29 Quantitative Determination of Metals Part B. Build Your Own Lab Experiment
Fotis Nifiatis
Learning Objectives
The students will learn to search literature and design a lab experiment. Course Objective: Experimental design. HIP activity: Collaborative Projects, Undergraduate Research. Digital tools: The use of digital tools depends on the proposed analysis.
Purpose/Rationale
Instructions
The students (in groups of 3) will have to design an experimental procedure for the analysis of a metal of their choice in a sample. The students will have to search the literature for the quantitative analysis of a metal. Any method (including spectroscopic) will be acceptable if the required equipment and glassware are available in the lab. Each group will have a week to decide on their project, search the literature, and design the experiment/analysis. At the beginning of the second week, each group will need to meet for 30 min with the instructor to discuss their experiment in detail.
Format Requirements
Students must provide a detailed experimental procedure, and a possible graph of any glass set up (apparatus) they may use, including the volume of each component. A list of reagents needed should be included as well. During the lab, they will perform their experiment and possibly make appropriate changes.
Rubric/Criteria
Students will be graded out of 100. The assignment will have the same contribution to the overall lab grade as any other assignment. All members should be fully prepared for the 30 min discussion they will have with the instructor. During the meeting, students will be asked as a group and individually theoretical and experimental questions based on the proposed analysis. The students should come to the meeting with a word document with the following information about the proposed experiment: 1. Project title (10 pts) 2. Purpose/Reaction (25 pts) 3. Physical properties and hazards of all reagents used (25 pts) 3. Detailed experimental procedure (40 pts) The instructor will determine whether students are ready to perform the experiment in the lab. If an additional meeting is required (for any reason), 25 points will be deducted from each student.
