The second edition includes a thermochemistry experiment on the solvation of urea, an updated Laboratory Equipment and Techniques section, selective report questions, prelaboratory exercises, and Further Reading references. Each experiment has a well-defined objective that underscores a basic chemical tenet while providing a reliable, reproducible and satisfying result. Students perform essential laboratory techniques such as weighing, titration, glass-working, and informed...
More DescriptionThe second edition includes a thermochemistry experiment on the solvation of urea, an updated Laboratory Equipment and Techniques section, selective report questions, prelaboratory exercises, and Further Reading references. Each experiment has a well-defined objective that underscores a basic chemical tenet while providing a reliable, reproducible and satisfying result. Students perform essential laboratory techniques such as weighing, titration, glass-working, and informed calculations based on experimental data. Professional conduct including approaches to safety rules, chemical disposal and storage, organization, and neatness in laboratory operations are integral to each experiment. Through the assembly of scientific apparatus leading to the observation of chemical reactions, this laboratory course stimulates an interest in chemical phenomena. The use of "unknowns" and the use of specific laboratory techniques applied to solve practical problems demonstrate the investigative nature of chemistry. Through these exercises, students learn that even the most precise scientific measurements are subject to uncertainty. Students learn to distinguish between experimental errors, uncertainties, and "blunders." The importance of error analysis is introduced at an early stage. The exercises within this manual may be used in an independent laboratory course, separate from lecture, or in conjunction with a variety of textbooks. This manual is designed for an instructor to schedule experiments that meet the demands of many varied and different student groups. The laboratory experiments include basic principles, techniques of separation and identification; moles, and stoichiometry; chemical thermodynamics; electron transfer; acid-base equilibria; kinetics and physical properties of matter; and synthesis and characterization of inorganic compounds and complex ions. Parts of the manual are designed to take advantage of the vastly increased computing power offered by smart phones, computer tablets, and personal computers. For example, the treatment of uncertainty and error analysis is an optional exercise in Experiments 10 and 21. Instructors may choose any suitable sequence of laboratory exercise to fulfill general chemistry course requirements. For example an instructor may find that the sequence 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 6, 12, 19 best fits a particular course. By using Experiments 22-25, it is possible to include qualitative analysis or identification of ions without using a formal qualitative analysis scheme.