The phenomena of double-diffusion convection is demonstrated. The more advanced aspects and procedures involving quantitative analyses suitable for a laboratory project are described.

A laboratory experiment for students in the last year of degree program in chemical engineering, chemistry, or industrial chemistry is presented. It models the chlor-alkali process, one of the most important industrial applications of electrochemical technology and the second largest industrial consumer of electricity after aluminium industry.

A study of the vibrational spectroscopy of the cis and trans isomers of 1,2-dichloroethylene provides an excellent opportunity to learn the applications group theory in laboratories. The necessity of using infrared (IR) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy in making full vibrational assignments is illustrated.

The preparation of libethenite, a double salt of copper(II) phosphate and copper(II) hydroxide presents the opportunity to discuss the prevalence of double salts in the environment, the relationship between solubility and stability in aqueous solution, the origin of the color of transition metal compounds and gravimetric analyses. Typical results…

An instructive experiment for the synthesis of ethyl trans-cinnamate, a pleasant smelling ester used in perfumery and flavoring by the reaction of benzaldehyde with the stable ylid triphenylphosphorane is described. The synthesis, workup and characterization of trans-cinnamate may be accomplished in a single laboratory session with commonly…

For small colleges, the use of invertebrates in undergraduate learning laboratory experiments may be a valuable alternative to the use of vertebrate species. This article describes a habituation experiment using terrestrial hermit crabs. All of the materials required are inexpensive and readily available. What makes this experiment unique is that…

Rats were runway trained with sequences of rewards that changed in 3 phases. In Phase 1 (24 days), the sequences were NP', SNP', and P'SNP' (n = 3), or NS', PNS', and S'PNS', where P and P' refer to 4 and 8 plain Noyes pellets, and S and S' are 4 and 8 sucrose pellets. N was a 30-s confinement in the goal without reward. In Phase 2 (14 days) the…

A laboratory experiment designed to examine the entrance and exit effects in small electrochemical filter-press reactors used in the laboratory is presented. The single compartment of the filter-press reactor is filled with different turbulence promoters to study their influence as compared to the empty configuration.

The environmentally focused general chemistry laboratory provides a format for teaching the concepts of the mainstream laboratory within an environmental context. The capstone integrated exercise emerged as the overwhelming favorite part of this laboratory and the experiment gave students an opportunity to do a self-directed project, using the…

A modified experimental procedure for the one-step synthesis that is suitable for the undergraduate organic lab is presented. In the course of work towards the more routine use of air-sensitive organometallic complexes such as the Grubb's catalyst, the natural product (E)-4-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl) but-2-en-ol, 4, was synthesized.

Dynamic NMR makes use of the effect of chemical exchanges on NMR spectra to study kinetics and thermodynamics. An advanced physical chemistry lab experiment was developed to study the intramolecular exchange processes of EDTA (the disodium salt of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) metal complexes. EDTA is an important chelating agent, used in…

Experts have mixed horseradish root with hydrogen peroxide or calcium peroxide in laboratory studies to get rid of the problem of odors from farm manure. Researchers evaluated how well the system reduced the concentration of volatile fatty acids, indole and skatole, compounds that are also associated with the stink of animal manure.

The S[subscript N]2 reaction of 1-bromohexane and 1-bromobutane with potassium acetate is introduced to address the shortage of suitable laboratory experiments in organic laboratory. The experiment offers a review of some common laboratory techniques including the use of infrared spectroscopy to identify functional groups, the use of GC-MS…

For distance-education students, the requirement for a laboratory course can present a significant hurdle to completing degree requirements. To better serve these nontraditional students, the authors developed a distance version of the laboratory course to provide a hands-on experience similar to that of on-campus students. In order to make the…

In this article, the authors discuss a unique and challenging laboratory exercise called, the paint-stir-stick submarine, that keeps the students enthralled. The paint-stir-stick submarine fits beautifully with the National Science Education Standards Physical Science Content Standard B, and with the California state science standards for physical…