An experiment developed for an undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory course that can be used to introduce the catalytic hydrogenation reaction, catalysis electrochemical principles and gas chromatography is presented. The organic compounds hydrogenated by the electrocatalytic hydrogenation (ECH) process were styrene, benzaldehyde and…

A simple and effective way of exposing chemistry students to some of the effects of scaling up an organic reaction is described. It gives the student an experience that may encounter in an industrial setting.

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…

The use of competition experiments as a means of evaluating linear free energy relationship in the undergraduate teaching laboratory is reported. The use of competition experiments proved to be a reliable method for the construction of Hammett plots with good correlation providing great flexibility with regard to the compounds and reactions that…

The conversion of carboxylic acids to ketones is a useful chemical transformation with a long history. Several chemists have claimed that they discovered the conversion of carboxylic acids to ketones yet in fact the reaction is actually known for centuries.

The unified approximations reduce the conceptual complexity by combining solutions for a relatively large number of different situations into just two similar sets of processes. Processes used to solve problems by either the unified or classical approximations require similar degrees of understanding of the underlying chemical processes.

The researchers in London have developed an emerging technology that utilizes mass spectrometry to detect processed animal protein (PAP) in animal feed. The amount of animal protein in the feed can be determined by the ratio of the hydrolyzed gelatine signal at m/z 1044 to an internal standard signal at m/z 556.

The amount of dissolved oxygen in the oceans in the mid-Proterozoic period has evolutionary implications since essential trace metals are redox sensitive. The findings suggest that there is global lack of oxygen in seawater.

The piezoelectric materials generate electricity or electric polarity in dielectric crystals when subjected to an applied voltage. The nanorings and nanobows are presented that can be used in nanoscale applications such as sensors, transducers, and electromechanical coupling devices.

A survey was conducted to determine the response to the question regarding the barriers to the performance of research in predominantly undergraduate institutions (PUI). More than 80 percent of the responses stressed that the performance of research in their institutions suffered due to lack of time and the multiple demands on faculty at…

Toni Austin Watt, the winner of the 2004 James Bryant Conant Award in High School Chemistry Teaching says that she was always an average student and had to invest more time in improving her skills and getting experiences, thus she is exhilarated that her efforts have received such acclaim and is honored that people thought her efforts were…

The work done in a chemistry laboratory is compared to cooking, as both processes use books for reference. It is felt that cooking and chemistry are complex processes and are creative endeavors that require skills beyond those developed by merely following the directions.

Campbell's rule for estimating entropy changes is discussed in relation to an earlier article by Norman Craig, where it was proposed that the approximate value of the entropy of reaction was related to net moles of gas consumed or generated. It was seen that the average for Campbell's data set was lower than that for Craig's data set and…

A reply in relation to Campbell's rule is presented where the issues of discrepancies in the average value between the two values is discussed and the graphical analysis which had uncovered an aspect of selecting a numerical value for Campbell's rule that was earlier overlooked is appreciated. The cause of the discrepancies in the average value…

The process of foam formation is used for demonstrating the way in which the application of physiochemical principles and knowledge of the physical properties of the materials contributes towards the understanding of a wide range of phenomenon. Solubility of gas and bubble growth should be considered during the development of foamed polymer…