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
Monday, April 27, 2009
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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