VIPEr

Adam R. Johnson, Harvey Mudd College

Implementation Notes:

In the first two slides, often use the phrase "because it's a square."

This is useful for Inorganic Chemistry students as well because it will cement in their mind long lost rules of quantum numbers.

Evaluation

Evaluation Methods:

1) Short answer quiz questions

2) Multiple choice questions on hour and final exams.

3) Awe.

Evaluation Results:

1) From a quiz killer to a typical A, B, C student gets it right, the D student is still a bit confused and the F student still misses the idea.

2) On a question asking, "how many orbitals in the n=3 shell", the results increased from the 40's to 80's %.

3) As jaws dropped, quarters could be slipped into their mouths. Faculty pulled out phones to take pictures of a white-board version before I told them I had a PowerPoint version.

1 Jun 2018

Ytterbium-catalyzed alkene isomerization: A tribute to the f-block chemistry of Richard Andersen

Submitted by Joanne Stewart, Hope College

Additional Authors:

Anne Bentley, Lewis & Clark College

Chip Nataro, Lafayette College

Lori Watson, Earlham College

Evaluation Methods:

This LO has not been implemented; however, we recommend a few options for evaluating student learning:

implement as in-class group work, collect and grade all questions
have students complete the literature discussion questions before lecture, then ask them to modify their answers in another pen color as the in-class discussion goes through each questions
hold a discussion lecture for the literature questions; then for the following lecture period begin class with a quiz that uses a slightly modified problem.

Evaluation Results:

This LO has not been implemented yet.

Description:

In honor of Professor Richard Andersen’s 75th birthday, a small group of IONiC leaders submitted a paper to a special issue of Dalton Transactions about Andersen’s love of teaching with the chemical literature. To accompany the paper, this literature discussion learning object, based on one of Andersen’s recent publications in Dalton, was created. The paper examines an ytterbium-catalyzed isomerization reaction. It uses experimental and computational evidence to support a proton-transfer to a cyclopentadienyl ring mechanism versus an electron-transfer mechanism, which might have seemed more likely.

The paper is quite complex, but this learning object focuses on simpler ideas like electron counting and reaction coordinate diagrams. To aid beginning students, we have found it helpful to highlight the parts of the paper that relate to the reading questions. For copyright reasons, we cannot provide the highlighted paper here, but we have included instructions on which sections to highlight if you wish to do that.

Corequisites:

No Corequisites

Course Level:

Topics Covered:

Physical methods / analytical techniques

Reaction mechanisms

Prerequisites:

General Chemistry

Organic Chemistry

Learning Goals:

After completing this literature discussion, students should be able to

Count the valence electrons in a lanthanide complex
Explain the difference between a stoichiometric and catalytic reaction
Predict common alkaline earth and lanthanide oxidation states based on ground state electron configurations
Describe how negative evidence can be used to support or contradict a hypothesis
Describe the energy changes involved in making and breaking bonds
On a reaction coordinate diagram, explain the difference between an intermediate and a transition state
Explain how calculated reaction coordinate energy diagrams can be used to make mechanistic arguments

Subdiscipline:

f-block Chemistry

Energetics and mechanisms of reductive elimination from Pt(IV)

Organometallic Chemistry

Related activities:

Ligand based reductive elimination from a thorium compound

CBC (Covalent Bond Classification) Method of Electron Counting

Implementation Notes:

This is a paper that is rich in detail and material. As such, an undergraduate might find it intimidating to pick up and read. We have provided a suggested reading guide that presents certain sections of the paper for the students to read. We suggest the instructor highlight the following sections before providing the paper to the students. While students are certainly encouraged to read the entire paper, this LO will focus on the highlighted sections.

Introduction

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 4

First 5 lines ending at the word high (you may encourage students to look up exergonic if that is not a term commonly used in your department)

Line 14 starting with “In that sense,” through the end of the paragraph

Paragraph 6

From the start through the word “endoergic” in line 22

Line 31 from “oxidation of” to the word “described” in line 33

Line 40 from “These” to the word “dimethylacetylene” in line 45

Paragraph 7

From the start to the word “appears” in line 4

The words “to involve” in line 4

Starting in line 4 with “a Cp*” to “transfer” in line 5

Results and Discussion

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3 from the start through “six hours” in line 10

Paragraph 4

Paragraph 5

From the start to “solution” in line 3

From “This exchange” in line 10 to “allene” in line 11

From “Hence” in line 19 through the end of the paragraph

Paragraph 6 from the start through “infrared spectra” in line 19

Paragraph 7 from “Hence” in line 4 through the end of the paragraph

Mechanistic aspects for the catalytic isomerisation reaction of buta-1,2-diene to but-2-yne using (Me₅C₅)₂Yb p 2579.

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 4

Experimental Section

Synthesis of (Me₅C₅)₂Yb(η²-MeC≡CMe).

Synthesis of (Me₅C₅)₂Ca(η²-MeC≡CMe).

Reaction of (Me₅C₅)₂Yb with buta-1,2-diene

Time Required:

One class period.

Web Resources:

Dalton Trans. 2015, 44, 2575-2587

3 Jun 2017

Literature Discussion of "A stable compound of helium and sodium at high pressure"

Submitted by Katherine Nicole Crowder, University of Mary Washington

Additional Authors:

Nicholas A. Piro, Albright College

Rebecca M. Jones, George Mason University

William G Dougherty, Susquehanna University

Evaluation Methods:

Students could be evaluated based on their participation in the in-class discussion or on their submitted written answers to assigned questions.

Evaluation Results:

This LO has not been used in a class at this point. Evaluation results will be uploaded as it is used (by Spring 2018 at the latest).

Description:

This paper describes the synthesis of a stable compound of sodium and helium at very high pressures. The paper uses computational methods to predict likely compounds with helium, then describe a synthetic protocol to make the thermodynamically favored Na₂He compound. The compound has a fluorite structure and is an electride with the delocalization of 2e^- into the structure.

This paper would be appropriate after discussion of solid state structures and band theory.

The questions are divided into categories and have a wide range of levels.

Dong, X.; Oganov, A. R.; Goncharov, A. F.; Stavrou, E.; Lobanov, S.; Saleh, G.; Qian, G.-R.; Zhu, Q.; Gatti, C.; Deringer, V. L.; et al. A stable compound of helium and sodium at high pressure. Nature Chemistry 2017, 9 (5), 440–445 DOI: 10.1038/nchem.2716.

Corequisites:

Course Level:

Topics Covered:

Bonding models: Extended systems

Physical methods / analytical techniques

Physical properties

Synthesis and reactivity

Thermodynamics

Prerequisites:

No Prerequisites

General Chemistry

Learning Goals:

After reading and discussing this paper, students will be able to

Describe the solid state structure of a novel compound using their knowledge of unit cells and ionic crystals
Apply band theory to a specific material
Describe how XRD is used to determine solid state structure
Describe the bonding in an electride structure
Apply periodic trends to compare/explain reactivity

Subdiscipline:

Metal - Noble Gas Bonding

Related activities:

Solid State Models with ICE Solid State Model Kits

Looking at Solid State Structures

Implementation Notes:

The questions are divided into categories (comprehensive questions, atomic and molecular properties, solid state structure, electronic structure and other topics) that may or may not be appropriate for your class. To cover all of the questions, you will probably need at least two class periods. Adapt the assignment as you see fit.

CrystalMaker software can be used to visualize the compound. ICE model kits can also be used to build the compound using the template for a Heusler alloy.

Time Required:

2 class periods

Web Resources:

A stable compound of helium and sodium at high pressure

ICE Solid State Model Kits

3 Jun 2017

A Stable Monomeric SiO2 Complex with Donor-Acceptor Ligands: Foundational Implications of Lewis-Acid base interactions in Stabilizing SiO2

Submitted by Gary L. Guillet, Armstrong State University

Additional Authors:

Brandon Quillian, Armstrong State University

Chip Nataro, Lafayette College

Maria Carroll, Providence College

S. Chantal E. Stieber, Cal Poly Pomona

Evaluation Methods:

This LO was craeted at the pre-MARM 2017 ViPER workshop and has not been used in the classroom. The authors will update the evaluation methods after it is used.

Description:

This module offers students in an introductory chemistry or foundational inorganic course exposure to recent literature work. Students will apply their knowledge of VSEPR, acid-base theory, and thermodynamics to understand the effects of addition of ligands on the stabilities of resulting SiO₂-containing complexes. Students will reference results of DFT calculations and gain a basic understanding of how DFT can be used to calculate stabilities of molecules.

Topics Covered:

Acid-base chemistry

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Subdiscipline:

Introductory Chemistry

A Stable Monomeric SiO2 Complex with Donor–Acceptor Ligands

Learning Goals:

Students should be able to:

Apply VSEPR to determine donor and acceptor orbitals of the ligands
Identify lewis acids and lewis bases
Elucidate energy relationships
Explain how computational chemistry is beneficial to experimentalists
Characterize bond strengths based on ligand donors

Course Level:

First year

Second year

Implementation Notes:

Students should have access to the paper and have read the first and second paragraphs of the paper. Students should also refer to scheme 2 and table 2.

This module could be either used as a homework assignment or in-class activity. This was created during the IONiC VIPEr workshop 2017 and has not yet been implemented.

Time Required:

50 min

Web Resources:

3 Mar 2017

In-class peer review

Submitted by S. Chantal E. Stieber, Cal Poly Pomona

Evaluation Methods:

Student participation was evaluated during the in-class portion based on the questions students asked.

The formal peer review homework was evaluated based on completion, level of thought and thoroughness.

Evaluation Results:

Overall, students were very interested in this topic and had not formally learned about the process before. There was a very lively discussion and a lot of questions were asked. All students received full credit for participation.

Similarly, once students received their classmate's paper for peer review, they took the process very seriously and carefully went through the paper and answered the worksheet questions.

I was very impressed by the high quality of the formal peer reviews that were turned in as homework. Students clearly spent a lot of time to carefully think about the paper and craft a reasonable response. Most students received full-credit.

Description:

This activity includes questions for students to answer to help guide them through the process of peer review. It was designed to assist students in writing peer reviews for research reports written by their classmates, but could be applied to literature articles as well.

Topics Covered:

Chemical literature

Communication skills

Professional skills development

Corequisites:

No Corequisites

Prerequisites:

No Prerequisites

Subdiscipline:

Bioinorganic Chemistry

f-block Chemistry

Science Skills, Practices, and Resources

Organometallic Chemistry

Course Level:

Second year

Peer Review - How does it work?: A literature discussion with a focus on scientific communication

Learning Goals:

A student will be able to:

-Explain how the peer-review process works

-Critically read through a research article

-Carefully review a research article

-Write a professional peer review

Related activities:

Implementation Notes:

An overview of peer review was given with three powerpoint slides. Students then worked through a modified Q&A of the peer review module "Peer Review - How does it work?" posted by Michael Norris on VIPEr. This provided students with an example of real reviews, along with the resulting article revisions.

The current worksheet was then passed out to students along with a research report written by one of their classmates (I assigned these and removed names). In class, students answered the questions on the worksheet and were able to ask questions of the editor (the instructor in this case). Following the in-class peer review, students had to write a formal peer review, which was turned in as homework.

The peer review was a final component of a research report that students had been working on throughout the course. The final report was turned in after students had received the review comments back from their peers. The grade of the final report took into consideration whether or not students had made modifications based on comments by their peer reviewer.

Time Required:

60 min

Web Resources:

Peer review policies for Nature

A quick guide to writing a solid peer review

18 Jan 2017

calistry calculators

Submitted by Adam R. Johnson, Harvey Mudd College

Description:

I just stumbled on this site while refreshing myself on the use of Slater's rules for calculating Z_eff for electrons. There are a variety of calculators on there including some for visualizing lattice planes and diffraction, equilibrium, pH and pK_a, equation balancing, Born-Landé, radioactive decay, wavelengths, electronegativities, Curie Law, solution preparation crystal field stabilization energy, and more.

I checked and it calculated Z_eff correctly but I can't vouch for the accuracy of any of the other calculators.

Topics Covered:

Acid-base chemistry

Computer modeling

Descriptive chemistry

Prerequisites:

Course Level:

Corequisites:

Subdiscipline:

Science Skills, Practices, and Resources

Introductory Chemistry

Learning Goals:

This is not a good teaching website but would be good for double checking math

Implementation Notes:

I used this to double check my Slater's rules calculations (and found a mistake in my answer key!)

Web Resources:

calistry calculator for inorganic

4 Jan 2017

Inorganic Chemistry for Geochemistry and Environmental Sciences Fundamentals and Applications by George W. Luther III

Submitted by Rachel Narehood Austin, Barnard College, Columbia University

Description:

This is a great new textbook by George Luther III from the University of Delaware. The textbook represents the results of a course he has taught for graduate students in chemical oceanography, geochemistry and related disciplines. It is clear that the point of the book is to provide students with the core material from inorganic chemistry that they will need to explain inorganic processes in the environment. However the material is presented in such a clear, logical fashion and builds so directly on fundamental principles of physical inorganic chemistry that the book is actually applicable to a much broader audience. It provides a very welcome presentation of frontier orbital theory as a guide to predicting and explaining much inorganic chemical reactivity. There are numerous very helpful charts and tables and diagrams. I found myself using the book for a table of effective nuclear charges when I was teaching general chemistry last semester. The examples are much more interesting that the typical textbook examples and would be easy to embellish and structure a course around. There is also a helpful companion website that provides powerpoint slides, student exercises and answers. The book covers some topics not typically seen in inorganic textbooks like the acidity of solids but the presentation of this information makes sense in light of the coherent framework of the text. We so often tell our students "structure dictates function". This text really make good on that promise. My only complaint is that I wish the title were something more generic so that I could use it for a second semester of introductory-esque material that we teach after students have taken a single semester of intro chem and two semesters of organic chemistry. So much of what is covered in this textbook is precisely what a second semester sophomore chemistry major should know before proceeding on in the major. But the title makes the book hard to sell to chemistry majors and that is regrettable.

Prerequisites:

Organic Chemistry

Corequisites:

Organic Chemistry

Physical Chemistry: Thermodynamics

Course Level:

Subdiscipline:

Bioinorganic Chemistry

Craig J. Donahue, U. of MIchigan-Dearborn

Web Resources:

Companion web site

30 Jun 2016

Electrochemical and Carbonyl Frequencies to Explain Ligand Non-Innocence in Organometallic Pincer Complexes

Submitted by R Bryan Sears, Emmanuel College

Additional Authors:

David Eichhorn, Wichita State University

Kristy L. Mardis, Chicago State University

Samuel L. Esarey, University of Michigan

Terrie Salupo-Bryant, Manchester University

Evaluation Methods:

This LO has not been implemented, however, we recommend a few options for evaluating student learning:

● implement as in class group work, collect and grade all questions

● have students complete the literature discussion questions before lecture, then ask them to modify their answers in another pen color as the in-class discussion goes through each questions

● hold a discussion lecture for the literature questions; then for the following lecture period begin class with a quiz that uses a slightly modified problem analogous to question #6 or #8 where a comparison between two different complexes from the paper is proposed, students are asked to summarize differences in their experimental values of CO frequency and potential and chemical reasoning for these differences.

Evaluation Results:

This LO was created for the 2016 TUES workshop and has not yet been tested in the classroom.

Description:

In this literature discussion, students read an Inorganic Chemistry paper (doi: 10.1021/ic503062w) about diarylamido-based PNZ pincer ligands and their Ni, Pd, and Rh complexes. Specifically, this paper uses IR and E_1/2 potentials to demonstrate that the redox events occur not on the metal center but on the pincer ligands. For these non-innocent ligands, the electron donating ability of the pincer ligand towards the metal is more strongly influenced by the donors directly attached to the metal (phosphorus or nitrogen substituents) while the oxidation potential is more affected by the substituents on the diarylamine backbone. This paper also provides x-ray crystallography data, NMR spectra (including J-coupling information), and a wealth of synthetic information. This LO was created for the 2016 TUES Viper Workshop on organometallic chemistry.

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Topics Covered:

Physical methods / analytical techniques

Course Level:

Learning Goals:

In answering these questions, a student will…

● Employ textual clues to define chemical terms such as pincer ligands

● Apply CBC rules to count electrons for pincer-ligand containing complexes

● Relate v(CO) stretching frequencies to electron donating abilities of ligands

● Integrate prior knowledge of periodic trends and electrochemical data from the paper to refine their definition of non-innocent ligands.

● Correlate electrochemical potential to the “electron richness” of the complex

Subdiscipline:

Science Skills, Practices, and Resources

Organometallic Chemistry

Ir(III) Catalyst Regeneration Using Molecular Oxygen: Addressing Key Challenges that Hinder Alkane Dehydrogenation Catalysis. A Literature Discussion

Related activities:

Implementation Notes:

Students should read the paper and complete the reading guide before the literature discussion.

We hope that instructors will mix and match questions that are appropriate to their classes. In particular, instructors may want to be selective among the in-depth questions 5-19 depending on the desired emphasis.

Summary:

Questions 1-4 assess scientific reading competency and foundational concepts, question 5-11 address fundamental inorganic topics related to changing electron density on the metal, wheras questions 12-19 require deeper discussion of ligand non-innocence and experimental methods to determine difference in electron richness.

Note: we envision question 4 being divided up among multiple groups with each group getting one of the rows. Then, the instructor should highlight the fact that all complexes had the same values.

Time Required:

1 class period

27 Jun 2016

Online Homework for a Foundations of Inorganic Chemistry Course

Submitted by Sabrina G. Sobel, Hofstra University

Evaluation Methods:

Students are graded on a sliding scale based on the number of attempts on each question. An overall grade is assigned at the end of the semester, adjusted to the number of points allotted for the homework in the syllabus.

Evaluation Results:

Student performance on the overall homework assignments for the semester includes questions assigned on General Chemistry topics that are part of this class syllabus.

	2014	2015	2016
Number	40	47	41
Average	89%	80%	83%
S.D.	15%	19%	23%

In addition to gethering data on overall performance, I and my student assistants, Loren Wolfin and Marissa Strumolo, have completed a statistical study to assess performance on individual questions, and to identify problem questions that need to be edited. We identified two separate issues: incorrect/poorly worded questions, and assignment of level of difficulty. Five problematic questions were identified and edited. The level of difficulty was reassigned for eight questions rated as medium (level 2); six were reassigned as difficult (level 3), and two were reassigned as easy (level 1). I look forward to assessing student performance in Spring 2017 in light of these improvements. Please feel free to implement this Sapling homework in your class, and help in the improvement/evolution of this database.

Description:

The Committee on Professional Training (CPT) has restructured accreditation of Chemistry-related degrees, removing the old model of one year each of General, Analytical, Organic, and Physical Chemistry plus other relevant advanced classes as designed by the individual department. The new model (2008) requires one semester each in the five Foundation areas: Analytical, Inorganic, Organic, Biochemistry and Physical Chemistry, leaving General Chemistry as an option, with the development of advanced classes up to the individual departments. This has caused an upheaval in the treatment of Inorganic Chemistry, elevating it to be on equal footing with the other, more ‘traditional’ subdisciplines which has meant the decoupling of General Chemistry from introduction to Inorganic Chemistry. No commercial online homework system includes sets for either Foundations or Advanced Inorganic Chemistry topics. Sapling online homework (www.saplinglearning.com) has been open to professor authors of homework problems; they have a limited database of advanced inorganic chemistry problems produced by a generous and industrious faculty person. I have developed a homework set for a semester-long freshman/sophomore level Inorganic Chemistry course aligned to the textbook Descriptive Inorganic Chemistry by Rayner-Canham and Overton (ISBN 1-4641-2560-0, www.whfreeman.com/descriptive6e ), and have test run it three times. Question development, analysis of student performance and troubleshooting in addition to topic choices, are critical to this process, especially in light of new information about what topics are taught in such a course (Great Expectations: Using an Analysis of Current Practices To Propose a Framework for the Undergraduate Inorganic Curriculum: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.5b01320 ).This is an ongoing process, and I am working to improve the database all the time.

Topics Covered:

Acid-base chemistry

Bonding models: Extended systems

Descriptive chemistry

Synthesis and reactivity

Thermodynamics

Prerequisites:

General Chemistry

Subdiscipline:

f-block Chemistry

Introductory Chemistry