial, practice problems, and live feedback.  Way cool!