Chemists Celebrate Earth Day
The April 2015 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education is now available online for subscribers. This issue features articles on atmospheric and environmental chemistry in honor of Chemists Celebrate Earth Day. Also featured in this issue are: microfluidic devices; problem-solving strategies; information literacy; kinetics & thermodynamics; investigations of gases and organic synthesis; outreach.
Cover: Dry Ice in Water
When dry ice is placed in water a thick, white fog forms that is reminiscent of miniature atmospheric clouds. In contrast to what is commonly assumed, this this rich, cloudy fog does not arise from condensation of atmospheric water vapor. In A Molecular Explanation of How the Fog Is Produced when Dry Ice Is Placed in Water, Thomas S. Kuntzleman, Nathan Ford, Jin-Hwan No, and Mark E. Ott present strikingly simple experiments that provide insight into the origin of the water in this fog and also some basic physicochemical processes involved in its formation. Many of these experiments can be carried out using materials found at the pharmacy, grocery store, or hardware store. The explanations involved draw from many concepts taught in general chemistry, such as vapor pressure and Le Châtelier’s principle.
Atmospheric and Environmental Chemistry
Editorial Atmopheric scientists, Vicki H. Grassian and Elizabeth A. Stone, discuss Chemistry’s Contributions to Our Understanding of Atmospheric Science and Climate and provide supplementary materials to help teach climate science in a "Chemistry and Climate Activity Kit".
Commentary The Anthroposphere, Material Flow Analysis, and Chemical Education ~ Craig J. Donahue
Book Review Review of Chemistry of Sustainable Energy ~ Cherie Turner
Chemical Education Research General Chemistry Students’ Understanding of Climate Change and the Chemistry Related to Climate Change ~ Ashley N. Versprille and Marcy H. Towns
Articles
Development and Implementation of a Series of Laboratory Field Trips for Advanced High School Students To Connect Chemistry to Sustainability ~ Katherine B. Aubrecht, Linda Padwa, Xiaoqi Shen, Gloria Bazargan
A General Chemistry Assignment Analyzing Environmental Contamination for the DePue, IL, National Superfund Site ~ Sarah A. Saslow Gomez, Danielle Faurie-Wisniewski, Arlen Parsa, Jeff Spitz, Jennifer Amdur Spitz, Nancy C. Loeb, Franz M. Geiger
Activity “Will It Rain?” Activities Investigating Aerosol Hygroscopicity and Deliquescence ~ L. Caetano-Silva, A. G. Allen, M. L. A. M. Campos, A. A. Cardoso
Demonstration Demonstrating Online Monitoring of Air Pollutant Photodegradation in a 3D Printed Gas-Phase Photocatalysis Reactor ~ Bozhidar I. Stefanov, Delphine Lebrun, Andreas Mattsson, Claes G. Granqvist, Lars Österlund
Laboratory Experiments
Showcasing Chemical Engineering Principles through the Production of Biodiesel from Spent Coffee Grounds ~Sophie Bendall, Max Birdsall-Wilson, Rhodri Jenkins, Y.M. John Chew, Christopher J. Chuck
Hydrogen Storage Experiments for an Undergraduate Laboratory Course—Clean Energy: Hydrogen/Fuel Cells ~ Alla Bailey, Lisa Andrews, Ameya Khot, Lea Rubin, Jun Young, Thomas D. Allston, Gerald A. Takacs
An Oil Spill in a Tube: An Accessible Approach for Teaching Environmental NMR Spectroscopy ~ André J. Simpson, Perry J. Mitchell, Hussain Masoom, Yalda Liaghati Mobarhan, Antonio Adamo, Andrew P. Dicks
A Simplified Digestion Protocol for the Analysis of Hg in Fish by Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy ~ Kathleen E. Kristian, Scott Friedbauer, Donika Kabashi, Kristen M. Ferencz, Jennifer C. Barajas, Kelly O’Brien
Introducing Students to Feedstock Recycling of End-of-Life Silicones via a Low-Temperature, Iron-Catalyzed Depolymerization Process ~ Peter Döhlert, Maik Weidauer, Raphael Peifer, Stephan Kohl, Stephan Enthaler
Organocatalytic Ring-Opening Polymerization of Trimethylene Carbonate To Yield a Biodegradable Polycarbonate ~ Julian M. W. Chan, Xiangyi Zhang, Megan K. Brennan, Haritz Sardon, Amanda C. Engler, Courtney H. Fox, Curtis W. Frank, Robert M. Waymouth, James L. Hedrick
Diels–Alder Reaction Using a Solar Irradiation Heat Source Designed for Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratories ~ Shikha Amin, Ashley Barnes, Courtney Buckner, Jordan Jones, Mattie Monroe, Leon Nurmomade, Taylor Pinto, Samuel Starkey, Brian M. Agee, David J. Crouse, Daniel J. Swartling
Microfluidic Devices and Micromaterials in the Laboratory
Fabrication of a Paper-Based Microfluidic Device To Readily Determine Nitrite Ion Concentration by Simple Colorimetric Assay ~ Bo Wang, Zhiqiang Lin, Min Wang
Cost Effective Paper-Based Colorimetric Microfluidic Devices and Mobile Phone Camera Readers for the Classroom ~ Myra T. Koesdjojo, Sumate Pengpumkiat, Yuanyuan Wu, Anukul Boonloed, Daniel Huynh, Thomas P. Remcho, Vincent T. Remcho
Student-Fabricated Microfluidic Devices as Flow Reactors for Organic and Inorganic Synthesis ~ Z. Vivian Feng, Kate R. Edelman, Benjamin P. Swanson
Undergraduate Laboratory Module for Implementing ELISA on the High Performance Microfluidic Platform ~ Basant Giri, Ravichander R. Peesara, Naoki Yanagisawa, Debashis Dutta
Microbeads and Engineering Design in Chemistry: No Small Educational Investigation ~ Adam Hoffman and Ken Turner
Problem-Solving Strategies
Article Chunking Strategy as a Tool for Teaching Electron Configuration ~ Chandan Adhikary, Sibananda Sana, and K.N. Chattopadhyay
Chemical Education Research Making Sense of Students’ Actions in an Open-Ended Virtual Laboratory Environment ~ Ya’akov (Kobi) Gal, Oriel Uzan, Robert Belford, Michael Karabinos, David Yaron
Information Literacy
Introducing Scientific Literature to Honors General Chemistry Students: Teaching Information Literacy and the Nature of Research to First-Year Chemistry Students ~ Ignacio J. Ferrer-Vinent, Margaret Bruehl, Denise Pan, Galin L. Jones
An Organic Chemistry Exercise in Information Literacy Using SciFinder ~ Bonnie J. M. Swoger and Eric Helms
The Importance of Kinetic Metastability: Some Common Everyday Examples ~ William B. Jensen
Decay Kinetics of UV-Sensitive Materials: An Introductory Chemistry Experiment ~ Garrhett Via, Chelsey Williams, Raymond Dudek, John Dudek
Learning Chemistry from Good and (Why Not?) Problematic Results: Kinetics of the pH-Independent Hydrolysis of 4-Nitrophenyl Chloroformate ~ Omar A. El Seoud, Paula D. Galgano, Elizabeth P. G. Arêas, Jamille M. Moraes
Are the Concepts of Dynamic Equilibrium and the Thermodynamic Criteria for Spontaneity, Nonspontaneity, and Equilibrium Compatible? ~ Lee J. Silverberg and Lionel M. Raff
An Alternative Presentation of the Second Law of Thermodynamics ~ Sangyoub Lee, Kyusup Lee, Jiyon Lee
The Meaning of Δ ~ G. M. Anderson
Laboratory Experiments To Study Gases
Development, Construction, and Operation of a Multisample Volumetric Apparatus for the Study of Gas Adsorption Equilibrium ~ Rui P. P. L. Ribeiro, Ricardo J. S. Silva, Isabel A. A. C. Esteves, José P. B. Mota
Measuring the Speed of Sound through Gases Using Nitrocellulose ~ Karen Sinclair Molek, Karl A. Reyes, Brandon A. Burnette, Jacob R. Stepherson
Organic Chemistry Investigations
Proper Resonance Depiction of Acylium Cation: A High-Level and Student Computational Investigation ~ Brian J. Esselman and Nicholas J. Hill
Diastereoselective Allylation of N-tert-Butanesulfinyl Imines: An Asymmetric Synthesis Experiment for the Undergraduate Organic Laboratory ~ Xiao-Yang Chen, Li-Sen Sun, Xiang Gao, Xing-Wen Sun
An Advanced Organometallic Lab Experiment with Biological Implications: Synthesis and Characterization of Fe2(μ-S2)(CO)6 ~ Jacob Barrett, Ariana Spentzos, Carmen Works
Using peer or near-peer mentors can be an effective way to do science outreach, as discussed in the article: Collaboration and Near-Peer Mentoring as a Platform for Sustainable Science Education Outreach ~ Michael D. Pluth, Shannon W. Boettcher, George V. Nazin, Ann L. Greenaway, and Matthew D. Hartle. In past issues of the Journal, examples of high school students teaching younger students about science include:
The Science Mentor: An Adventure in Chemistry Education ~ Amy Huseth
An Elementary Outreach Program-Have Demo Will Travel ~ James Swim
Employing Popular Children’s Literature To Teach Elementary School Chemistry: An Engaging Outreach Program ~ Laura M. Wally, Nancy E. Levinger, and David W. Grainger
JCE Provides the Right Atmosphere for Interesting, Innovative Ideas
With 92 volumes of the Journal of Chemical Education to explore, you will always find something useful—including all of the articles mentioned above, and many more, in the Journal of Chemical Education. Articles that are edited and published online ahead of print (ASAP—As Soon As Publishable) are also available.
If you are considering writing an article for JCE, there are numerous author resources available on JCE’s ACS Web site, including recently updated: