This review extends on previously reported findings in which students were asked to construct Reaction Coordinate Diagrams (RCDs) de novo. Instead of asking students to construct RCDs, this study explores students' understanding of kinetics and thermodynamics when provided with mechanisms for the Aldol and Claisen condensations. Data was collected…

Energy conversion devices such as fuel cells, metal-air batteries, and electrolyzers have been envisaged as possible solutions for cutting down the continuous accumulation of greenhouse gases resulting from the combustion of fossil fuel. The bottleneck reaction for these devices is the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) occurring at the cathode. The…

This study reports an undergraduate laboratory experiment that explores the temperature-dependent kinetics of caffeine release during tea steeping by using quantitative [superscript 1]H NMR spectroscopy with a water suppression pulse sequence. Designed for introductory organic chemistry laboratory courses, the experiment emphasizes the real-world…

Understanding the physicochemical properties of organic compounds with potential biological uses is central in current research topics. Thus, students must pursue the integration of different fields of chemistry to obtain and understand the physicochemical parameters that characterize the mechanism of action of key organics compounds. This…

The distinction between pressure in a liquid and in a gas is often treated in a cursory way, or not treated at all, even in university level textbooks. Most texts fail to point out the relation between pressure and density in a gas as compared to pressure in a--virtually incompressible--liquid. In many instances this also results in a dismissive…

Recent progress in elucidating chemical reactions allows to explain chemistry by the potential energy of the involved chemical structures. Nevertheless, from an educational point of view, empirical results indicate that students often do not connect the core idea of energy with other chemical concepts. From a resource-oriented perspective,…

Millions of people do not have access to clean drinking water; thus, cost-efficient water treatment systems are vital. Chemists, environmentalists, technicians, and engineers will be the professionals making breakthroughs in this industry. This laboratory experiment aims to introduce undergraduate students to the removal of pollutants from water…

Optimization is a component critical to method development. Mathematical modeling of physical phenomena enables an efficient search for the parameters and conditions that optimize methods and systems. Here, optimization of methods in sonoelectrochemistry, electrochemical separations, electrochemical education, and assessment of diabetic status are…

Recently, scholars have suggested a co-design collaboration with instructors and students to effectively implement formative assessment (FA) practices because it ensures a high-quality design that considers users' needs, values, and goals in a specific learning context. This study examines the effect of co-designed FA practices, in which…

The effects of kinetic vs thermodynamic control on "endo"/"exo" stereoisomer ratios can be observed in a simple Diels-Alder reaction between "N"-phenylmaleimide and furan. The use of microwave-promoted synthesis affords the cycloadducts in yields ranging from 65-100%, employing reaction times of 1-10 min at…

Thermodynamics and kinetics are key topics in the chemistry curriculum that pose challenges to students across a range of educational levels. These struggles arise from the complexity and mixed representations inherent to the topics. Additionally, while thermodynamics and kinetics are related, students struggle to make conceptually correct…

The Maxwell distribution of speeds, f(v), is the starting point for the calculation of the transport coefficients in kinetic-molecular theory. Most physical chemistry textbooks follow a path to derive f(v) similar to that used by Maxwell, which makes it difficult for students to understand its relationship with the equilibrium state of the system,…

One of the unique advantages of electrochemistry is that the relationship between thermodynamics and kinetics is quantitative, which is the basis of voltammetry. Mathematical models of electrochemical systems take advantage of this relationship to predict the effect of changing a system property (e.g., concentration, scan rate, or rate constant)…

Biochemistry textbooks often provide a disconnected, highly mathematical, and decontextualized treatment of thermodynamic and kinetic principles, which renders topics like protein folding difficult to teach. This is concerning given that graduates entering careers, like the pharmaceutical industry, must be able to apply such knowledge and related…

A 4-week mini-project is proposed for an experimental Physical Chemistry course applied in Food Science training. Activities include preparation of beet extract for the extraction of betanins and analysis of the kinetics of betanins in thermal degradation at three temperatures (60, 70, and 80 ºC). In addition to developing common laboratory…