Recently we have been covering some complex topics in class. It is imperative that you read through chapter 8 and chapter 9 to develop an understanding of what is going on, particularly Chapter 9. You will need to know all the VSEPR shapes for both the electron domain and molecular geometry and if you are taking Chem 122 molecular shapes will be part of the course right from the beginning.
Hopefully as you go through the lab this week you will start to visualize how orbitals overlap to form bonds. I hope this lab also serves as a way to visualize the shapes better and develop an understanding of chemical bonding. You will definitely need it for the final.
After finishing the molecular orbital theory portion of lecture I began Chapter 5, which is definitely a change of pace, but it should be much more straight forward than Chapter 8/9 and that is why we moved it to the end of the quarter.
Chapter 5 covers Thermochemistry. We discussed calorimetry in class on Monday and we will continue on Wed by discussing how to calculate enthalpy. The main things we will focus on are: Calc the enthalpy of a rxn, Hess' Law, bond enthalpies, rxn stoich, and standard enthalpy of formation.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Lecture #23, Wednesday, November 18th
Today we continued discussing Lewis Structures. I started lecture by covering a couple more examples with the surrounding atom or ligand being a halogen, hydrogen, or an OH- group. We then discussed the differences that occur when oxygen or sulfur is the surrounding atom or ligand. Oxygen containing molecules can readily form double bonds, which leads us to multiple resonance structures that can be drawn. Resonance structures of a given molecule will always have the same energy. In addition to resonance structures structures, since some molecules can expand their octet we discussed choosing structures that have different energies and which one would be the "best" Lewis structure. There are two sets of rules you will be responsible for: The octet rule and formal charges. According to our textbook (pg 324-325) "In general, when choosing between alternate Lewis Structures, if it is possible to draw a Lewis Structure where the octet rule is satisfied without using multiple bonds, that structure is preferred."
We will discuss this more on Friday.
Have fun at Mirror Lake on Thurs night, but be sure to come to class on Friday. Last year I had a student make it to class with their sandals still duct taped to their feet :)
GO BUCKS! BEAT BLUE!
We will discuss this more on Friday.
Have fun at Mirror Lake on Thurs night, but be sure to come to class on Friday. Last year I had a student make it to class with their sandals still duct taped to their feet :)
GO BUCKS! BEAT BLUE!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Lecture #22, Monday, November 16th
Today's lecture solely focused on Lewis Structures and I did several examples of various molecules. You will be responsible for the following in terms of Lewis Structures:
*Total # of valence electrons
*Identify the Central Atom
*Identify the Ligands
*Indicate the number of bonding pairs on the central atom
*Indicate the number of lone pairs on the central atom
*Indicate the electron domain geometry of the molecule
*Indicate the molecular geometry of the molecule
*Determine the hybridization of the central atom
*Draw the molecule
*Determine if the molecule is polar or non-polar
On Wed we will continue the talk on Lewis Structures and go through more examples with various different ligands.
The exam was tonight and I will get the average posted as soon as I can.
*Total # of valence electrons
*Identify the Central Atom
*Identify the Ligands
*Indicate the number of bonding pairs on the central atom
*Indicate the number of lone pairs on the central atom
*Indicate the electron domain geometry of the molecule
*Indicate the molecular geometry of the molecule
*Determine the hybridization of the central atom
*Draw the molecule
*Determine if the molecule is polar or non-polar
On Wed we will continue the talk on Lewis Structures and go through more examples with various different ligands.
The exam was tonight and I will get the average posted as soon as I can.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Lecture #21, Friday, November 13th
Today we continued our talk about bonding in molecules by finishing up with non-polar and polar covalent bonds. The larger the difference in electronegativity, the more ionic a bond is and this can enable us to list certain molecules in order of covalent/ionic character.
We then started to talk about Lewis structures and VSEPR shapes. Check out the following link depicting the various VSEPR shapes, which are determined by how many pairs of electrons surround the central atom. We will determine the number of lone pairs and bonding pairs around the central atom based on #1. The number of valence electrons around the central atom and #2. The number of electrons each ligand (or surrounding atom) contributes to each bond.
I will discuss these shapes in great detail on Monday in class and go through various examples. If you are a visual person check out the following website put together by the general chemistry department here at Ohio State. It has an excellent tutorial of what happens to the shapes of molecules as we vary the number of pairs of electrons about the central atom.
I hope everyone has a great weekend :)
We then started to talk about Lewis structures and VSEPR shapes. Check out the following link depicting the various VSEPR shapes, which are determined by how many pairs of electrons surround the central atom. We will determine the number of lone pairs and bonding pairs around the central atom based on #1. The number of valence electrons around the central atom and #2. The number of electrons each ligand (or surrounding atom) contributes to each bond.
I will discuss these shapes in great detail on Monday in class and go through various examples. If you are a visual person check out the following website put together by the general chemistry department here at Ohio State. It has an excellent tutorial of what happens to the shapes of molecules as we vary the number of pairs of electrons about the central atom.
I hope everyone has a great weekend :)
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Lecture #20, Monday, November 9th
I started lecture with a quick review of Lewis dot notations and talked about ionic and covalent bonding into more detail. I discussed how the forces holding atoms together in these bonds and transitioned into homogeneous diatomic molecules. I put an emphasis on the shared bonding pairs of electrons in these molecules vs. their lone pairs.
Single vs. Double vs. Triple bonds were mentioned and I discussed the relative strength of each of these bonds. We then discussed heterogeneous diatomic molecules and used the periodic trend of electronegativity to determine if a bonding pair of electrons is shared equally. If the bonding pair of electrons is shared equally then we refer to a bond as non-polar. If the electrons are shared unequally the bond is polar.
There is no class on Wednesday :(
On Friday we will start our discussions on drawing Lewis Structures.
Single vs. Double vs. Triple bonds were mentioned and I discussed the relative strength of each of these bonds. We then discussed heterogeneous diatomic molecules and used the periodic trend of electronegativity to determine if a bonding pair of electrons is shared equally. If the bonding pair of electrons is shared equally then we refer to a bond as non-polar. If the electrons are shared unequally the bond is polar.
There is no class on Wednesday :(
On Friday we will start our discussions on drawing Lewis Structures.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Lecture #19, Friday, November 6th
I finished my lecture material for Chapter 7 today by discussing magnetism, or more specifically when an atom is more or less diamagnetic/paramagnetic. If an atom is diamagnetic it does not have any unpaired electrons and if it is paramagnetic it contains unpaired electrons. If one atom has more unpaired electrons than another one, it is more paramagnetic in character.
We then discussed how certain periodic trends, such as ionization energy and radii are interrelated and you should know what effect ionization energy has on the radius of an atom or ion.
Chapter 8 starts with the overall depiction of ionic and covalent bonds. We discussed the main principles of Lewis Theory and how certain principles, such as the octet rule were established. We briefly mentioned how to draw Lewis dot structures and we will use these structures as the background on how to draw Lewis structures and come up with the VSEPR shapes.
You should have all the homework from Chapter 6 and 7 complete and should take the practice exam tonight to see where you are in terms of the rest of the class.
We then discussed how certain periodic trends, such as ionization energy and radii are interrelated and you should know what effect ionization energy has on the radius of an atom or ion.
Chapter 8 starts with the overall depiction of ionic and covalent bonds. We discussed the main principles of Lewis Theory and how certain principles, such as the octet rule were established. We briefly mentioned how to draw Lewis dot structures and we will use these structures as the background on how to draw Lewis structures and come up with the VSEPR shapes.
You should have all the homework from Chapter 6 and 7 complete and should take the practice exam tonight to see where you are in terms of the rest of the class.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Exam #2 Monday, November 16th 6:30 pm
The second exam will be held on Monday, November 16th at 6:30 pm. The locations will be posted on carmen as they were for the last exam.
A practice exam will be held Monday, November 9th at 7:00 pm in 1153 Smith Lab. I will hold a review session immediately following the exam.
The exam will cover Chapters 6 and 7.
A practice exam will be held Monday, November 9th at 7:00 pm in 1153 Smith Lab. I will hold a review session immediately following the exam.
The exam will cover Chapters 6 and 7.
Lecture #18, Wednesday, November 4th
I covered some details from Exp #7 and emphasized that in this experiment we are determining which ions are present in a qualitative sense. This means that as a chemist, we do not care how much of a particular substance is present. We just care if it is present or absent. So in measuring out quantities in this lab you do not have to be extremely careful.
I ALMOST finished Chapter 7 today as I discussed ionization energy, electron affinity, and electronegativity. When you are analyzing the ionization energy and electron affinity be sure to WRITE OUT THE ORBITAL BLOCK DIAGRAMS!!! Proper interpretation of these diagrams is the key to properly analyze the trends in ionization energy and electron affinity. Keep in mind that a completely filled orbital is very stable, especially a filled d orbital or the filled s and p combination to form a stable octet. Also, a half filled orbital is fairly stable and accounts for the non-linear trends we observe.
On Friday we will complete Chapter 7 in the first five minutes of class and then go on to chapter 8.
If you are keeping up with the material you should have all the additional homework problems from chapter 6 and chapter 7 complete.
I ALMOST finished Chapter 7 today as I discussed ionization energy, electron affinity, and electronegativity. When you are analyzing the ionization energy and electron affinity be sure to WRITE OUT THE ORBITAL BLOCK DIAGRAMS!!! Proper interpretation of these diagrams is the key to properly analyze the trends in ionization energy and electron affinity. Keep in mind that a completely filled orbital is very stable, especially a filled d orbital or the filled s and p combination to form a stable octet. Also, a half filled orbital is fairly stable and accounts for the non-linear trends we observe.
On Friday we will complete Chapter 7 in the first five minutes of class and then go on to chapter 8.
If you are keeping up with the material you should have all the additional homework problems from chapter 6 and chapter 7 complete.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Lecture #17, Monday, November 2nd
Class tarted today with discussing Chapter 7, which is the Periodic Properties of the Elements. We talked about the tabular arrangement of the elements in the periodic table and the horizontal periods and vertical groups. We separate the elements of the periodic table into two generic groups called the "main group" and "transition metals." We do this due to the different properties of these groups, particularly that the transition metals do not necessarily always have a noble gas electron configuration upon forming ions. We also observe that transition metal ions will lose their s electrons first, then their d electrons when forming an ion.
We then discussed periodic trends starting with metallic character. I then talked about effective nuclear charge, and used that concept to explain the trends in atomic and ionic radii.
On Wed I will talk about ionization energy, electron affinity, electronegativity, and various other periodic trends.
We then discussed periodic trends starting with metallic character. I then talked about effective nuclear charge, and used that concept to explain the trends in atomic and ionic radii.
On Wed I will talk about ionization energy, electron affinity, electronegativity, and various other periodic trends.
Lecture #16, Friday October 30th
After our discussion of electron configurations, we can assign a set of four quantum numbers to each electron in an atom. Chemists are interested in analyzing how electrons interact, so labeling them is important. Be sure to draw out the orbital block diagram to interpret the quantum numbers for each electron.
Each electron has a set of four quantum numbers and we discussed each of them and carried out an example by listing the set of four quantum numbers for the valence electrons in a nitrogen atom.
I ended class by discussing radial and angular nodes and talking about probability density functions. Be sure to read the "A closer look" box on page 230-231 in the textbook.
Each electron has a set of four quantum numbers and we discussed each of them and carried out an example by listing the set of four quantum numbers for the valence electrons in a nitrogen atom.
I ended class by discussing radial and angular nodes and talking about probability density functions. Be sure to read the "A closer look" box on page 230-231 in the textbook.
Lecture #15, Wednesday October 28th
Today we discussed Lab #6, which is the preparation of Alum from Scrap Aluminum. This lab is a prototypical application of calculating theoretical vs. actual yields.
We then discussed how to look at the periodic table to determine the energies of the orbitals and we started to populate these orbitals. Electron counting rules are given as a guide, but we discussed the various exceptions to these rules. We Finished class by discussing the electron configurations of ions and the octet rule. This explains why certain ions want to have the charges they do.
We then discussed how to look at the periodic table to determine the energies of the orbitals and we started to populate these orbitals. Electron counting rules are given as a guide, but we discussed the various exceptions to these rules. We Finished class by discussing the electron configurations of ions and the octet rule. This explains why certain ions want to have the charges they do.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Exam #1
I've heard several rumors of what the average was on the first exam. It ended up being a 72.22%
As a whole, the class should be congratulated on a job well done :)
I will discuss the exam results and try to predict a grade breakdown in class on Wed.
As a whole, the class should be congratulated on a job well done :)
I will discuss the exam results and try to predict a grade breakdown in class on Wed.
Lecture #14, Monday, October 26th
Lecture started with a continuation of the Bohr model. The Bohr model allows us to calculate the energy levels of the orbitals in a hydrogen atom. It is a simple model, and works very well for atoms containing only one electron (like hydrogen), but goes to shit for pretty much every other atom. This tells chemists a very important bit of information. If we have more than one electron, the electrons will interact with each other. These electron interactions alter the overall energy.
In chapters 6, 7, 8, and 9 it's all about the electrons. How do they interact? How can we get them lower in energy? What happens when I gain or remove electrons? We will look into all these aspects of electrons as we go forward.
We talked about theories from the early 1900's that led to quantum mechanics. Quantum mechanics describes the energies and electronic arrangement of electrons mathematically and allows us to analyze how electrons orbit the nucleus. The electrons orbit the nucleus in orbitals, which have different shapes and energies.
Be sure how to draw all the s, p, and d orbitals!
We can now get to the part where we can arrange the orbitals in increasing energy and start to place electrons in these orbitals. I briefly touched on this in class on Monday and will continue on with this discussion on Wednesday.
In chapters 6, 7, 8, and 9 it's all about the electrons. How do they interact? How can we get them lower in energy? What happens when I gain or remove electrons? We will look into all these aspects of electrons as we go forward.
We talked about theories from the early 1900's that led to quantum mechanics. Quantum mechanics describes the energies and electronic arrangement of electrons mathematically and allows us to analyze how electrons orbit the nucleus. The electrons orbit the nucleus in orbitals, which have different shapes and energies.
Be sure how to draw all the s, p, and d orbitals!
We can now get to the part where we can arrange the orbitals in increasing energy and start to place electrons in these orbitals. I briefly touched on this in class on Monday and will continue on with this discussion on Wednesday.
Lecture #13, Friday, October 23rd
Chapter 6 covers the electronic structure of atoms. The chemical behavior of atoms is almost entirely determined by the number and arrangements of electrons. An understanding of the energy of electrons and how they interact allows the chemist to explain many chemical and physical properties.
Electrons behave as particles AND waves. We first analyzed the wave-like nature of light and discussed electromagnetic radiation. You will be responsible for putting electromagnetic radiation in order of energy as well as calculating energy, frequency, and wavelength of any form of electromagnetic radiation.
I finished lecture with the Bohr atom and will continue with that on Monday.
Electrons behave as particles AND waves. We first analyzed the wave-like nature of light and discussed electromagnetic radiation. You will be responsible for putting electromagnetic radiation in order of energy as well as calculating energy, frequency, and wavelength of any form of electromagnetic radiation.
I finished lecture with the Bohr atom and will continue with that on Monday.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Exam #1 Monday October 26th 6:30 pm
Your first Chemistry 121 midterm will be from 6:30 to 7:48pm on Monday, October 26th at the following sites:
Room 200, Campbell Hall for Laboratory TA's:
Dan Hyatt,
Chris Moody &
Mandy Still;
Room 170, 209 W. 18th Avenue Building for Laboratory TA's:
Xiaoyan Guan &
Kevin Sanders;
and
Room 100, Mendanhall Lab for Laboratory TA's:
Alycia Brown &
Martin Ross.
Room 200, Campbell Hall for Laboratory TA's:
Dan Hyatt,
Chris Moody &
Mandy Still;
Room 170, 209 W. 18th Avenue Building for Laboratory TA's:
Xiaoyan Guan &
Kevin Sanders;
and
Room 100, Mendanhall Lab for Laboratory TA's:
Alycia Brown &
Martin Ross.
Lecture #12, Wednesday, October 21st
Today I finished chapter 4 by wrapping up the redox unit with reactions involving metals. Be sure to know how to interpret the activity series in solving these problems. The activity series will be given to you on the exam.
We are now covering chapter 6 (we will cover Chapter 5 the last week of the quarter) and I started this unit by drawing the various s, p, and d orbitals. You will see these orbitals on the first question of each quiz from now till the end of the quarter. I refer to the first question as "fundamentals," which is material that I want you to know when you leave this course, such as nomenclature.
We already know that protons and neutrons reside in the nucleus with electrons orbiting them. Now we will talk about the behavior of these electrons and just how they orbit the nucleus.
We are now covering chapter 6 (we will cover Chapter 5 the last week of the quarter) and I started this unit by drawing the various s, p, and d orbitals. You will see these orbitals on the first question of each quiz from now till the end of the quarter. I refer to the first question as "fundamentals," which is material that I want you to know when you leave this course, such as nomenclature.
We already know that protons and neutrons reside in the nucleus with electrons orbiting them. Now we will talk about the behavior of these electrons and just how they orbit the nucleus.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Lecture #11, Monday, October 19th
Today I finished solution stoichiometry by discussing dilutions and how to prepare solutions by dissolving a solid ion a volumetric flask. We then reviewed neutralization reactions and discussed net ionic equations involving acids and bases.
The next topic was formation of gaseous products as I gave three examples of such reactions. The last topic from chapter 4 is oxidation numbers as I went over the rules of how to assign an oxidation number to atoms and ions in molecules and how it is important to have a set of rules to indicate oxidation states.
I will finish up the oxidation state section on Wed and we will predict the products in a displacement reaction using the activity series. We will also start chapter 6 on Wed.
The first exam will cover chapters 1-4.
The next topic was formation of gaseous products as I gave three examples of such reactions. The last topic from chapter 4 is oxidation numbers as I went over the rules of how to assign an oxidation number to atoms and ions in molecules and how it is important to have a set of rules to indicate oxidation states.
I will finish up the oxidation state section on Wed and we will predict the products in a displacement reaction using the activity series. We will also start chapter 6 on Wed.
The first exam will cover chapters 1-4.
Lecture #10, Friday, October 16th
Today Molarity (M) of solutions was discussed. The molarity of a solution is defined as the moles of solute per liter of solution. I also discussed stoichiometry in solutions and it is very similar to what we see in limiting reactant problems from chapter 3, but with one additional step involving converting the Molarity to moles by multiplying by the volume.
Be sure you are able to do the problems like #59 on the additional problem worksheet, as they will be similar to what you will see on an exam.
Be sure you are able to do the problems like #59 on the additional problem worksheet, as they will be similar to what you will see on an exam.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Lecture #9, Wednesday, October 14th
Today I introduced solution stoichiometry by looking at Experiment #4: Developing an equation. We used the solubility rules to predict which ions will form a precipitate and based on experimental data we can conclude the proper ratio of ions that will form a solid.
We then talked about electrolytes and you should be able to identify if a compound is a strong, weak, or nonelectrolyte.
You should also be able to use the solubility rules to determine if a precipitate will form and you should also be able to predict the products in a metathesis reaction and write out the net ionic equation.
We then discussed acids and bases and you will need to be able to determine if a compound is an acid or a base and then know if the acid or base is strong or weak.
On Friday we will discuss acid-base reactions, discuss oxidation-reduction reactions and begin on solution stoichiometry calculations.
We then talked about electrolytes and you should be able to identify if a compound is a strong, weak, or nonelectrolyte.
You should also be able to use the solubility rules to determine if a precipitate will form and you should also be able to predict the products in a metathesis reaction and write out the net ionic equation.
We then discussed acids and bases and you will need to be able to determine if a compound is an acid or a base and then know if the acid or base is strong or weak.
On Friday we will discuss acid-base reactions, discuss oxidation-reduction reactions and begin on solution stoichiometry calculations.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Practice Midterm Exam
The practice midterm exam will be held on Monday, October 19th, at 7:00 pm in 1153 Smith lab. You will have an hour and 18 min to complete the exam and after it is over I will hold a review session to go over some of the tougher problems.
Please know what your carmen ID # is because you will need to fill it in at the exam.
Please know what your carmen ID # is because you will need to fill it in at the exam.
Lecture #8, Monday, October 12th
In today's lecture I finished up chapter 3 by doing an additional limiting reactant problem and I also talked about % yield. I then touched on Chapter 4 by introducing ionic solids and how water is able to dissolve most of them. The solubility rules are a set of guidelines chemists use to determine if a solid will dissolve in water. You will not have to memorize the table, but you will need to know how to interpret it. On Wed I will talk about Lab #4 and use it to illustrate some of the concepts in chapter 4.
At this point you should have all the homework sets complete for chapters 1, 2, and 3 and you should be reading chapter 4.
At this point you should have all the homework sets complete for chapters 1, 2, and 3 and you should be reading chapter 4.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Office Hours
I received an e-mail about office hours today and the particular student wanted to know if they need to make an appointment in order to drop by. Office hours have not been attended very well this quarter and I want to be sure that it is known that I will be in my office on Mon and Wed from 4:30 pm - 6:30 pm solely to answer questions from the homework sets and work on any additional problems you have.
Coming to office hours is an incredible resource and I feel that most 121 students (from this quarter and in past quarters) don't take advantage of them. I asked some former students who never came to office hours in 121, but were always there in 123 why students don't come and the response I get is something like this:
Well, I never really knew how to study and didn't work hard enough at the beginning of 121 then kinda fell behind.
or
I was too scared to come and was nervous talking to you, but after I got to know you and how you interact with students thought that was silly.
Please try to pop by to office hours at least once during the quarter. Show me what you have been working on and I can help you improve on your study habits.
In my mind office hours are much more enjoyable when I have plenty of students working on problems. So please try to stop by :)
Coming to office hours is an incredible resource and I feel that most 121 students (from this quarter and in past quarters) don't take advantage of them. I asked some former students who never came to office hours in 121, but were always there in 123 why students don't come and the response I get is something like this:
Well, I never really knew how to study and didn't work hard enough at the beginning of 121 then kinda fell behind.
or
I was too scared to come and was nervous talking to you, but after I got to know you and how you interact with students thought that was silly.
Please try to pop by to office hours at least once during the quarter. Show me what you have been working on and I can help you improve on your study habits.
In my mind office hours are much more enjoyable when I have plenty of students working on problems. So please try to stop by :)
Lecture #7, Friday, October 9th
Today I covered stoichiometry of chemical reactions and discussed how to convert grams of a reactant to grams of a product. I discussed excess and limiting reactants and provided a few examples.
On Monday we will discuss % yields then start with chapter 4.
You should have 1-11 of the collected homework completed and can start on 12 and 13. In addition it will be very beneficial to complete the additional exercises for chapter 3. The quiz is based on both homework sets and is fairly long this week so you will know how to do the material coming in, especially the nomenclature.
On Monday we will discuss % yields then start with chapter 4.
You should have 1-11 of the collected homework completed and can start on 12 and 13. In addition it will be very beneficial to complete the additional exercises for chapter 3. The quiz is based on both homework sets and is fairly long this week so you will know how to do the material coming in, especially the nomenclature.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Homework Set #3 Correction
For problem #4 in the laboratory exercises there was a mistake. Part (b) should read: To the sample from part (a) a student reacted excess sulfur and found the total mass of the CuxS product to be 0.6718 grams, instead of 0.1354 grams (the 0.1354 grams is actually the mass of the sulfur). I have fixed the mistake on carmen so if you have already printed that out please correct it on your homework sheet. Thanks, Dr. Fus
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Lecture #6, Wednesday, October 7th
Today's lecture started by covering combination, decomposition, and combustion reactions and then I discussed Exp #3 and went over how chemists experimentally determine an empirical formula. I then went through some empirical formula calculations and transitioned into how to calculate a molecular formula.
To be keeping up with the material you should be working on questions 1-8 of the collected homework and should be finished with 1-24 and can start with 25-35 of the additional exercises.
To be keeping up with the material you should be working on questions 1-8 of the collected homework and should be finished with 1-24 and can start with 25-35 of the additional exercises.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Homework Sets are Posted
The Homework Set to be handed in next week in recitation as well as the additional exercises from old exam questions have been posted.
For the homework set you should have no trouble doing problems 1-4 from the textbook/lecture exercises, and from the additional exercises start working on problems 1-24. I will post detailed answers showing work for the additional exercises sometime later this week.
Tomorrow in class I will start talking about empirical formulas, which just so happen to be the topic of lab #3.
For the homework set you should have no trouble doing problems 1-4 from the textbook/lecture exercises, and from the additional exercises start working on problems 1-24. I will post detailed answers showing work for the additional exercises sometime later this week.
Tomorrow in class I will start talking about empirical formulas, which just so happen to be the topic of lab #3.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Lecture #5, Monday, October 5th
Class started with my finishing up the notes on nomenclature by giving the set of rules for acids. Now that we can name all general chemistry compounds we can start to see how these compounds react in chemical equations. I listed three types of reactions on the board: Combination, Decomposition, and Combustion and on Wed we will discuss the similarities and differences between these types of chemical reactions.
For the rest of lecture I gave out some tips of how to balance a chemical equation and we went over several examples.
Quiz #2 this week will not contain nomenclature, but you can be certain to see a big chunk of nomenclature on quiz #3. You are responsible for the ions and any compound resulting from the ions in Tables 2.4 and 2.5 and any complexes resulting from the prefixes in Table 2.6.
For the rest of lecture I gave out some tips of how to balance a chemical equation and we went over several examples.
Quiz #2 this week will not contain nomenclature, but you can be certain to see a big chunk of nomenclature on quiz #3. You are responsible for the ions and any compound resulting from the ions in Tables 2.4 and 2.5 and any complexes resulting from the prefixes in Table 2.6.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Lecture #4, Friday, October 2nd
After opening class with a mass % calculation, I began to lecture on nomenclature. You are responsible for all common cations and anions from Table 2.4 and 2.5 on pages 60-62, as well as all names and symbols of all the elements up to atomic number 36.
You will need to be able to be able to write the chemical symbol of a compound if you are given the name as well as give the name of a compound if you are given the symbol.
I hope everyone has a great weekend and if you are keeping up with the material you should have all your chapter 2 homework problems complete.
GO BUCKS!
You will need to be able to be able to write the chemical symbol of a compound if you are given the name as well as give the name of a compound if you are given the symbol.
I hope everyone has a great weekend and if you are keeping up with the material you should have all your chapter 2 homework problems complete.
GO BUCKS!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Experiment #2 Pre-lab assignment
The pre-lab for experiment #2 instructs you to use the CRC handbook of Chemistry and Physics. This is a very powerful resource for many scientists.
“The CRC Handbook provides broad coverage of all types of physical science data commonly encountered by scientists and engineers. Notwithstanding the growing availability of specialized databases on the Internet, we feel there is still a need for a concise, reliable reference source spanning the full range of the physical sciences and focusing on key data that are frequently needed by R&D professionals, engineers, and students. The CRC Handbook, in its print, CD-ROM, and Internet formats, is aimed at serving these needs. The data contained in the Handbook have been carefully evaluated by experts in each field; quality control is a high priority and the sources are documented. The annual updates make it possible to add new and improved data in a timely fashion.”
David R. Lide, ed., CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 89th Edition,
CRC Press/Taylor and Francis, Boca Raton, FL.
Every chemist in the world has used the CRC Handbook at one time in their academic career. It is an absolute must have for every research group. Its contents are jam packed with so much valuable information. Of particular interest for this lab are the physical and chemical properties of the chemicals listed in Table 1. Throughout all three general chemistry courses you will frequently use the CRC Handbook, so be sure to familiarize yourself with it.
Copies of the CRC Handbook can be found on the first floor of the Science and Engineering Library, but we are currently moving towards solely using the on-line version, which is very easy to access. If you login to this course on carmen click on the Library link on the top red tool bar and the page shown below should pop up. Be sure to check out the recommended links posted by the library and they will definitely help whenever you are instructed to use the CRC Handbook.
“The CRC Handbook provides broad coverage of all types of physical science data commonly encountered by scientists and engineers. Notwithstanding the growing availability of specialized databases on the Internet, we feel there is still a need for a concise, reliable reference source spanning the full range of the physical sciences and focusing on key data that are frequently needed by R&D professionals, engineers, and students. The CRC Handbook, in its print, CD-ROM, and Internet formats, is aimed at serving these needs. The data contained in the Handbook have been carefully evaluated by experts in each field; quality control is a high priority and the sources are documented. The annual updates make it possible to add new and improved data in a timely fashion.”
David R. Lide, ed., CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 89th Edition,
CRC Press/Taylor and Francis, Boca Raton, FL.
Every chemist in the world has used the CRC Handbook at one time in their academic career. It is an absolute must have for every research group. Its contents are jam packed with so much valuable information. Of particular interest for this lab are the physical and chemical properties of the chemicals listed in Table 1. Throughout all three general chemistry courses you will frequently use the CRC Handbook, so be sure to familiarize yourself with it.
Copies of the CRC Handbook can be found on the first floor of the Science and Engineering Library, but we are currently moving towards solely using the on-line version, which is very easy to access. If you login to this course on carmen click on the Library link on the top red tool bar and the page shown below should pop up. Be sure to check out the recommended links posted by the library and they will definitely help whenever you are instructed to use the CRC Handbook.
Lecture #4, Wednesday, September 30th
Today we discussed Avagadro's constant and how the mole relates the number of atoms to its mass. We went over several mole to gram and gram to mole conversions and it is vital that you understand how to do these calculations like the back of your hand. I also discussed the main ideas for Experiment #2.
If you are keeping up with the material you should be working on questions 1-5 of the collected homework and questions 1-32 of the additional exercises.
If you are keeping up with the material you should be working on questions 1-5 of the collected homework and questions 1-32 of the additional exercises.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Chapter 2 Additional Exercises
I posted the additional exercises for Chapter 2 on Carmen. You should have no problem with problems 1-21 after Monday's lecture.
Be sure to be working these problems first then check the answer key only to check you answers.
Be sure to be working these problems first then check the answer key only to check you answers.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Lecture #3, Monday, September 28th
Today's material covers Chapter 2: Atoms, Molecules, and Ions.
I first defined an atom and described the three subatomic particles an atom is composed of: the proton, neutron, and electron.
Next we defined an element and then described the notation chemists use to represent elements. From these symbols you MUST be able to determine how many protons, neutrons, and electrons each element possesses. Also, if I give you the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons and atom/ion has you must be able to produce the proper elemental symbol.
An element is characterized by the number of protons it has. If we vary the number of protons we have an new element. But chemists can manipulate the number of neutrons and electrons an element contains. This leads to two new terms: ions and isotopes. Be sure you know the similarities and differences between atoms, elements, isotopes, and ions.
We ended lecture discussing the atomic mass listed on the periodic table and we will start on Wed by finishing the calculation to determine the atomic mass of chlorine.
If you have been keeping up with the material you should be finished with homework set #1 and I will post a new homework set tomorrow evening after the first set of quizzes have been completed.
See you in class on Wed, Dr. Fus
I first defined an atom and described the three subatomic particles an atom is composed of: the proton, neutron, and electron.
Next we defined an element and then described the notation chemists use to represent elements. From these symbols you MUST be able to determine how many protons, neutrons, and electrons each element possesses. Also, if I give you the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons and atom/ion has you must be able to produce the proper elemental symbol.
An element is characterized by the number of protons it has. If we vary the number of protons we have an new element. But chemists can manipulate the number of neutrons and electrons an element contains. This leads to two new terms: ions and isotopes. Be sure you know the similarities and differences between atoms, elements, isotopes, and ions.
We ended lecture discussing the atomic mass listed on the periodic table and we will start on Wed by finishing the calculation to determine the atomic mass of chlorine.
If you have been keeping up with the material you should be finished with homework set #1 and I will post a new homework set tomorrow evening after the first set of quizzes have been completed.
See you in class on Wed, Dr. Fus
Friday, September 25, 2009
Lecture #2, Friday, September 25th
Today I covered the material in Chapter 1. I defined chemistry and talked about its importance in our society.
Chemistry is an EXPERIMENTAL science and chemists are interested in observing and interpreting experimental measurements.
I showed some powerpoint slides on some definitions from chapter 1 and then went through some conversion factor problems emphasizing significant figures.
If you are keeping up with the material you should have already finished reading chapter 1 and by the time you begin recitation this week you need to complete the assigned collected homework and should complete the additional Chapter 1 exercises.
Have a great weekend and if you happen to be going to the Horseshoe enjoy the game.
GO BUCKS!
Chemistry is an EXPERIMENTAL science and chemists are interested in observing and interpreting experimental measurements.
I showed some powerpoint slides on some definitions from chapter 1 and then went through some conversion factor problems emphasizing significant figures.
If you are keeping up with the material you should have already finished reading chapter 1 and by the time you begin recitation this week you need to complete the assigned collected homework and should complete the additional Chapter 1 exercises.
Have a great weekend and if you happen to be going to the Horseshoe enjoy the game.
GO BUCKS!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Carmen Academic Misconduct Quiz Question #12
For the last question (#12) in the COAM quiz on carmen there are two correct answers and you must check BOTH boxes in order to get the question correct.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Survey Comments
To start things out, I'll give you my answers to the survey questions...
My undergrad major was chemistry with a minor in math. In high school I took AP Chem and AP Calc, but I only took regular physics. In grad school I specialized in solid state inorganic chemistry and got my PhD. from The Ohio State University in 2007.
Favorite Songs: Anything country especially Dierks Bentley and Brad Paisley. I'm starting to take a liking to rap a little more these days and nothing gets me fired up more than listening to the Ohio State marching band.
Favorite TV Shows: Anything ESPN: SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, Pardon the Interuption, How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory, The Office, House, Seinfeld, and Everybody Loves Raymond.
Favorite Movies: The Hangover, Wedding Crashers, Fever Pitch, Dead Poets Society, Good Will Hunting, and Mona Lisa Smile.
I can't wait to get started with the course and summary of some of the grade expectations and my favorite comments/expectations. (All student responses are in bold)
I’m freaked out! This is my second time taking this course, not because I failed, but because I got a C, but I’m starting fresh and re-learning it, because I didn’t get it the first time.
I’m sure you’re a nice dude, but I have low expectations for this class. I’ve been through this before and it was quite the humbling experience. However offering tons of help on-line and during lecture could help.
Taking general chemistry at Ohio State can definitely be a humbling experience. I asked you to fill in the grade you expect to earn in this class here were the results: A+ (2%), A (48%), A- (4%), A – B (11%), B (31%), and C (4%).
First of all, this is college and we don’t give out an A+. Here are the results from last year’s Chem 121 class that I taught: A (7%), A- (3%), B+ (8%), B (12%), B- (9%), C+ (15%), C (12%), C- (10%), D+ (9%), D (3%), and F (12%).
Keep in mind that chemistry is the “central science” and many majors require students to take general chemistry to ensure that students in their field meet a certain standard of excellence. You may have heard this referred to as a weed out process, but we need our doctors and engineers to be the best of the best. As a student in the sciences you will not only be competing against the top students in this country, but also around the world.
Writing formulas and bonds, also stoichiometry scare me to death
Let’s hope that after the quarter is over you aren’t quite as scared to write them out :)
I’m only nervous about making the transition between high school science class and college science class.
It is quite a transition between high school and college chemistry. 23 students took both AP Chem and AP Calc. There transition should be much easier, but the biggest difference between the two is the labs. Speaking of labs…
I am absolutely TERRIFIED of the labs!
Many students get really worked up about the labs. My guess is that not many of you had adequate labs in high school and it also freaks students out that the labs have an accuracy component. You also do not get points for trying and participation, but in certain labs you are graded on how well you perform them. The best word of advice I can give is that you need to read ahead and prepare yourself and RELAX when you are in the lab. Many students get a case of the yips when they step foot in the lab. Be confident in your abilities and things will work out just fine.
Don’t embarrass me.
As long as you don’t do this we should be fine. Be sure to spend plenty of time in the classroom (and the library) and know your conversion factors.
So far I expect you to be funny and you seem to be able to make this interesting which is an amazing plus. My last chemistry lecturer went too fast and did too many demos that didn’t explain much so just better explanations and demos are not necessary.
I’m not a big fan of demos. Deep down I really don’t think you learn too much from them. They might be entertaining, but the bottom line is that I am here to teach you, not to entertain you. I will do my best to make things interesting and enjoyable and you can always watch demos like this one. Because the coolest ones are “not safe for ANY of our viewers.”
My expectations would be for you to help me not dread or be afraid of chemistry. I’m nervous about EVERYTHING. I don’t want to fail or be in a bad mood just because I’m taking Chem 121.
Keep up with the homework sets, UNDERSTAND them while you are doing them, and ask for help when you need it. No need to dread everything or be in bad mood, or be nervous.
I do expect a changeup from R&B/Rap occasionally.
I absolutely LOVE country music, so you will be hearing plenty of that as well. If you really want to make a song request let me know in lab and I will see what I can do, but I won’t promise anything.
I hope that there will be enough of a connection between student and teacher in order to ensure that as the student I can do my best in this class.
I will be walking through the labs for one reason and one reason only. To get to know the students. I’m not there to check on the TA’s or to make you nervous. I’m there to see how things are going and to take any suggestions you may have. So be sure to say hi :)
Try to get to know us as much as possible and watch the AL dominate in the World Series.
I’m a Cubs fan, but I am from the Philadelphia area and do have a soft spot in my heart for the Phillies. The AL? Remember this? And thanks to Cleveland for Cliff Lee looks like the Phightin’ Phils are gonna repeat!
Some comments make me want to give a healthy “Child Please!” [Go to the 1:20 min mark of the video.]
Curve tests and give extra credit
This is college. There is no extra credit. Child Please
Easy Exams!
The best evaluation you could ever give me is that I am a great lecturer, help you with anything you need, but give tough exams. Again, this is college chemistry, the exams will be tough. Child Please.
Hopefully we get out early on Fridays :)
I have a ton of material to cover this quarter and NEVER plan to let you out early. I typically talk past the bell so please don’t pack up early. Let you out early? Child Please.
Disclaimer: Be careful of what you hear from other students…
I heard you’re a great teacher, so my expectations are pretty high! I’m nervous because I’m not good at chemistry, but I’m going to work hard.
Well I heard that he once had an awkward moment, just to see how it feels.
I heard this is the hardest class ever!
Well I heard that he once taught his dog to bark Spanish.
I heard Chem 121 is a large “weed out” class and I’m worried I’m not going to get the help I need.
Well I heard that his cereal never gets soggy. It just sits there, staying crispy, just for him.
I heard everyone fails his tests.
Well I heard if he were to give you directions… You would never get lost. And you’d arrive at least 5 minutes early.
I already looked at your reviews online and I heard you’re tough, but really helpful and just want everyone to learn the material.
Well I heard that police often question him, just because they find him interesting.
I heard that you truly care and wish to help us.
Ok, so maybe the last two are true. But I can only help you so much. I cannot emphasize how important it is to keep up with the work. I will do everything in my power to motivate you, but it is up to you to get the work done on your own and ask questions when you don’t understand.
Stay thirsty my friends, but be sure to thirst for knowledge.
I expect tons of information thrown at me, but in a manner so it is easy to understand. I’m ready to go!
I can’t wait for this class to begin Dr. Fus!
I can’t wait either. Let’s have a great quarter everyone :)
My undergrad major was chemistry with a minor in math. In high school I took AP Chem and AP Calc, but I only took regular physics. In grad school I specialized in solid state inorganic chemistry and got my PhD. from The Ohio State University in 2007.
Favorite Songs: Anything country especially Dierks Bentley and Brad Paisley. I'm starting to take a liking to rap a little more these days and nothing gets me fired up more than listening to the Ohio State marching band.
Favorite TV Shows: Anything ESPN: SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, Pardon the Interuption, How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory, The Office, House, Seinfeld, and Everybody Loves Raymond.
Favorite Movies: The Hangover, Wedding Crashers, Fever Pitch, Dead Poets Society, Good Will Hunting, and Mona Lisa Smile.
I can't wait to get started with the course and summary of some of the grade expectations and my favorite comments/expectations. (All student responses are in bold)
I’m freaked out! This is my second time taking this course, not because I failed, but because I got a C, but I’m starting fresh and re-learning it, because I didn’t get it the first time.
I’m sure you’re a nice dude, but I have low expectations for this class. I’ve been through this before and it was quite the humbling experience. However offering tons of help on-line and during lecture could help.
Taking general chemistry at Ohio State can definitely be a humbling experience. I asked you to fill in the grade you expect to earn in this class here were the results: A+ (2%), A (48%), A- (4%), A – B (11%), B (31%), and C (4%).
First of all, this is college and we don’t give out an A+. Here are the results from last year’s Chem 121 class that I taught: A (7%), A- (3%), B+ (8%), B (12%), B- (9%), C+ (15%), C (12%), C- (10%), D+ (9%), D (3%), and F (12%).
Keep in mind that chemistry is the “central science” and many majors require students to take general chemistry to ensure that students in their field meet a certain standard of excellence. You may have heard this referred to as a weed out process, but we need our doctors and engineers to be the best of the best. As a student in the sciences you will not only be competing against the top students in this country, but also around the world.
Writing formulas and bonds, also stoichiometry scare me to death
Let’s hope that after the quarter is over you aren’t quite as scared to write them out :)
I’m only nervous about making the transition between high school science class and college science class.
It is quite a transition between high school and college chemistry. 23 students took both AP Chem and AP Calc. There transition should be much easier, but the biggest difference between the two is the labs. Speaking of labs…
I am absolutely TERRIFIED of the labs!
Many students get really worked up about the labs. My guess is that not many of you had adequate labs in high school and it also freaks students out that the labs have an accuracy component. You also do not get points for trying and participation, but in certain labs you are graded on how well you perform them. The best word of advice I can give is that you need to read ahead and prepare yourself and RELAX when you are in the lab. Many students get a case of the yips when they step foot in the lab. Be confident in your abilities and things will work out just fine.
Don’t embarrass me.
As long as you don’t do this we should be fine. Be sure to spend plenty of time in the classroom (and the library) and know your conversion factors.
So far I expect you to be funny and you seem to be able to make this interesting which is an amazing plus. My last chemistry lecturer went too fast and did too many demos that didn’t explain much so just better explanations and demos are not necessary.
I’m not a big fan of demos. Deep down I really don’t think you learn too much from them. They might be entertaining, but the bottom line is that I am here to teach you, not to entertain you. I will do my best to make things interesting and enjoyable and you can always watch demos like this one. Because the coolest ones are “not safe for ANY of our viewers.”
My expectations would be for you to help me not dread or be afraid of chemistry. I’m nervous about EVERYTHING. I don’t want to fail or be in a bad mood just because I’m taking Chem 121.
Keep up with the homework sets, UNDERSTAND them while you are doing them, and ask for help when you need it. No need to dread everything or be in bad mood, or be nervous.
I do expect a changeup from R&B/Rap occasionally.
I absolutely LOVE country music, so you will be hearing plenty of that as well. If you really want to make a song request let me know in lab and I will see what I can do, but I won’t promise anything.
I hope that there will be enough of a connection between student and teacher in order to ensure that as the student I can do my best in this class.
I will be walking through the labs for one reason and one reason only. To get to know the students. I’m not there to check on the TA’s or to make you nervous. I’m there to see how things are going and to take any suggestions you may have. So be sure to say hi :)
Try to get to know us as much as possible and watch the AL dominate in the World Series.
I’m a Cubs fan, but I am from the Philadelphia area and do have a soft spot in my heart for the Phillies. The AL? Remember this? And thanks to Cleveland for Cliff Lee looks like the Phightin’ Phils are gonna repeat!
Some comments make me want to give a healthy “Child Please!” [Go to the 1:20 min mark of the video.]
Curve tests and give extra credit
This is college. There is no extra credit. Child Please
Easy Exams!
The best evaluation you could ever give me is that I am a great lecturer, help you with anything you need, but give tough exams. Again, this is college chemistry, the exams will be tough. Child Please.
Hopefully we get out early on Fridays :)
I have a ton of material to cover this quarter and NEVER plan to let you out early. I typically talk past the bell so please don’t pack up early. Let you out early? Child Please.
Disclaimer: Be careful of what you hear from other students…
I heard you’re a great teacher, so my expectations are pretty high! I’m nervous because I’m not good at chemistry, but I’m going to work hard.
Well I heard that he once had an awkward moment, just to see how it feels.
I heard this is the hardest class ever!
Well I heard that he once taught his dog to bark Spanish.
I heard Chem 121 is a large “weed out” class and I’m worried I’m not going to get the help I need.
Well I heard that his cereal never gets soggy. It just sits there, staying crispy, just for him.
I heard everyone fails his tests.
Well I heard if he were to give you directions… You would never get lost. And you’d arrive at least 5 minutes early.
I already looked at your reviews online and I heard you’re tough, but really helpful and just want everyone to learn the material.
Well I heard that police often question him, just because they find him interesting.
I heard that you truly care and wish to help us.
Ok, so maybe the last two are true. But I can only help you so much. I cannot emphasize how important it is to keep up with the work. I will do everything in my power to motivate you, but it is up to you to get the work done on your own and ask questions when you don’t understand.
Stay thirsty my friends, but be sure to thirst for knowledge.
I expect tons of information thrown at me, but in a manner so it is easy to understand. I’m ready to go!
I can’t wait for this class to begin Dr. Fus!
I can’t wait either. Let’s have a great quarter everyone :)
Lecture #1, Wednesday, September 23rd
Today in class I went over the course expectations and details of the syllabus. There are two quizzes on carmen that need to be completed. One is the academic misconduct (COAM) quiz and the other is a syllabus quiz. Try to get them done and out of the way sooner rather than later.
Also, before Friday's class you should look over the Chapter 1 Supplemental Information notes and read Chapter 1. I will FLY through those notes on Friday and get into Chapter 2 right away. You should also print off the homework set and make a valid attempt at completing it. The homework set will be collected by your recitation TA at the beginning of class on either Tues or Thurs of next week (depending on which day you have recitation) and the quiz content will be based on the homework questions.
Labs start tomorrow and be sure to look over the lab requirements on the syllabus and check out the lab report guidelines and discuss them with your lab TA. Please keep in mind that not all labs require a formal report.
Lastly, a common question that came up today after lecture is whether or not you need to bring your book to class. You will not need to bring it to class as my lectures will be written out on the chalkboard, but be sure to bring a notebook and a pen or pencil. You will also not need your textbook in recitation or lab.
Hope everyone had a great first day of classes. Later tonight I will post the most interesting survey comments. I look forward to get to know each and every one of you this quarter and hopefully we will have a great quarter, Dr. Fus
Also, before Friday's class you should look over the Chapter 1 Supplemental Information notes and read Chapter 1. I will FLY through those notes on Friday and get into Chapter 2 right away. You should also print off the homework set and make a valid attempt at completing it. The homework set will be collected by your recitation TA at the beginning of class on either Tues or Thurs of next week (depending on which day you have recitation) and the quiz content will be based on the homework questions.
Labs start tomorrow and be sure to look over the lab requirements on the syllabus and check out the lab report guidelines and discuss them with your lab TA. Please keep in mind that not all labs require a formal report.
Lastly, a common question that came up today after lecture is whether or not you need to bring your book to class. You will not need to bring it to class as my lectures will be written out on the chalkboard, but be sure to bring a notebook and a pen or pencil. You will also not need your textbook in recitation or lab.
Hope everyone had a great first day of classes. Later tonight I will post the most interesting survey comments. I look forward to get to know each and every one of you this quarter and hopefully we will have a great quarter, Dr. Fus
Monday, June 1, 2009
Lecture #28, Monday, June 1st
I continued with photovoltaic cells and discussed P-N junctions. After finishing this discussion I started to discuss batteries.
We also discussed alkaline, rechargeable, and lithium ion batteries. The most exciting research conducted to day is on lithium ion batteries. Early on in the first computers using lithium ion batteries it was not uncommon for them to cause fire. Now further developments have been done and the technology is increasing to the point where we might have a battery that will recharge in 10 seconds.
I briefly touched on hydrogen fuel cells and will conclude the practical application part of the redox unit with corrosion then talk about nuclear chemistry on Wed. On Friday I will go over the evaluation comments and give a lecture that is very close to my heart and will hopefully be as an inspiring of a lecture as you will see. Please try to make it and feel free to bring any friends.
We also discussed alkaline, rechargeable, and lithium ion batteries. The most exciting research conducted to day is on lithium ion batteries. Early on in the first computers using lithium ion batteries it was not uncommon for them to cause fire. Now further developments have been done and the technology is increasing to the point where we might have a battery that will recharge in 10 seconds.
I briefly touched on hydrogen fuel cells and will conclude the practical application part of the redox unit with corrosion then talk about nuclear chemistry on Wed. On Friday I will go over the evaluation comments and give a lecture that is very close to my heart and will hopefully be as an inspiring of a lecture as you will see. Please try to make it and feel free to bring any friends.
Lecture #27, Friday, May 29th
Today I finished up the main content in the Electrochemistry unit. I talked about electrolysis and the stoichiometry of a redox reaction and did several calculations that will be helpful for experiment #29.
We then discussed photovoltaic cells. I gave a very brief description during class, but if you wanted to see a more in depth explanation click on this link, which explains How Solar Cells Work. Another article found here discusses how the cost of photovoltaics has been decreasing over the years as well.
We then discussed photovoltaic cells. I gave a very brief description during class, but if you wanted to see a more in depth explanation click on this link, which explains How Solar Cells Work. Another article found here discusses how the cost of photovoltaics has been decreasing over the years as well.
Poster Session #3 Thursday 6:30 pm
The last and final poster session was great! I was very impressed by the quality of everyone's poster from the entire class and I hope the reports look to be just as good as the posters.
I will have some awards to hand out on the last day of class to some of the groups so be sure to be in attendance the last day of class.
I will have some awards to hand out on the last day of class to some of the groups so be sure to be in attendance the last day of class.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Poster Session #2 Wednesday 6:30 pm
The second poster session was tonight consisting mainly of Mark and Nick's recitation sections as well as groups from Dr. Dutta and Dr. Cuthberts class. Again, things went very well and I really appreciate the enthusiasm shown by all the groups. Keep up the great work!
Lecture #25, Wednesday, May 27th
Today I started lecture discussing the relationship between the cell potential and the Gibbs free energy of a reaction, then discussed the influence concentration has on the cell potential and we derived the Nernst equation. I went over several examples of calculating the cell potential under nonstandard conditions.
On Friday we will discuss electrolysis and start talking about batteries, fuel cells, and photovoltaic cells.
Be sure to be keeping up with the electrochemistry homework sets posted on carmen, as next week's quiz will be primarily electrochemistry.
On Friday we will discuss electrolysis and start talking about batteries, fuel cells, and photovoltaic cells.
Be sure to be keeping up with the electrochemistry homework sets posted on carmen, as next week's quiz will be primarily electrochemistry.
Poster Session #1: Tuesday May 26th
The first poster session was held in the Physics Research Building at 6:30 pm and it went very well. I am glad to see the enthusiasm and sense of pride as you present your research projects. It is a true privilege to be able to have the opportunity to participate in a poster session like this and I am delighted to be part of the program.
The National Science Foundation also had representatives in attendance and I could definitely tell they were impressed by the presentations. Great job for the first night!
The National Science Foundation also had representatives in attendance and I could definitely tell they were impressed by the presentations. Great job for the first night!
Lectures #23 and #24 Wed, May 20th and Fri, May 22nd
May 20th is my sister's birthday. So a special shout out to my sister Anita and a Happy 26th Birthday :) I wish I lived closer to home so I could get to see you more.
I started the introduction of electrochemistry by outlining the two processes we will be using in Exp #28 and Exp #29. They are the generation of an electric current from a chemical reaction and the use of an electric current to produce a chemical change. The first is referred to as a galvanic or voltaic process and occurs spontaneously. The second is an electrolytic process and is not spontaneous. We will investigate voltaic cells in Exp #28 and electrolytic cells in Exp #29.
We then discussed cell potential and talked about how everything is standardized to the hydrogen electrode. We talked about oxidation/reduction (redox) reactions and how to describe a galvanic cell. We went through several examples of these cells and be sure you know how to analyze them as they will come up in the final as well as Exp #28 and #29.
I started the introduction of electrochemistry by outlining the two processes we will be using in Exp #28 and Exp #29. They are the generation of an electric current from a chemical reaction and the use of an electric current to produce a chemical change. The first is referred to as a galvanic or voltaic process and occurs spontaneously. The second is an electrolytic process and is not spontaneous. We will investigate voltaic cells in Exp #28 and electrolytic cells in Exp #29.
We then discussed cell potential and talked about how everything is standardized to the hydrogen electrode. We talked about oxidation/reduction (redox) reactions and how to describe a galvanic cell. We went through several examples of these cells and be sure you know how to analyze them as they will come up in the final as well as Exp #28 and #29.
Lecture #22 Monday, May 18th
Day of Midterm Exam #2
Today I introduced the very last unit of our class, which will look into alternate forms of energy. To start the introduction, I played a clip (the 23:25 mark) form a speech given by President Obama where he outlined the need for coming up with renewable energy.
I also highlighted the key points from a lecture given by Dr. Daniel Nocera, The Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy and Professor of Chemistry, at MIT. Dr. Nocera's research has a large focus on chemical energy conversion, which is based on the foundations of electrochemistry, which will be the next main topic discussed in class.
Nocera's lecture is posted on carmen and it describes the energy crisis we are currently facing, and gives an idea of how much time we have left using our current fuels. The key I wanted to emphasize from his talk is that there is so much potential energy stored in a chemical bond and if we can somehow figure out a way to utilize it, we will solve the worlds energy crisis.
This helped set the stage for the importance of the upcoming electrochemistry unit, as electrochemistry is the study of the conversion between chemical and electrical energy.
Today I introduced the very last unit of our class, which will look into alternate forms of energy. To start the introduction, I played a clip (the 23:25 mark) form a speech given by President Obama where he outlined the need for coming up with renewable energy.
I also highlighted the key points from a lecture given by Dr. Daniel Nocera, The Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy and Professor of Chemistry, at MIT. Dr. Nocera's research has a large focus on chemical energy conversion, which is based on the foundations of electrochemistry, which will be the next main topic discussed in class.
Nocera's lecture is posted on carmen and it describes the energy crisis we are currently facing, and gives an idea of how much time we have left using our current fuels. The key I wanted to emphasize from his talk is that there is so much potential energy stored in a chemical bond and if we can somehow figure out a way to utilize it, we will solve the worlds energy crisis.
This helped set the stage for the importance of the upcoming electrochemistry unit, as electrochemistry is the study of the conversion between chemical and electrical energy.
Lecture #20 and #21 Wed May 13th and Fri May 15th
The three laws of Thermodynamics were covered and entropy and spontaneous reactions were introduced. We talked about the entropy of the universe and the entropy of a system.
Gibbs Free Energy was introduced and we discussed the relationship between free energy, entropy, and enthalpy. I touched on Experiment #32 (which we will not perform in this class) and how free energy is related to the equilibrium constant, k. This value can be experimentally determined via an acid/base titration.
Lastly, the chelate effect was analyzed as the magnitude of the formation constant can be analyzed by looking into the entropy of the reaction occurring.
Gibbs Free Energy was introduced and we discussed the relationship between free energy, entropy, and enthalpy. I touched on Experiment #32 (which we will not perform in this class) and how free energy is related to the equilibrium constant, k. This value can be experimentally determined via an acid/base titration.
Lastly, the chelate effect was analyzed as the magnitude of the formation constant can be analyzed by looking into the entropy of the reaction occurring.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Exam #2 Review Session
The review session for the second exam will take place from 5:00 - 6:48 pm on Friday, May 15th.
Also, in addition to the regularly scheduled office hours I will be holding extra office hours on Tues and Wed evening from 7 - 9 pm.
This weeks quiz will be a take home quiz distributed as soon as we decide on the content of the final report. It will most likely consist of the questions to be addressed from phase 1 of the final REEL project.
The exam will be made up of questions pulled from the content of REEL labs 1, 2, 3, and 4. I am currently working on making up a summary of the content from REEL labs 1 and 4 to give you a comprehensive review sheet for all the REEL labs.
Also, in addition to the regularly scheduled office hours I will be holding extra office hours on Tues and Wed evening from 7 - 9 pm.
This weeks quiz will be a take home quiz distributed as soon as we decide on the content of the final report. It will most likely consist of the questions to be addressed from phase 1 of the final REEL project.
The exam will be made up of questions pulled from the content of REEL labs 1, 2, 3, and 4. I am currently working on making up a summary of the content from REEL labs 1 and 4 to give you a comprehensive review sheet for all the REEL labs.
Lecture #19, Monday, May 11th
Today we continued with Chapter 19, which is Chemical Thermodynamics. I highlighted the key points from sections 19.1 through 19.4 of the text book. Be sure to read those sections. If you want to get ahead of the game for Wednesday's lecture read sections 19.5 and 19.6.
Based on several requests from students, I posted a few things on carmen to guide you in writing your final REEL research paper. The first document is an article from an old edition of the Journal of Education giving you a good idea of how to write with a scientific style. The second is the journal article I highlighted in class last week. The third is the final REEL report submitted by Derek Smith, who was a student in the class last year. His report was the best report submitted by the 300 students and is an excellent guide for how the paper should be put together.
Based on several requests from students, I posted a few things on carmen to guide you in writing your final REEL research paper. The first document is an article from an old edition of the Journal of Education giving you a good idea of how to write with a scientific style. The second is the journal article I highlighted in class last week. The third is the final REEL report submitted by Derek Smith, who was a student in the class last year. His report was the best report submitted by the 300 students and is an excellent guide for how the paper should be put together.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Lecture #18, Friday, May 8th
Today I outlined the overview of the REEL research projects. There are two main themes present in the project. #1 In REEL 4 we saw that cations with an ns2 cation or a Ag+ can effectively reduce the band gap. We want to investigate what will happen when we form a solid solution between end members containing these cations. More importantly, we want to see how the band gap changes as we change the4 composition of x. Does the band gap consistently change as we go from x = 0.1 to x = 0.9, does it lie very close to end member A, or does it lie close to end member B? There might be rare cases where the band gap of a solid solution falls outside the band gap of the end members. This could be a consequence of forming a two phase mixture or a compound with impurities, or it could be because there is a rare case. What you will have to do is prove to us if you have a two phase mixture or a solid solution based upon your XRD pattern.
We also want to look at various effects of putting a transition metal with valence d electrons in a solid solution. Do the absorption bands resulting from the d to d transitions stay at the exact same absorbance, or do they move to the left or to the right?
Next, we started with the Thermodynamics unit and will continue with that later next week. I hope everyone has a great mother's day weekend. Don't forget to tell your mom how much you care about her. You never know when your last opportunity to do that will be.
See you in class on Monday, Dr. Fus
We also want to look at various effects of putting a transition metal with valence d electrons in a solid solution. Do the absorption bands resulting from the d to d transitions stay at the exact same absorbance, or do they move to the left or to the right?
Next, we started with the Thermodynamics unit and will continue with that later next week. I hope everyone has a great mother's day weekend. Don't forget to tell your mom how much you care about her. You never know when your last opportunity to do that will be.
See you in class on Monday, Dr. Fus
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Relay For Life
Relay for Life is taking place at Fred Beekman Park (West Campus) from Sat at noon until Sun at noon. Check out the following web page for details
http://www.chemistry.ohio-state.edu/~mstoltzf/HOPE/
I still have a few T-shirts available and I encourage everyone who bought a shirt to please wear them to class on Friday. Hope to see everyone out there, Dr. Fus
http://www.chemistry.ohio-state.edu/~mstoltzf/HOPE/
I still have a few T-shirts available and I encourage everyone who bought a shirt to please wear them to class on Friday. Hope to see everyone out there, Dr. Fus
Indian Student Association Elections
Indian Students Association (ISA) have elections coming up.
• The voting goes on for 3 days, starting Friday(May 8th) to Sunday(May 10th)
• Every Indian is allowed to vote from their osu/buckeyemail id once.
Use your lastname.#@osu.edu/ lastname.#@buckeyemail.osu.edu id to mail your votes
To: isabuckeyes@gmail.com
Subject Line: ISA Elections
In the body write your votes,
President: Romel Somavat
Vice President: Sonya Jindal
Treasurer: Aditya Uppukonduru
Thank you for your support!
• The voting goes on for 3 days, starting Friday(May 8th) to Sunday(May 10th)
• Every Indian is allowed to vote from their osu/buckeyemail id once.
Use your lastname.#@osu.edu/ lastname.#@buckeyemail.osu.edu id to mail your votes
To: isabuckeyes@gmail.com
Subject Line: ISA Elections
In the body write your votes,
President: Romel Somavat
Vice President: Sonya Jindal
Treasurer: Aditya Uppukonduru
Thank you for your support!
Lecture #17, Wednesday, May 6th
After blasting Lil' Wayne and the Game's My Life I started lecture on solid state synthesis. I reiterated why we have to grind samples for extended periods of time and emphasized the fact that we have to PROVE the identity of the synthesized product. This is done by properly interpreting an XRD pattern.
We went through various scenarios of the attempt to synthesize BiVO4 by reacting Bi2O3 with V2O5. At room temperature only the starting materials exist and we see two distinct structures in the XRD pattern. As we gradually heat the reactants we see the peaks originating from the starting materials begin to get weaker and peaks from BiVO4 begin to form. As heating progresses, the BiVO4becomes a pure homogeneous phase. Something happens though when we heat to higher temperatures. The XRD pattern reveals there are additional peaks, which tell us something is going on. What is happening is when the synthetic temperature gets over 475 degrees the BiVO4 converts over to another structure type. Using X-ray diffraction we can monitor the temperature this transition occurs.
I also discussed the capabilities and limitations X-ray diffraction and UV-Vis spectroscopy. An X-ray diffractometer can tell us which crystal structure(s) is/are present, but it cannot tell us the color of a compound. A UV-Vis spectrometer can tell us which excitations are responsible for the color of a compound, but we cannot verify a structure using UV-Vis. When both of these instrumentation are combined together they can be extremely powerful in determining structure-property relationships, or how changing a crystal structure can have an impact on the color of a compound.
We went over several examples from class and showed how combining XRD and UV-Vis can give us very valuable information. I then discusses how the valence electron count on the cation has an impact on the band gap of a solid. On Friday we will discuss various ways to manipulate the band gap of a solid and go into the details how an extended solid differs from a discrete molecule. We will also discuss the impact of choosing a transition metal for the cation, and how its d orbitals will affect the color of a compound. I will see everyone in class on Friday, Dr. Fus
We went through various scenarios of the attempt to synthesize BiVO4 by reacting Bi2O3 with V2O5. At room temperature only the starting materials exist and we see two distinct structures in the XRD pattern. As we gradually heat the reactants we see the peaks originating from the starting materials begin to get weaker and peaks from BiVO4 begin to form. As heating progresses, the BiVO4becomes a pure homogeneous phase. Something happens though when we heat to higher temperatures. The XRD pattern reveals there are additional peaks, which tell us something is going on. What is happening is when the synthetic temperature gets over 475 degrees the BiVO4 converts over to another structure type. Using X-ray diffraction we can monitor the temperature this transition occurs.
I also discussed the capabilities and limitations X-ray diffraction and UV-Vis spectroscopy. An X-ray diffractometer can tell us which crystal structure(s) is/are present, but it cannot tell us the color of a compound. A UV-Vis spectrometer can tell us which excitations are responsible for the color of a compound, but we cannot verify a structure using UV-Vis. When both of these instrumentation are combined together they can be extremely powerful in determining structure-property relationships, or how changing a crystal structure can have an impact on the color of a compound.
We went over several examples from class and showed how combining XRD and UV-Vis can give us very valuable information. I then discusses how the valence electron count on the cation has an impact on the band gap of a solid. On Friday we will discuss various ways to manipulate the band gap of a solid and go into the details how an extended solid differs from a discrete molecule. We will also discuss the impact of choosing a transition metal for the cation, and how its d orbitals will affect the color of a compound. I will see everyone in class on Friday, Dr. Fus
Monday, May 4, 2009
Lecture #16, Monday, May 4th
I started lecture today by analyzing what would result if we attempted to make a solid solution between NaCl and KCl. Since Na+ and K+ are fairly close in ionic radii a complete solid solution can exist, which has the rock salt structure. The evidence supporting this claim is proper interpretation of the X-ray diffraction pattern.
In your research project we don't know the answers to the questions we are trying to ask. We have to PROVE our conclusions are true. In order to do this you need to use the advanced instrumentation (XRD and UV-Vis) and be able to interpret what these machines are telling us. The main thing we will be analyzing in REEL lab #4 is if a solid solution formed or you have a 2 Phase mixture and what electronic excitations are giving rise to the color in your solid solutions.
Now going back to the lecture topics, we next looked at the solid solution between LiCl and RbCl, and found that the Li0.5Rb0.5Cl was not a solid solution at all, rather a two phase mixture. This was determined from the direct interpretation of the XRD pattern. There were peaks present in the pattern from both the structures of LiCl and RbCl and from that we determined two phases were present.
At this point in lecture our special guest, President E. Gordon Gee arrived to talk to you about the importance of research in our University community and in today's society. As President Gee looked up and pointed at the periodic table his first response was "Now that's what made me a lawyer. Organic Chemistry."
A few comments/facts President Gee said that stuck out to me...
He was able to rattle off the exact number of students enrolled at Ohio State and he listed us as the #9 school in terms of the amount of money earned from research grants. This tells me that everyone has the opportunity to do research in some capacity.
He also touched on how many options students have here at Ohio State. Not only from majors to choose from, but there are extraordinary faculty members here that you have the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with. Take advantage of this.
President Gee also pointed out how different the academic setting is from when he was in school. Years ago students came to college, had a big party, joined a fraternity or sorority, sang kum ba ya, and in four years they had a job. Today's academic climate has changed and more and more focus is on research.
He also shared with us a conversation he had with the Ambassador for education from China. One of the questions in his discussion was "What are you doing to make your students more creative?" It is creativity and the ability to think critically that will separate you from the rest of your peers. I hope the REEL project really emphasizes these points and challenges you to creatively think for yourself. It is a different train of thought than following a 30 step process and getting an answer that you know should be correct. It is a research train of thought and rather than asking "Is this right?" you are now being able to prove to me and your TA that you arrived at a correct conclusion.
I hope you could take something away from what President Gee has to say. We are very privileged to have him as our President and it is great to know that he cares for the students enough to come in and talk and try to encourage and motivate and inspire us to get involved with research. I would encourage all of you to check out the web page of the Undergraduate Research Office (URO) and it is my goal to get all of you matched up with a professor you could do research with in your major field. This is an excellent place to start in terms of looking for research here at the University.
On day #1 of the REEL lab this week the main objective is to collect an XRD and diffuse reflectance spectra of all your compounds. On day #2 of this week we will analyze them and try to determine the reason why the solid solutions exist the way they do and to figure out the reason for the variation in color across a solid solution series.
After tomorrow's lab I will update the blog with the results obtained from the XRD and UV-Vis and Wednesday's lecture will go into detail with specific examples collected during Mon and Tues.
There is also a quiz on Wed/Thurs of this week. Be sure to look over the questions I posted on carmen for REEL labs #2 and #3. They will make up a large portion of the quiz.
I hope everyone enjoyed President Gee's comments today. See you in class on Wed, Dr. Fus
In your research project we don't know the answers to the questions we are trying to ask. We have to PROVE our conclusions are true. In order to do this you need to use the advanced instrumentation (XRD and UV-Vis) and be able to interpret what these machines are telling us. The main thing we will be analyzing in REEL lab #4 is if a solid solution formed or you have a 2 Phase mixture and what electronic excitations are giving rise to the color in your solid solutions.
Now going back to the lecture topics, we next looked at the solid solution between LiCl and RbCl, and found that the Li0.5Rb0.5Cl was not a solid solution at all, rather a two phase mixture. This was determined from the direct interpretation of the XRD pattern. There were peaks present in the pattern from both the structures of LiCl and RbCl and from that we determined two phases were present.
At this point in lecture our special guest, President E. Gordon Gee arrived to talk to you about the importance of research in our University community and in today's society. As President Gee looked up and pointed at the periodic table his first response was "Now that's what made me a lawyer. Organic Chemistry."
A few comments/facts President Gee said that stuck out to me...
He was able to rattle off the exact number of students enrolled at Ohio State and he listed us as the #9 school in terms of the amount of money earned from research grants. This tells me that everyone has the opportunity to do research in some capacity.
He also touched on how many options students have here at Ohio State. Not only from majors to choose from, but there are extraordinary faculty members here that you have the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with. Take advantage of this.
President Gee also pointed out how different the academic setting is from when he was in school. Years ago students came to college, had a big party, joined a fraternity or sorority, sang kum ba ya, and in four years they had a job. Today's academic climate has changed and more and more focus is on research.
He also shared with us a conversation he had with the Ambassador for education from China. One of the questions in his discussion was "What are you doing to make your students more creative?" It is creativity and the ability to think critically that will separate you from the rest of your peers. I hope the REEL project really emphasizes these points and challenges you to creatively think for yourself. It is a different train of thought than following a 30 step process and getting an answer that you know should be correct. It is a research train of thought and rather than asking "Is this right?" you are now being able to prove to me and your TA that you arrived at a correct conclusion.
I hope you could take something away from what President Gee has to say. We are very privileged to have him as our President and it is great to know that he cares for the students enough to come in and talk and try to encourage and motivate and inspire us to get involved with research. I would encourage all of you to check out the web page of the Undergraduate Research Office (URO) and it is my goal to get all of you matched up with a professor you could do research with in your major field. This is an excellent place to start in terms of looking for research here at the University.
On day #1 of the REEL lab this week the main objective is to collect an XRD and diffuse reflectance spectra of all your compounds. On day #2 of this week we will analyze them and try to determine the reason why the solid solutions exist the way they do and to figure out the reason for the variation in color across a solid solution series.
After tomorrow's lab I will update the blog with the results obtained from the XRD and UV-Vis and Wednesday's lecture will go into detail with specific examples collected during Mon and Tues.
There is also a quiz on Wed/Thurs of this week. Be sure to look over the questions I posted on carmen for REEL labs #2 and #3. They will make up a large portion of the quiz.
I hope everyone enjoyed President Gee's comments today. See you in class on Wed, Dr. Fus
Lecture #15, Friday, May 1st
Can you really believe we are half way through the quarter already?
Today we discussed more about X-ray diffraction and went over some key details of what you need in order to interpret an XRD pattern.
WHEN INTERPRETING AN XRD PATTERN YOU MUST ACCOUNT FOR EVERY SINGLE PEAK IN THE PATTERN!
I cannot stress that point enough. When we are analyzing whether a solid solution forms or whether the compound is a two phase mixture we need to look at all the peaks in the XRD pattern. Further analysis of the pattern tells us how the unit cell is changing when we replace one ion with another. This leads to an important relationship from Bragg's Law:
As the spacing between planes gets larger the peaks in an XRD pattern shift to lower angle, or shift to the left.
The same relationship holds when the spacing between planes gets smaller, as the peaks shift to the right.
As a chemist, we can manipulate the spacing between the planes by substituting a cation/anion with a smaller or larger atomic radii. By doing this we will be able to influence the bonding and more importantly the color of a compound.
Another thing about X-ray diffraction is that you need to have a crystalline sample in order to obtain a diffraction pattern. When I was talking about X-ray diffraction last quarter I received this e-mail from former student Asher Kay:
"I was watching Alton Brown's Good eats on the food network and he was making fudge. He wanted to study the crystal structure of the finished fudge and got a person who studies crystal structures( I can't remember the name) to use an X-ray Diffractometer, and Bragg's law to study the diffraction pattern. As it turns out the structure is identical to the sugar crystals that were used to make the fudge. Actually, making fudge is a very chemically intensive task. It is very important to control the temperature to make sure the super saturated solution of fudge does not re precipitate in the form of grainy crystals. Also, you cannot allow crystals to form on the sides of the pot or it will be all over."
When the X-ray patterns of the fudge were analyzed, it didn't matter if you had chocolate fudge, peanut butter fudge, or any combination of the two, all the XRD patterns looked the same. The reason for this is that the only crystalline material in the fudge is sugar. Therefore all the peaks will look the same even though the fudge was different. This story helps emphasize what information we can obtain from an X-ray diffractometer. We can tell which crystal structures are present and the only samples we can use are crystalline materials.
On Monday we will have a special guest in class and I will finish up on solid solutions and emphasize how they relate to a phase diagram.
Hope everyone has a great weekend, Dr. Fus
Today we discussed more about X-ray diffraction and went over some key details of what you need in order to interpret an XRD pattern.
WHEN INTERPRETING AN XRD PATTERN YOU MUST ACCOUNT FOR EVERY SINGLE PEAK IN THE PATTERN!
I cannot stress that point enough. When we are analyzing whether a solid solution forms or whether the compound is a two phase mixture we need to look at all the peaks in the XRD pattern. Further analysis of the pattern tells us how the unit cell is changing when we replace one ion with another. This leads to an important relationship from Bragg's Law:
As the spacing between planes gets larger the peaks in an XRD pattern shift to lower angle, or shift to the left.
The same relationship holds when the spacing between planes gets smaller, as the peaks shift to the right.
As a chemist, we can manipulate the spacing between the planes by substituting a cation/anion with a smaller or larger atomic radii. By doing this we will be able to influence the bonding and more importantly the color of a compound.
Another thing about X-ray diffraction is that you need to have a crystalline sample in order to obtain a diffraction pattern. When I was talking about X-ray diffraction last quarter I received this e-mail from former student Asher Kay:
"I was watching Alton Brown's Good eats on the food network and he was making fudge. He wanted to study the crystal structure of the finished fudge and got a person who studies crystal structures( I can't remember the name) to use an X-ray Diffractometer, and Bragg's law to study the diffraction pattern. As it turns out the structure is identical to the sugar crystals that were used to make the fudge. Actually, making fudge is a very chemically intensive task. It is very important to control the temperature to make sure the super saturated solution of fudge does not re precipitate in the form of grainy crystals. Also, you cannot allow crystals to form on the sides of the pot or it will be all over."
When the X-ray patterns of the fudge were analyzed, it didn't matter if you had chocolate fudge, peanut butter fudge, or any combination of the two, all the XRD patterns looked the same. The reason for this is that the only crystalline material in the fudge is sugar. Therefore all the peaks will look the same even though the fudge was different. This story helps emphasize what information we can obtain from an X-ray diffractometer. We can tell which crystal structures are present and the only samples we can use are crystalline materials.
On Monday we will have a special guest in class and I will finish up on solid solutions and emphasize how they relate to a phase diagram.
Hope everyone has a great weekend, Dr. Fus
Lecture #14, Wednesday, April 29, 2009
The exam #1 average was a 63.1%. It was a very difficult exam and I was pleased by the results of most students.
We continued on with X-ray diffraction and REEL labs #2 and #3. In REEL #2 we first introduced the concept of diffraction. To learn a little bit more about the concept of diffraction I send you to this youtube link featuring University of Minnesota physics professor Jim Kakalious, who was a science consultant for the Warner Brothers film Watchmen. In Watchman Dr. Manhattan has amazing super powers. Dr. Kakalious outlines which physics phenomena are responsible for these super powers. In the movie Dr. Manhattan can appear in more than one place at once and Kakalious asks how he could possible do this. This can be explained by discussing diffraction. At the 2 min 10 sec mark in the clip diffraction is discussed, which is a signature of the wave phenomena of light.
The one thing I want to emphasize is how on earth can a collection of dots from a diffraction pattern relate to structures of solids. Diffraction can tell us the similarities and differences on the slides we used in the optical diffraction part of REEL #2. X-rays can be used to do the same thing with a crystal structure. X-ray diffraction will tell us what structure or structures are present in a given sample and when we progress to REEL 3 & 4 this will be very important to determine.
On Friday's lecture we will start talking about solid solutions and how they are formed.
We continued on with X-ray diffraction and REEL labs #2 and #3. In REEL #2 we first introduced the concept of diffraction. To learn a little bit more about the concept of diffraction I send you to this youtube link featuring University of Minnesota physics professor Jim Kakalious, who was a science consultant for the Warner Brothers film Watchmen. In Watchman Dr. Manhattan has amazing super powers. Dr. Kakalious outlines which physics phenomena are responsible for these super powers. In the movie Dr. Manhattan can appear in more than one place at once and Kakalious asks how he could possible do this. This can be explained by discussing diffraction. At the 2 min 10 sec mark in the clip diffraction is discussed, which is a signature of the wave phenomena of light.
The one thing I want to emphasize is how on earth can a collection of dots from a diffraction pattern relate to structures of solids. Diffraction can tell us the similarities and differences on the slides we used in the optical diffraction part of REEL #2. X-rays can be used to do the same thing with a crystal structure. X-ray diffraction will tell us what structure or structures are present in a given sample and when we progress to REEL 3 & 4 this will be very important to determine.
On Friday's lecture we will start talking about solid solutions and how they are formed.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Lecture #13, Monday, April 27, 2009
I started lecture by discussing questions from the practice exam that gave students the most trouble. This led into the discussion of how the orbital energies are different when the ligands interact with the transition metal d orbitals in a square planar environment.
Next I discussed the main concepts behind REEL Lab #2 Solid State Structures and Optical Diffraction. The three main concepts are:
1. Crystal Structures
2. Optical Diffraction
3. Ionic Solids
Be sure to read through the discussion of the lab, as it really will take the place of reading the textbook.
Initial comments are leaning to the exam being tough. I thought it was a difficult exam, but it was definitely doable. Be sure to be keeping up with the homework problems and know the theory behind all of them. If you need anything or if you have any comments about the exam please let me know. The key is posted on carmen. Hope you are having a great week, Dr. Fus
Next I discussed the main concepts behind REEL Lab #2 Solid State Structures and Optical Diffraction. The three main concepts are:
1. Crystal Structures
2. Optical Diffraction
3. Ionic Solids
Be sure to read through the discussion of the lab, as it really will take the place of reading the textbook.
Initial comments are leaning to the exam being tough. I thought it was a difficult exam, but it was definitely doable. Be sure to be keeping up with the homework problems and know the theory behind all of them. If you need anything or if you have any comments about the exam please let me know. The key is posted on carmen. Hope you are having a great week, Dr. Fus
Lecture #12, Friday, April 24, 2009
We continued discussing orbital interactions in transition metal complexes. The octahedral complexes were compared to those in a tetrahedral environment and as the arrangement of the ligands changed a different splitting of the orbitals is observed. This has an impact on how the electrons can fill these orbitals. The greater overlap the ligands have with the transition metal d orbitals in an octahedron give a much larger energy difference and can lead to cases where we observe a low spin arrangement of the electrons. All tetrahedral complexes are high spin due to a small splitting of the d orbitals.
I also discussed degenerate orbitals and the abbreviations we use to label them.
I also discussed degenerate orbitals and the abbreviations we use to label them.
Lecture #11, Wednesday, April 22, 2009
After blowing everyone's mind with Molecular Orbital theory I put together a lecture that was very visual and after completing the d to d transition lab, hopefully you are seeing how this is beginning to tie together.
The actual power point is up on carmen. Go through it and manipulate things on there and see if it can all make sense. Be sure to look at everything in terms of ORBITAL INTERACTIONS! That is the key. Let me know if you can think of any improvements for this talk. Thanks, Dr. Fus
The actual power point is up on carmen. Go through it and manipulate things on there and see if it can all make sense. Be sure to look at everything in terms of ORBITAL INTERACTIONS! That is the key. Let me know if you can think of any improvements for this talk. Thanks, Dr. Fus
Monday, April 20, 2009
Exam #1 Review Session
The review session for exam #1 will be held on Friday, April 24th from 7:30 - 9:00 pm in 1008 Evans Lab.
The exam is Monday, April 27th at 6:30 pm:
Room 160, 209 W. 18th Avenue Building for Laboratory TA's:
Nicholas Leed,
Mark Sgambellone,
Namrata Singh &
Jennifer Soliz;
and
Room 0035x, Hitchcock Hall for Laboratory TA's:
Ishika Sinha &
Yujie Sun.
The exam is Monday, April 27th at 6:30 pm:
Room 160, 209 W. 18th Avenue Building for Laboratory TA's:
Nicholas Leed,
Mark Sgambellone,
Namrata Singh &
Jennifer Soliz;
and
Room 0035x, Hitchcock Hall for Laboratory TA's:
Ishika Sinha &
Yujie Sun.
Lecture #10, Monday, April 20, 2009
REEL lab #1 will start on Wed/Thurs of this week. Your TA will hand out the lab discussion and procedure to you today or tomorrow and you will definitely need to read it and do the homework problems before you come to lab. The quiz this week will be solely based on the content of REEL Lab #1, which is d to d transitions and color of transition metal complexes.
In class today I reviewed some concepts from general chemistry about electrons and orbitals and then gave a very brief background on Valence Bond Theory and Crystal Field Theory (CFT). In our class we will be taking Crystal Field Theory and covering it in a little more depth than the book does. We need to do this in order to understand charge transfer excitations, which are the primary excitations responsible for color in pigments such as PbCrO4.
This led us into the discussion of Molecular Orbital Theory, which depends primarily on the symmetry (or shape) of the atomic orbitals interacting, as well as their energy. Remember that when molecules form, they are trying to lower the overall energy of the entire molecule. They do this by stabilizing the electrons as much as possible.
Remember that the more stable something is, the LOWER the energy.
A stronger bond becomes more stable in energy, this lowers its overall energy.
The better the orbital overlap, the stronger the bond, the more stable (lower energy) the bonding molecular orbitals. This also makes the anti-bonding orbitals very destabilized (higher in energy).
We then went through the details of the molecular orbital diagram for an H2 molecule and discussed the similarities and differences to an O2 molecule. We then transitioned into the MO diagram of Cr(H2O)63+. This molecular orbital diagram is listed in the discussion of REEL Lab #1, so be sure to look it over before class on Wed.
I know we have been jumping around a bit, but here is what you need to be keeping up with:
Read REEL Lab #1
You should have the first Transition Metal homework set complete
You should have the Transition Metals: Color and Orbital Overlap assignment complete before you go to lab this week.
Read Chem 123 REEL Orbitals, Bonding, MO Diagrams, and Color, which is posted on carmen.
If you have any questions please let me know. See you in class on Wed, Dr. Fus
P.S. Congrats to Mark Titus and Club Trillion for reaching 1,000,000 hits :)
In class today I reviewed some concepts from general chemistry about electrons and orbitals and then gave a very brief background on Valence Bond Theory and Crystal Field Theory (CFT). In our class we will be taking Crystal Field Theory and covering it in a little more depth than the book does. We need to do this in order to understand charge transfer excitations, which are the primary excitations responsible for color in pigments such as PbCrO4.
This led us into the discussion of Molecular Orbital Theory, which depends primarily on the symmetry (or shape) of the atomic orbitals interacting, as well as their energy. Remember that when molecules form, they are trying to lower the overall energy of the entire molecule. They do this by stabilizing the electrons as much as possible.
Remember that the more stable something is, the LOWER the energy.
A stronger bond becomes more stable in energy, this lowers its overall energy.
The better the orbital overlap, the stronger the bond, the more stable (lower energy) the bonding molecular orbitals. This also makes the anti-bonding orbitals very destabilized (higher in energy).
We then went through the details of the molecular orbital diagram for an H2 molecule and discussed the similarities and differences to an O2 molecule. We then transitioned into the MO diagram of Cr(H2O)63+. This molecular orbital diagram is listed in the discussion of REEL Lab #1, so be sure to look it over before class on Wed.
I know we have been jumping around a bit, but here is what you need to be keeping up with:
Read REEL Lab #1
You should have the first Transition Metal homework set complete
You should have the Transition Metals: Color and Orbital Overlap assignment complete before you go to lab this week.
Read Chem 123 REEL Orbitals, Bonding, MO Diagrams, and Color, which is posted on carmen.
If you have any questions please let me know. See you in class on Wed, Dr. Fus
P.S. Congrats to Mark Titus and Club Trillion for reaching 1,000,000 hits :)
Friday, April 17, 2009
Flapjack Frenzy
Tonight from midnight to 3 am Alpha Chi Omega will be hosting their anual "Flapjack Frenzy." Chocolate chip or plain pancakes will be available with Orange Juice or water for only $3.00! The details are posted below:
Friday Night, April 17th 12:00-3am
Alpha Chi Omega Front Lawn
103 E. 15th Ave.
Benefits the CHOICES Victims of
Domestic Violence Shelter
Brought to you by your Student Activity Fee
Come on out for a great cause!
Friday Night, April 17th 12:00-3am
Alpha Chi Omega Front Lawn
103 E. 15th Ave.
Benefits the CHOICES Victims of
Domestic Violence Shelter
Brought to you by your Student Activity Fee
Come on out for a great cause!
Lecture #9, Friday, April 17, 2009
UV-Vis spectroscopy was introduced and I collected a spectrum of [Ni(H2O)6]2+, [Co(H2O)6]2+, and [Zn(H2O)6]2+. The one thing I want you to definitely keep in mind when you are looking at these spectra is that the each peak corresponds to an electronic excitation from one molecular orbital to another. In order to promote and electron to from the ground state (the lowest energy configuration of the electrons) to an excited state we need to provide some sort of energy for the transition to happen. In many transition metal complexes photons of visible light have enough energy to promote an electron from the ground state to an excited state.
Once I provided that background on UV-Vis I discussed the electromagnetic spectrum and looked into the relationship between Energy and wavelength. I then went over how absorbance relates to the color we physically see with our eyes. If absorbance occurs in only one region of the color wheel, then our eyes see its complimentary color. If multiple wavelengths are absorbed a material will generally take on a color in the middle of the colors not absorbed. So if wavelengths of Violet, Blue, and Green light are absorbed a material will appear Orange and if Violet and Red light is absorbed the material will be a Yellow/Green color. In the first REEL lab next week you will observe the color of five transition metal complexes and you will have to identify which spectra matches with which complex ion.
In order to really understand the energies of the molecular orbitals, we need to review the shapes of various transition metal complexes and analyze how the orbitals overlap to form their respective bonds. Always keep in mind that a molecule will form in order to lower the overall energy of the electrons with respect to the individual atoms. In order to see this effect you need to be sure you first know the shapes of the orbitals like the back of you hand. IF YOU DO NOT KNOW THE ORBITAL SHAPES YOU ARE SCREWED FROM HERE ON OUT! We will need to visualize how these orbitals interact with each other to determine the resulting energies. Remember, the color of a material is dictated by the difference in energy of the molecular orbitals, so if we want to manipulate the color of a pigment, we need to know how to manipulate the energies of the molecular orbitals. This is an extremely important concept in the REEL project.
I ended class by talking about the molecular orbital diagram for an H2 molecule and I will open lecture with that on Monday, then continue to the molecular orbital diagram of O2, and finish up with molecular orbital diagrams involving transition metal complex ions.
For homework over the weekend read the Chem 123 REEL Orbitals, Bonding, MO Diagrams, and Color handout posted on carmen. Also, if you feel like you need a refresher I have also posted my Chem 121 lecture notes on electronic structure/electron configurations and orbital overlap/molecular orbital theory. It would be good to review that.
I hope everyone is enjoying the wonderful weather and you are having a great weekend, Dr. Fus
Once I provided that background on UV-Vis I discussed the electromagnetic spectrum and looked into the relationship between Energy and wavelength. I then went over how absorbance relates to the color we physically see with our eyes. If absorbance occurs in only one region of the color wheel, then our eyes see its complimentary color. If multiple wavelengths are absorbed a material will generally take on a color in the middle of the colors not absorbed. So if wavelengths of Violet, Blue, and Green light are absorbed a material will appear Orange and if Violet and Red light is absorbed the material will be a Yellow/Green color. In the first REEL lab next week you will observe the color of five transition metal complexes and you will have to identify which spectra matches with which complex ion.
In order to really understand the energies of the molecular orbitals, we need to review the shapes of various transition metal complexes and analyze how the orbitals overlap to form their respective bonds. Always keep in mind that a molecule will form in order to lower the overall energy of the electrons with respect to the individual atoms. In order to see this effect you need to be sure you first know the shapes of the orbitals like the back of you hand. IF YOU DO NOT KNOW THE ORBITAL SHAPES YOU ARE SCREWED FROM HERE ON OUT! We will need to visualize how these orbitals interact with each other to determine the resulting energies. Remember, the color of a material is dictated by the difference in energy of the molecular orbitals, so if we want to manipulate the color of a pigment, we need to know how to manipulate the energies of the molecular orbitals. This is an extremely important concept in the REEL project.
I ended class by talking about the molecular orbital diagram for an H2 molecule and I will open lecture with that on Monday, then continue to the molecular orbital diagram of O2, and finish up with molecular orbital diagrams involving transition metal complex ions.
For homework over the weekend read the Chem 123 REEL Orbitals, Bonding, MO Diagrams, and Color handout posted on carmen. Also, if you feel like you need a refresher I have also posted my Chem 121 lecture notes on electronic structure/electron configurations and orbital overlap/molecular orbital theory. It would be good to review that.
I hope everyone is enjoying the wonderful weather and you are having a great weekend, Dr. Fus
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Everyone Loves ICE CREAM: Relay For Life Fundraiser
The Cold Stone Creamery in the South Campus Gateway will be contributing 20% of its sales on Thursday, April 16th to our Relay For Life Team. At check out be sure to mention that you are supporting Dr. Fus in Relay For Life and they will make a contribution to the American Cancer Society. Let's hope for a nice day :)
Lecture #8, Wednesday, April 15, 2009
We are getting into my favorite material of the quarter. I gave a brief overview of the REEL project and described how the research labs would differ from the regular labs. These labs are going to be frustrating at times. There are no clear cut answers to the questions we are trying to answer and instead of simply asking the TA is this right? Or is this wrong? you will have to PROVE to yourself, and to us, why something is right or wrong. You will also have to THINK LIKE A CHEMIST during these labs. You cannot just simply follow a recipe and finish the labs. It will initially be frustrating, but in the enable you to enhance your critical thinking skills and become a better student. These labs kind of remind me of the fall of 2002. It was my first year as a grad student at The Ohio State University and the football team was led by a stingy veteran defense and the offense was sparked by true freshman phenom Maurice Clarett. The Buckeyes got off to a great start found themselves 10-0 entering their November 9th match-up at the Purdue Boilermakers.
I'll never forget watching that game. You want to talk about frustration? How could we not move the ball at all against a lack luster Purdue defense? How could we possibly be in this situation? It's 4th and 2 with 1:44 left in the game and we are down to the Boilermakers 6-3? This is our dream season crashing and burning. This is where if you get worked up and you are nervous and anxious things will work against you. Did Coach Tressel look nervous or anxious when he called in the final play? Did Craig Krenzel get all worked up when he had to step up in the pocket and fire the ball down field? Did Michael Jenkins look nervous when the ball was in the air? The exact opposite happened. Coach Tressel calmly calls in the play, Krenzel drops back, steps up, and fires a bullet to a streaking Michael Jenkins in the end zone. BOOM! Touchdown! Brent Musberger goes crazy! Holy Buckeyes! And my favorite moment of the entire sequence is that Jenkins calmly tosses the ball to the referee like he knew he was going to score a touchdown all along. That is the kind of calmness and confidence I would like you to have during your lab experience. This doesn't just happen in the REEL labs, it happens in lab #25 as well. Calm yourselves down, show a little confidence, and everything will work out fine. If you are still concerned about Exp #25 we can come up with a plan to get you caught up and remember, you will have time at the very end of the course to finish the experiment.
In lecture today I began discussing transition metals. When we look at the physical properties of transition metal complexes IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ELECTRONS! To open up lecture I compared and contrasted transition metal electron configurations and orbital energies for atoms vs. ions. In transition metals, since the valence s and d orbitals are so close together in energy, we observe a dramatic difference between the orbital energy diagrams and electron configurations of atoms vs. ions.
In Chemistry 121 we discussed the electron configurations of atoms. I placed my electron configuration and electronic structure 121 notes on carmen so be sure to look them over if you feel weak in this area. Next, we needed to review the shapes of the orbitals. These are very important because when a coordinate covalent bond is formed in a transition metal complex ion, the d orbitals of the transition metal overlap with the ligand's atomic orbitals, forming the bond. In order to truly visualize the shapes of these orbitals you have to be able to look at them and rotate them in 3-dimensions. We are very fortunate to have a great web site in place that allows you to visualize and rotate the atomic orbitals. For next week's quiz it would be very beneficial to take a look at the link comparing the 3s, 3p, and 3d orbitals. Be sure to pay special attention to how the lobes of the orbitals orient themselves in space because in Friday's lecture we will analyze what happens to the atomic orbitals of the transition metal when they overlap with the atomic orbitals of the ligand to form a molecular orbital. One last thing, remember that orbitals overlap to form bonds to decrease the overall energy of the system, or in other words we want to lower the overall energy of all the electrons. Remember, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ELECTRONS!
I'd like to give a special shout out to one of my former students, Ted Schoenfeldt, who was voted the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I Men's National Player of the Week. I do have a little bit of beef with the writer of the article as it is no where mentioned that Ted is a chemistry major :( If you have nothing to do on Saturday night at 7 pm, the #11 ranked Ohio State Men's Volleyball team hosts the Penn State Nittany Lions, who claim the distinction of being ranked as the #1 team in the country.
If you are keeping up with the homework problems you should complete the Transition Metal Homework Set #1, which is posted on carmen. It would be beneficial to complete that by Friday's lecture.
I will see you in class on Friday. Talk to you then, Dr. Fus
I'll never forget watching that game. You want to talk about frustration? How could we not move the ball at all against a lack luster Purdue defense? How could we possibly be in this situation? It's 4th and 2 with 1:44 left in the game and we are down to the Boilermakers 6-3? This is our dream season crashing and burning. This is where if you get worked up and you are nervous and anxious things will work against you. Did Coach Tressel look nervous or anxious when he called in the final play? Did Craig Krenzel get all worked up when he had to step up in the pocket and fire the ball down field? Did Michael Jenkins look nervous when the ball was in the air? The exact opposite happened. Coach Tressel calmly calls in the play, Krenzel drops back, steps up, and fires a bullet to a streaking Michael Jenkins in the end zone. BOOM! Touchdown! Brent Musberger goes crazy! Holy Buckeyes! And my favorite moment of the entire sequence is that Jenkins calmly tosses the ball to the referee like he knew he was going to score a touchdown all along. That is the kind of calmness and confidence I would like you to have during your lab experience. This doesn't just happen in the REEL labs, it happens in lab #25 as well. Calm yourselves down, show a little confidence, and everything will work out fine. If you are still concerned about Exp #25 we can come up with a plan to get you caught up and remember, you will have time at the very end of the course to finish the experiment.
In lecture today I began discussing transition metals. When we look at the physical properties of transition metal complexes IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ELECTRONS! To open up lecture I compared and contrasted transition metal electron configurations and orbital energies for atoms vs. ions. In transition metals, since the valence s and d orbitals are so close together in energy, we observe a dramatic difference between the orbital energy diagrams and electron configurations of atoms vs. ions.
In Chemistry 121 we discussed the electron configurations of atoms. I placed my electron configuration and electronic structure 121 notes on carmen so be sure to look them over if you feel weak in this area. Next, we needed to review the shapes of the orbitals. These are very important because when a coordinate covalent bond is formed in a transition metal complex ion, the d orbitals of the transition metal overlap with the ligand's atomic orbitals, forming the bond. In order to truly visualize the shapes of these orbitals you have to be able to look at them and rotate them in 3-dimensions. We are very fortunate to have a great web site in place that allows you to visualize and rotate the atomic orbitals. For next week's quiz it would be very beneficial to take a look at the link comparing the 3s, 3p, and 3d orbitals. Be sure to pay special attention to how the lobes of the orbitals orient themselves in space because in Friday's lecture we will analyze what happens to the atomic orbitals of the transition metal when they overlap with the atomic orbitals of the ligand to form a molecular orbital. One last thing, remember that orbitals overlap to form bonds to decrease the overall energy of the system, or in other words we want to lower the overall energy of all the electrons. Remember, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ELECTRONS!
I'd like to give a special shout out to one of my former students, Ted Schoenfeldt, who was voted the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I Men's National Player of the Week. I do have a little bit of beef with the writer of the article as it is no where mentioned that Ted is a chemistry major :( If you have nothing to do on Saturday night at 7 pm, the #11 ranked Ohio State Men's Volleyball team hosts the Penn State Nittany Lions, who claim the distinction of being ranked as the #1 team in the country.
If you are keeping up with the homework problems you should complete the Transition Metal Homework Set #1, which is posted on carmen. It would be beneficial to complete that by Friday's lecture.
I will see you in class on Friday. Talk to you then, Dr. Fus
Monday, April 13, 2009
Quiz #1 Results
Quiz #1 is graded and the average turned out to be a 52% (15.6 out of 30). To say I am disappointed is an understatement. The performance on this quiz is reminiscent of Roger Dorn trying to field a ground ball and I feel like Coach Lou Brown convincing him not to give him a half ass effort or any of this "Oley Bullshit."
Remember that to succeed in this course you have to complete and more importantly UNDERSTAND the homework problems. Know the concepts behind them and know what is going on if I change something in a particular problem. 37 students out of 147 (roughly 25%) got a grade of 10/30 or lower. I do not want to sound like a prick, but to me this cannot continue. Question #3 on the quiz was right from the homework set. You need to know how to do the homework problems. Mike Singletary put it best in the 55 second mark of this clip when he said: "I want winners! I want people who want to win!" Likewise, I want students who want to learn. I want students who want to do homework problems. I don't want to have to nag you to do them. That is why you are in college. To learn.
Quiz #2 was written last Friday before the scores were out and in my mind it is harder than the first one. You need to be sure you have completed problems 31-59 from the Solubility homework set, as well as problems 6-10 from the Experiment #25 homework set. If you have a firm grasp on the material asked in those questions you will be in great shape for the quiz.
It is a privilege to be part of The Ohio State University and here in the chemistry department we hold a high standard of excellence. I will do anything I can to help you achieve success in this class, but you also have to work hard on your own. Come with the homework problems worked out in office hours and we can discuss the concepts behind each problem. If you have a conflict with office hours shoot me an e-mail and we can come up with another time to meet.
Let me know what I can do for you to succeed in this class. If you have any other questions let me know. Thanks, Dr. Fus
Remember that to succeed in this course you have to complete and more importantly UNDERSTAND the homework problems. Know the concepts behind them and know what is going on if I change something in a particular problem. 37 students out of 147 (roughly 25%) got a grade of 10/30 or lower. I do not want to sound like a prick, but to me this cannot continue. Question #3 on the quiz was right from the homework set. You need to know how to do the homework problems. Mike Singletary put it best in the 55 second mark of this clip when he said: "I want winners! I want people who want to win!" Likewise, I want students who want to learn. I want students who want to do homework problems. I don't want to have to nag you to do them. That is why you are in college. To learn.
Quiz #2 was written last Friday before the scores were out and in my mind it is harder than the first one. You need to be sure you have completed problems 31-59 from the Solubility homework set, as well as problems 6-10 from the Experiment #25 homework set. If you have a firm grasp on the material asked in those questions you will be in great shape for the quiz.
It is a privilege to be part of The Ohio State University and here in the chemistry department we hold a high standard of excellence. I will do anything I can to help you achieve success in this class, but you also have to work hard on your own. Come with the homework problems worked out in office hours and we can discuss the concepts behind each problem. If you have a conflict with office hours shoot me an e-mail and we can come up with another time to meet.
Let me know what I can do for you to succeed in this class. If you have any other questions let me know. Thanks, Dr. Fus
Are you a Chemistry Major?
The Ohio State University Chemistry Department is proud to announce various scholarships available for the 2009-2010 academic year.
You must be a chemistry major to apply and information can be found at the following web site:
https://web.chemistry.ohio-state.edu/undergraduate/scholarships
The deadline to apply is April 29th.
You must be a chemistry major to apply and information can be found at the following web site:
https://web.chemistry.ohio-state.edu/undergraduate/scholarships
The deadline to apply is April 29th.
Lecture #7, Monday, April 13, 2009
Class started today with Fractional/Selective Precipitation and I went over two examples on that concept. I also went over the helpful hints for the Exp #25 Group III Qual. scheme and discussed the separations of the six Group III cations.
If you are keeping up with the homework so far you should have the Solubility Homework Set (#'s 1-70) complete as well as numbers 1-14 in the Experiment #25 Homework Set.
If you are keeping up with the homework so far you should have the Solubility Homework Set (#'s 1-70) complete as well as numbers 1-14 in the Experiment #25 Homework Set.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Lecture #6 Friday, April 10th
Today we discussed in detail the effect that complex ion formation has on solubility. I went through an example on the formation of complex ions and then talked about a special case of complex ions referred to as amphoteric effects. I also completed a detailed example for that topic. Be sure to read pages 745 - 750 of the text book and look at Sample Exercise 17.14.
There are plenty of examples from previous exams of these types of problems. The homework set is littered with them. At this point if you are keeping up with the material you should homework questions 1-59 from the Chapter 17 homework set completed by Monday or Tuesday. On Mon I will finish with Ch 17 and Exp #25 Group III (the flow charts are posted on carmen) then start with Ch 24.
I hope everyone has a Happy Easter! See you on Monday, Dr. Fus
There are plenty of examples from previous exams of these types of problems. The homework set is littered with them. At this point if you are keeping up with the material you should homework questions 1-59 from the Chapter 17 homework set completed by Monday or Tuesday. On Mon I will finish with Ch 17 and Exp #25 Group III (the flow charts are posted on carmen) then start with Ch 24.
I hope everyone has a Happy Easter! See you on Monday, Dr. Fus
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Lecture #5 Wednesday, April 8th
Lecture started today continuing with the common ion effect and I performed a few calculations illustrating this effect. I talked into more detail about pH effects and reviewed the strong acids and bases. You will need to know the strong acids and bases so MEMORIZE THEM NOW!!! If you can't differentiate between a strong/weak acid or base you will be royally screwed with the problems involving adding reagents to see if they will increase or decrease the solubility.
It is very common for students to have trouble with problems like #31 in the Chapter 17 homework set. The first thing you should do for this problem is WRITE OUT THE EQUILIBRIUM EXPRESSION! I cannot emphasize that more. Application of LeChatlier's principle will then allow you to determine how the solubility will be affected by whatever reagent you choose.
The last topic we covered today was complex ion formation and I listed a few examples and given a Kf table you should, at this point, be able to determine if a complex ion will form. The complex ion effect has much more of an influence on the solubility than the common ion or pH effects.
For homework read Section 17.5 in the textbook and do the following problems from the Chapter 17 homework set: 31-44. (Note: You are falling behind if you have not completed problems 1-30.)
Keep the mailbag comments coming and e-mail me if you have any questions/concerns. Thanks, Dr. Fus
It is very common for students to have trouble with problems like #31 in the Chapter 17 homework set. The first thing you should do for this problem is WRITE OUT THE EQUILIBRIUM EXPRESSION! I cannot emphasize that more. Application of LeChatlier's principle will then allow you to determine how the solubility will be affected by whatever reagent you choose.
The last topic we covered today was complex ion formation and I listed a few examples and given a Kf table you should, at this point, be able to determine if a complex ion will form. The complex ion effect has much more of an influence on the solubility than the common ion or pH effects.
For homework read Section 17.5 in the textbook and do the following problems from the Chapter 17 homework set: 31-44. (Note: You are falling behind if you have not completed problems 1-30.)
Keep the mailbag comments coming and e-mail me if you have any questions/concerns. Thanks, Dr. Fus
Monday, April 6, 2009
Lecture #4 Monday, April 6
I started lecture with some helpful hints to complete Lab #25 II. We discussed some overall chemical principles in the separations used in Exp #25 II and I pointed out from pg 51 of the lab manual that "The ability to control the [H+] (or the pH) of the precipitating ion makes selective precipitation possible." This statement is key in separating Group II and III.
The Group II ions will precipitate out as sulfides in acidic solution, while the Group III sulfides will remain as ions in acidic solution.
Manipulation of the pH allows us to precipitate out the various other group III ions and we did some calculations to determine the pH each ion will begin to precipitate.
I ended class by listing the factors influencing solubility that we will cover in great detail in the next two lectures. They are: Common Ion, pH, Complex Ion, and Amphoterism (Section 17.5).
Homework: Solubility Set #1-15, 17, 20-22, 24-28; Exp #25 Homework set #1-10
Reminder: Quiz this week in Wed or Thurs during the first 20 min of lab
Congrats to the North Carolina Tarheels. Enjoy your one shining moment. It was a great tournament this year, but nothing can beat this moment from 2007.
The Group II ions will precipitate out as sulfides in acidic solution, while the Group III sulfides will remain as ions in acidic solution.
Manipulation of the pH allows us to precipitate out the various other group III ions and we did some calculations to determine the pH each ion will begin to precipitate.
I ended class by listing the factors influencing solubility that we will cover in great detail in the next two lectures. They are: Common Ion, pH, Complex Ion, and Amphoterism (Section 17.5).
Homework: Solubility Set #1-15, 17, 20-22, 24-28; Exp #25 Homework set #1-10
Reminder: Quiz this week in Wed or Thurs during the first 20 min of lab
Congrats to the North Carolina Tarheels. Enjoy your one shining moment. It was a great tournament this year, but nothing can beat this moment from 2007.
Lecture #3 Friday, April 3
Be sure to print out the Exp #25 II flow chart posted on carmen and bring it to lab. We discussed criteria for precipitation by comparing Q vs. Ksp (section 17.6).
Homework: Solubility Set 1-15, 17, 20-22, 24-28
Homework: Solubility Set 1-15, 17, 20-22, 24-28
Lecture #2 Wednesday, April 1
I started class by showing a video of House, where Dr. Gregory House used a stannous chloride solution as a conformation reagent to show gold ions were present on a woman's hands. This led us to talk about Exp. #25 Group I (from the lab manual) and molar solubility (pg 738 - 740).
Homework: Solubility Set #5-15
Homework: Solubility Set #5-15
Lecture #1 Monday, March 30th
The first lecture of the quarter covered some course logistics and I went into the details of the syllabus. The lecture material started with section 17.4 and how to set up a Ksp expression. This provided a natural progression into Lab #24 and determining Ksp by titration.
Homework: Read Developing a Mastery of Ksp, Problems 1-4 from the Solubility Homework Set
Homework: Read Developing a Mastery of Ksp, Problems 1-4 from the Solubility Homework Set
Mail Bag For This Week
I would most definitely appreciate it if you mentioned the section of the book you're going to cover before you lecture. I found it hard after lecture on Wednesday to go through the book when you've covered material in part of a section and not in another.
-- Biology; Salem, OR
This is a fantastic idea! I will make a post for the first week of class and try to follow up with a post after each lecture going over the material covered in class.
I just read through the blog, and it reminded me about something I had wanted to bring up to you on Wednesday during lab, but forgot to (I was just so focused!) I wanted to say that I think it is great that you choose to conduct lecture by making use of the chalkboard. It makes me think back to when I was a freshman in, taking honors European history with Mr. Woodall. What was great about Mr. Woodalls class was that he rejected the use of the overhead projector and of powerpoints, and instead had us copy down his primarily illegible, size 8, scribble that he referred to as his award winning penmanship. His class forced me to pay attention, to ask questions, arrive to class early (the front row obviously had an advantage!), and ultimately his class sticks out in my mind as the class that I learned and retained the most information from. A funny little quirk of Mr Woodall, one that I think would be best for you to NOT integrate into this course, is that he had a nasty little habit of taking peoples shoes... usually always girls flipflops... and throwing them out of the second story window. It added spontaneity to the class, as he would say.
I'm glad to hear that you enjoy the "chalk talk" style of teaching. The best professor I had taught that way and I hope to emulate his teaching style. It's a shame we aren't in the second story window in lecture or I could toss some flip flops. I could do this out of the 2nd story window in Celeste for labs though :) That would add some spontaneity!
-- Biology; Salem, OR
This is a fantastic idea! I will make a post for the first week of class and try to follow up with a post after each lecture going over the material covered in class.
I just read through the blog, and it reminded me about something I had wanted to bring up to you on Wednesday during lab, but forgot to (I was just so focused!) I wanted to say that I think it is great that you choose to conduct lecture by making use of the chalkboard. It makes me think back to when I was a freshman in, taking honors European history with Mr. Woodall. What was great about Mr. Woodalls class was that he rejected the use of the overhead projector and of powerpoints, and instead had us copy down his primarily illegible, size 8, scribble that he referred to as his award winning penmanship. His class forced me to pay attention, to ask questions, arrive to class early (the front row obviously had an advantage!), and ultimately his class sticks out in my mind as the class that I learned and retained the most information from. A funny little quirk of Mr Woodall, one that I think would be best for you to NOT integrate into this course, is that he had a nasty little habit of taking peoples shoes... usually always girls flipflops... and throwing them out of the second story window. It added spontaneity to the class, as he would say.
I'm glad to hear that you enjoy the "chalk talk" style of teaching. The best professor I had taught that way and I hope to emulate his teaching style. It's a shame we aren't in the second story window in lecture or I could toss some flip flops. I could do this out of the 2nd story window in Celeste for labs though :) That would add some spontaneity!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Lab #24 Report Questions
On page 34 of the lab manual complete report questions 2 (5 pts), 3 (5pts), and 4 (10 pts).
Initial Survey Comments and General Comments About Chem 123
Two of my favorite on-line sites are posted by Bill Simmons, aka the Sports Guy, on espn.com and Club Trillion by Mark “The Shark” Titus. These two blogs are written in a laid back manner and for someone like me are very enjoyable to read. I hope to capture the same effect with this blog. It would be fantastic to start something like Bill Simmons does with the mailbag and answer chemistry questions that are pertinent to the course and how they relate to our everyday lives. I will try to make them as enjoyable as possible and if students send me questions I can try to post a mail bag similar to this one every Friday afternoon. I hope we can have fun with this and am anxious to see how this will develop.
Posted below are the comments from the initial course survey. Enjoy and GO BUCKS!
Dr. Fus
The votes are in. Here are the results from the class surveys…
Favorite TV Show
- House
- The Office
- Grey’s Anatomy
- Lost
- Desperate Housewives
- Family Guy
- The Simpsons
- Scrubs
- Heroes
- Friends
I am very disappointed that Seinfeld, Two and a Half Men, How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory, Chapelle Show, Pardon the Interruption, Baseball Tonight, and SportsCenter did not make the list.
Favorite Movies (Note: These were very diverse and all over the place)
- Billy Madison
- Happy Gilmore
- Super Bad
- Old School
- Wedding Crashers
There were many others receiving one vote. Some of the ones I enjoy are Braveheart, Dumb & Dumber, Good Will Hunting, Ace Ventura, Patch Adams, and Ferris Beuller’s Day Off.
Favorite Songs: To be played before class.
Now, on to the student comments…
I am terrified of labs this quarter. They are going to be very stressful so any help with that would be great.
--Medical Dietetics, Sophomore
I’m not so sure why students are so “terrified” about labs? In 121 in the fall I had students who are definitely afraid to light a Bunsen burner. I mean it’s a freakin Bunsen burner. Just light it. You can definitely tell the students who smoke cigarettes. They pull out a lighter out of their pocket and just light the thing. My best word of advice is to just relax and go with the flow. I even had a student who got so worked up they started to cry. I wanted to turn into Tom Hanks at that point. There’s no crying in chemistry lab! If you are all up tight and nervous (or terrified) lab is not going to go very well. Take a deep breath, don’t worry, and things will go fine. The worst thing that can happen is that you will have to redo the lab and there will be plenty of time for you to make things up throughout the quarter. So don’t get too stressed if you fall behind and if you do come talk to me and we can come up with a plan to get you caught up. Really labs aren’t worth stressing yourself out to the point that you might want to faint.
Exams → what is covered in lecture, lot of previous exams in 121/122 pulled out random information.
-- Bio/Pre-med, Sophomore
In 122, myself, along with other that I know of felt the exams were extremely unfair and did not cover material that was ever covered in lecture. I am hoping the homework/lectures will fairly reflect what will be on the exams.
--Molecular Genetics, Freshman
I feel like when we chem students take an exam, we’re hit with a subject matter at a much higher level than given in lecture. I’d love if we could get to that level before the test!
-- Food Science & Spanish, Freshman
The key to success in this class is to complete and more importantly UNDERSTAND the homework sets. All the homework sets are taken from old exams given here at
Avoid “Brainteasers” on exams. I heard those aren’t very fun!
-- Chemical Engineering, Sophomore
Remember you are privileged enough to be a student at The Ohio State University. There is a certain standard of excellence we have to uphold in this department and it is very difficult to get an A. There will not be much of a curve in this class either and you will have to work extremely hard to get a good grade. “Brainteaser” questions are written to identify the truly outstanding students in the class.
Screaming into the microphone
-- Biology, Sophomore
Avoid yelling the material at students through the microphone.
-- Microbiology, Freshman
Please don’t yell into the microphone
-- Microbiology, Sophomore
Ummm, I’m not sure where this came from, but I will try not to yell into the microphone. If I do happen to scream, it will be reminiscent of this.
As long as you don’t speak to me as a child, we’ll get along
-- Psychology, Freshman
I try to treat everyone in this class like an adult. But be careful what you wish for because being treated like an adult means you have to assume the responsibility of an adult. I fully expect you to attend EVERY lecture and laboratory session. I expect you to do every homework problem and read the book. Remember you are in college and the ultimate goal is to become a better chemist, a better student, and a better person. I will do everything to work for you, but I do not have a magic wand to waive over you to make you learn the material. I will work my ass off and I expect you to do the same. Not just in this class, but every class you are taking this quarter. Be sure to have fun. You are in college, but remember the ultimate reason you are here is to get excellent grades.
I thought the quizzes weren’t representative of exam questions. Many questions on the exams tested our ability to type numbers into a calculator instead of our knowledge of chemistry.
-- Environmental Science, Junior
Oh trust me, I love asking concept based questions. The “brainteasers” will definitely test your chemistry knowledge and will rarely use calculations. It also depends on the material. For example the solubility unit will be much more calculation based than the others this quarter.
I really like the worked out solutions for the homework like Dr. Zelmer does.
-- Pharmacy, Sophomore
Be enthusiastic, teach the material in an organized, helpful way. Be available in office hours. I hated how the solutions were posted online but were illegible.
--Zoology, Freshman
Although I was very hesitant, I posted the worked out solutions to the homework problems on carmen. They are typed so hopefully you will be able to read them. PLEASE work them out on your own first and then take a look at the solutions. It will be much more beneficial for you. If you ever have any questions please do not hesitate to ask or send me an e-mail.
Use analogies and anyway to relate what we are doing to the real world values and uses.
--Medical Technology, Sophomore
Try to make the material “come alive.” And by that I mean use material with real life applications/situations. Analogies also help.
--Biomedical Engineering, Junior
Don’t lecture isolated facts of just read through power points. Connect to life somehow\explain in a variety of ways.
--Biology, Sophomore
I hope to learn the concepts in depth and not just for the exam. I look forward to the class!
--Biomedical Science, Freshman
In my mind chemistry follows a logical pattern. At first it is really tough to see how that pattern relates in the grand scheme of things, but as a teacher my ultimate goal is for me to point out that logical pattern to you and for you to LEARN the material rather than memorize it or reproduce it. I’ll try to add in little quirky Dr. Fusisms and make you laugh at least once in class. Puff Daddy claims its all about the Benjamins, but if Diddy were to write a song about solubility it would be all about the equilibrium expression. If you ever see a movie or song or some kind of analogy or youtube video that I could include in this class or in this blog please let me know and I will incorporate it into the course.
Keep us interested! Reviews before exams are great and I always found them helpful.
--Chemistry, Freshman
I always hold my own review sessions before the exams. All I do is show up and take your questions. I have nothing prepared so it is imperative to come prepared. Since the exams are held on Monday’s this quarter plan for the review session to be held on the Friday evenings before the exam.
I’ve heard good things about you and I’m hoping that you won’t try to scare us into working hard for this course like 122 because it just shot my confidence instead of pushing me.
--Psychology, Freshman
I would rather motivate you into working hard and studying rather than scare you. The exams will be challenging though.
I felt that my Chem 122 professor was setting us up for failure. It was like they enjoyed knowing that we didn’t know the material they did and they were the professor!!
--Biology, Freshman
I’m not sure how to respond to this one. Failure is a lesson that needs to be taught to students and it is something that few of you have experienced through high school. Lebron James was on 60 minutes the other week and he talked about failure. “No. You can’t be afraid to fail,” James told 60 minutes. “It’s the only way you succeed - you’re not going to succeed all the time, and I know that. You have to be able to accept failure to get better.”
I don’t think there should be MCAT questions that we’ve never discussed on the exams.
--Biology, Freshman
Well, I will not teach towards the MCAT, but like I did today in class if there is a common question that is typically seen on the MCAT I will definitely point it out to everyone. And judging by the surveys, over half the class plans on taking the MCAT, so it will be useful for those students to point things out.
I hope you will teach at a good pace that works for most people and realize when there are subjects that the majority of people are having trouble with. Hopefully exams will not be completely unexpected and hard.
--Neuroscience/French, Freshman
This is my third time teaching Chem 123 so I have had the opportunity to see which concepts students struggle with and hopefully I can improve on my teaching methods. I am always up for suggestions and criticisms. Please let me know if you think I can do anything better or be more effective.
I really appreciated your lecture methods in 121; by taking the time to write your notes on the board and explain them, it was easier for me to understand the material.
--Zoology, Freshman
You can thank my favorite undergraduate professor Dr. Rajaseelan for the way I teach. I can still hear him talking up in front of the class as I wrote down my notes. I hope I can have the same impact on you as he did on me. In my opinion chalk talk is the best way to learn, but I am also open to any suggestions that you might have to improve my performance.
Keep playing music before class
--Zoology, Freshman
Not a problem at all! Can’t wait to play these songs!
Just be into teaching ;)
-- Biochemistry, Sophomore
I try to have as much fun as I can in lecture and in the labs. I really enjoy teaching and hopefully it will show this quarter. If all goes well, class will be just as rockin as this party!
Hopefully the comments will start rolling in from everyone. Send me an e-mail titled Friday Mail Bag and list your major and hometown and I will post the top questions/comments of the week. I hope you are enjoying your first week back from break, Dr. Fus
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