Polyhedral Model Kit Video Lab Manual (Jmol)
Description
Some interactive Jmol models of some common crystal systems and some geological systems.
Oliver Sacks' "Uncle Tungsten" and inorganic chemistry
Description
Students read Oliver Sacks' autobiography "Uncle Tungsten" and take turns writing chapter summaries and discussion questions. Some chapters focus on Sacks' childhood chemical explorations and others on the historical period of his youth. In the summary, students are asked to either explain the chemistry in contemporary terms OR explain the context (what was going on in the world) of the historical pieces.
Werner From Beyond the Grave
Description
This short communication in 2001 established the structure of a dinuclear cobalt complex based on a single crystal X-ray diffraction study of crystals taken from the Werner collection. The X-ray structure clarified the nature of the bridging ligands including a bridging superoxo group. As such, it offers a nice entry point into the nomenclature of bridging ligands, a discussion of O2 related ligands such as peroxide and superoxide, and the evolution of characterization techniques from Werner's time to the present.
Fivefold Bonding in Cr(I) Dimer
Description
This paper describes the synthesis and characterization of a Cr(I) dimer with a very short Cr-Cr distance. Computational studies support fivefold bonding between the chromium atoms. I have used this paper to introduce metal-metal multiple bonds and discuss the molecular orbital interactions of homonuclear diatomics including d-orbitals. More generally, it is a nice example to stimulate the discussion of what constitutes a bond and the various interpretations of bond order.
Main group element paper and presentation
Description
Students research an application of one of the main group elements and prepare a paper, a short in-class presentation, and a test question. This provides the class with a survey of the main group elements and their practical applications.
This assignment addresses two learning goals: 1) to study the chemistry of the main group elements and 2) to learn about the role inorganic chemistry plays in other disciplines of chemistry. In addition, students work on the goal of improving writing and oral communication skills.
Atomic orbitals brainstorm
Description
This is a beginning-of-semester "warm up." The goals are to help students reconnect to their prior knowledge about atomic orbitals and to introduce and practice the fundamentals of good small group work.
Solid-state model building exercise
Description
Students construct models of ionic solids in class and answer a series of questions about the structures.
Student autobiographies
Description
The students write a 2-page chemistry autobiography at the beginning of the semester in order to reflect on their previous chemistry learning experiences, express their expectations for the class, and help me get to know them.
Werner's Nobel Prize Address
Description
Alfred Werner's Nobel prize address in 1913 offers a unique historical view on the development of coordination chemistry from the expert. With a bit of "translation" to modern terminology, this paper is very accessible to most students. Discussion of the address provides a useful introduction to coordination complexes including structure, isomers, and ligand substitution reactions.
Introduction to Powder X-ray Diffraction
Description
This quick lab experiment is designed to introduce students to powder X-ray diffraction including sample preparation, data collection, and the analysis of diffraction data to refine lattice parameters. Diffraction data is collected for a sample of the cubic perovskite SrTiO3 (useful data can be obtained in relatively short times) and compared to data collected previously (over 6 hours) for the orthorhombic perovskite CaTiO3. Students index the diffraction pattern of SrTiO3 by comparison to the JCPDS database, and use a free program, UnitCell, to refine the l