Poinsettia ("Euphorbia pulcherrima") contains anthocyanins that dissolve in water and exhibit color changes due to changing pH. This property makes the poinsettia extract a useful acid-base indicator for pH demonstrations. When combined with common household materials, this experiment can be used as an alternative low-cost tool in…

MóviLab (Moving Lab) was an educational strategy developed at Universidad Industrial de Santander, Colombia, to promote chemistry and science among schoolchildren and teenagers from far rural areas of the Santurbán moor in Colombia during the COVID-19 pandemic. The strategy consisted of designing a kit with chemistry experiments that could be done…

Herein, two simulated electrochemistry experiments, namely, the (i) electrochemical series, using an electronic half-cell module, and (ii) citrus fruit battery series are demonstrated for undergraduate chemistry students. The demonstration can be performed for in-person and remote students by connecting the electronic half-cell module to a…

The essential component of expanding an undergraduate curriculum is the inclusion of lab experiments in nanoscience and nanomaterials, which significantly impact health and the environment through their use in food, cosmetics, agriculture, and medicine. We designed a laboratory experiment based on the atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis of the…

A multistep synthesis of a novel arylidene 3­(2"H")-furanone has been designed and optimized for the second-year organic laboratory. The three-step sequence consists of a nucleophilic substitution, intramolecular cyclization, and acid-catalyzed aldol condensation, and can be carried out within two 3 h laboratory periods. The final…

Using crystal structure data, site directed mutagenesis, and real-time kinetic assays, students designed, expressed, and purified engineered mutants of human insulin-degrading enzyme (IDE). Students designed their own IDE mutants following "in silico" analysis, used inverse PCR to generate mutant plasmid expression constructs, expressed…

The concept of co-amorphous systems is introduced in an integrated laboratory experiment, designed for advanced chemistry students, using solvent-free, environmentally friendly mechanochemistry. The dual-drug naproxen-cimetidine co-amorphous system (NPX-CIM) is investigated as an example of the emergent field of medicinal mechanochemistry.…

The COVID-19 pandemic, which emerged in early 2020, forced educational institutions in Thailand to chiefly rely on online learning during the government mandated lockdown for almost two academic years. Although migration to the online format seems to suit lectures, it is inadequate for laboratory courses since students could not do the experiment…

The demand for sustainable synthetic methods in modern industry has been increasing rapidly due to the requirements of environmental protection and energy conservation, which has brought organic electrochemical synthesis to the forefront nowadays. Here, a two-part laboratory experiment has been designed to train undergraduates in comprehending and…

Chemical reasoning takes many forms. The focus in this paper is on a reasoning process that facilitates using experimental evidence to make connections between macroscopic and submicroscopic domains, which we will refer to as "creating representation." It is a particular type of reasoning that has played a critical role in chemistry,…

Numerous academic studies in the field of chemical education utilize the conceptual framework of three distinct tiers that underlie the instruction and acquisition of chemical knowledge. This framework is commonly depicted in a chemistry triangle, with the vertices denoted as macroscopic, submicroscopic, and symbolic. The ability of students to…

The reaction between hydrochloric acid and calcium carbonate to produce carbon dioxide gas is a popular and engaging experiment to illustrate chemical reactions that result in the production of gases. It also provides a useful model for teaching concepts related to the effects of concentration on reaction rates. Although a prepared hydrochloric…

The [2 + 2] photocycloaddition reaction of olefins is an effective, atom-economical approach to produce cyclobutane compounds in organic synthetic chemistry, and they usually exhibit high regioselectivity and stereoselectivity. Here we devised a solid-state [2 + 2] photocycloaddition experiment that introduces senior undergraduate students with…

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…

In all fields of chemistry, it has become essential to use quantum chemical calculations and machine learning for explaining and predicting chemical phenomena. However, it is challenging to apply textbook knowledge to practical research. In this study, we developed teaching material based on computational chemistry to promote the integration of…