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Molarity and Solution Calculators

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MS Physical Science Overview, Science2Go

MS Life Science Overview, Science2Go

HS Environmental Science Overview, Science2Go

HS Physics Overview, Science2Go

HS Chemistry I Overview, Science2Go

HS Biology I Overview, Science2Go

Sending Chemicals Home—A No-No!

Sending chemicals home with students or allowing students to take laboratory chemicals home is a dangerous practice and is a lawsuit waiting to happen. Three possible scenarios are reviewed that will clarify the hazards and liability issues associated with this practice. A student wanted to perform some independent science experiments at home and asked the teacher for some chemicals. The teacher provided the chemicals along with warnings about the hazards. The student was injured when the experiment exploded. Resulting lawsuits and appeals found the teacher and school district liable. It was found that the teacher breached the duty of care because it was foreseeable that the student could be injured in the performance of an unauthorized experiment (Hutchison vs. Toews).1 A third grade teacher conducted a crystal growing experiment using copper sulfate. The students were warned that the crystals were dangerous to eat. After the experiment was complete, the students were allowed to take the crystals (which looked like rock candy) home. On the bus ride home, a third grader gave a crystal to a second grader to eat. The second grader become violently ill and was hospitalized for several days with stomach burns. The parents of the second grader are seeking $5 million in damages from the school district.2 Vinegar and sodium bicarbonate, typical household chemicals, were sent home with students so that they could perform simple experiments to determine the ratios that produce the most amount of gas. During the at-home experiment, vinegar splashed into the eye of a younger sibling watching the experiment. No long-term damage resulted, but the accident did require a visit to the emergency room.

Methyl Alcohol Safety

Safe laboratory practices will prevent accidents when using methyl alcohol. It is essential that you understand the properties of methyl alcohol and observe comprehensive safety precautions for its storage, handling and use.

Van de Graaff Generator Safety

Van de Graaff generators build up and maintain a high voltage static electric charge—some of them up to 500,000 volts. Safely operating a Van de Graaff generator is essential if students are to have the opportunity to see the many exciting and memorable static electricity demonstrations performed with a Van de Graaff generator.

What Is 120/80?

The heart is a pump that keeps blood flowing through the arteries and veins. The pressure of the blood is not steady—pressure surges with each heartbeat. When the heart beats, the blood pressure in the vessels is the highest. When the heart relaxes, the blood pressure is lowest. Knowing your blood pressure is as important as knowing your weight and height. High blood pressure (hypertension) is associated with an increased risk for heart attacks, strokes, ruptured blood vessels and kidney failure. In this activity, you can measure your blood pressure.

Egg Geodes

Put a spin on egg decorating—add some crystals! Experience the science and beauty of crystal formation while growing your very own egg geodes.

Tornado Tube®

Create a vortex in a bottle with the amazing and fun-filled Tornado Tube®.

Overhead Precipitation

Combine potassium iodide and lead(II) nitrate to introduce students to the topic of double replacement reactions!

Temperature Equilibrium Tubes

Many important reactions that take place in the atmosphere involve equilibrium concentrations of gas-phase reactants and products. How does temperature affect the position of equilibrium for the dimerization reaction of nitrogen dioxide?

Hydrolysis of Salts

Show the effects of hydrolysis of salts on the acid–base properties of a solution with this colorful demonstration that can be done on an overhead projector.

Elements, Compounds and Mixtures

Samples of an element, a compound, and a mixture may look similar “on the outside.” But when we talk about these concepts with students, we are asking them to see what they look like “on the inside”—we want them to imagine atoms, molecules and mixtures and notice how they are different. This “nuts and bolts” demonstration will help your students visualize abstract concepts relating to the classification of matter.

Reactions of Alkali Metals

Elements are classified based on similarities, differences and trends in their properties, including their chemical reactions. The reactions of alkali metals with water are pretty spectacular chemical reactions. Mixtures bubble and boil, fizz and hiss and may even smoke and burn. Introduce the study of the periodic table and periodic trends with this exciting demonstration of the activity of metals.

Total Acidity on a Small Scale

The refreshing taste of fresh fruit juices is due to a complex blend of flavors and fragrances. Fruit juices get their sweet taste from sugars, primarily fructose and glucose, and their sour or tart taste from acids, such as citric acid and tartaric acid. The balance of sugar to acid content is one of the main factors responsible for the appealing taste of fruit juices—too much sugar, and the juice will taste bland, but too much acid, and the juice will taste sour. In this activity, the “total acidity” of fruit juices will be determined by titration with sodium hydroxide.

Synthesis of Manganese(II) Chloride

Students learn in different ways. By varying your teaching style you can help students sharpen their learning skills. Use the technique of the silent lecture to demonstrate the various factors that effect reaction rates.

Spice: The Cinnamaldehyde Clock Reaction

A clock reaction is conducted using a solution of cinnamaldehyde, the organic molecule extracted from cinnamon sticks and used to create artificial cinnamon flavoring. The effects of temperature and concentration changes are shown through dramatic color changes in the reacting solution.

How to Generate Ammonia Gas

Ammonia gas can be generated by heating concentrated ammonium hydroxide.

Electrolysis of Potassium Iodide

Electrolysis,Oxidation and Reduction,Anode and Cathode,Cell potential,Copper(II) bromide solution, CuBr2, 0.2 M, 150 mL,Phenolphthalein indicator solution, 0.5%, 20 mL,Potassium iodide solution, KI, 0.5 M, 150 mL,Sodium chloride solution, NaCl, 0.5 M, 150 mL,Sodium thiosulfate &ldquo,waste beaker,&rdquo,Na2S2O3, 3 M in H2SO4 (for disposal),Starch solution, 0.5%, 30 mL,Water, distilled,Batteries, 9-V, 15,Battery caps with alligator clip leads, 15,Paper towels,Pencil lead electrodes, 0.9-mm, 30,Petri dish, partitioned, 3-way, 15,Pipets, Beral-type, 45,Stirring rods, 15,Wash bottles, 15,Wax pencils or marking pens, 15,,

The Littlest Holiday Tree

Add a drop of clear solution to a microscope slide containing a tiny piece of copper and create a beautiful, silver-branched holiday tree that grows before your very eyes!

Floating Clip

Use magnets to show the attraction of cations and anions, induced dipole moments and other analogies.

The Effervescent Oscillator

Oscillating reactions typically involve eye-catching color changes, but here’s one where the oscillations are between the generation and cessation of gas bubbles. A colorless solution will effervesce intensely, then the bubbling will decrease, with the cycle repeating itself for several minutes.

A Flash of Blue

In a flash, a colorless solution turns a dramatic deep-blue color! Amaze your students with this popular starch–iodine clock reaction.

Thawing Acid Rain

Acid rain has received a great deal of attention in recent years and its effect on the environment is well documented. Acid rain can arrive in the form of rain, snow, or ice. Winter snow pack can be thought of as frozen acid rain waiting for the spring thaw. What happens when the snow pack melts? Does it matter whether it melts quickly or slowly?

Molal Freezing Point Depression Constants

The freezing point of a liquid is the temperature at which the forces of attraction among molecules are just enough to cause a phase change from the liquid state to the solid state. It is the temperature at which the liquid and solid phases exist in equilibrium. The solvent molecules in a solution are somewhat more separated from each other than they are in a pure solvent due to the interference of solute particles. Therefore, the temperature of a solution must be lowered below the freezing point of the pure solvent in order to freeze it. The freezing point depression (ΔTf) of solutions of nonelectrolytes has been found to be equal to the molality (m) of the solute times a proportionality constant called the molal freezing point depression constant (Kf). Therefore, {13470_Introduction_Equation_1} where m is the number of moles of solute per kilograms of solvent.

Why Copper Is Reddish in Color

Did you ever wonder why most common metals are silver in color except copper and gold? Why does copper have a reddish color and gold have a yellowish color? Is your curiosity piqued? Read on!

Make Your Own Radial Chromatogram

Use spinning (radial) paper chromatography to separate the components of an ink mixture from a water-soluble, felt-tip pen. The chromatography centrifuge device allows separations to be performed faster and easier than traditional methods and results in amazingly beautiful radial chromatograms.

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