This article outlines the reasons why practical work is declining in schools. Microscale chemistry is put forward as a sustainable way of remedying this. The advantages of its use are outlined, including a description of some practical techniques that can be used to illustrate these advantages. There is also a description of how you can make the…

Discusses the importance of ethene (ethylene) in industry and the pipeline grid in western Europe for transporting ethene. Describes methods for investigating organic compounds in school laboratories using ethene as the key compound. (JR)

Describes the procedure for making a quantitative analysis of organic compounds suitable for secondary school chemistry classes. Using the Schoniger procedure, the organic compound, such as PVC, is decomposed in a conical flask with oxygen. The products are absorbed in a suitable liquid and analyzed by titration. (JR)

Describes a procedure for establishing a viscosity trend through a homologous series and presents sample data. (GS)

Describes a set of experiments for the catalytic oxidation of alkenes to aldehydes and ketones which can be carried out in a test tube by the student. (BR)

Contains contributed suggestions in the teaching of structure and bonding and reaction rates and equilibria in the Nuffield Advanced Chemistry Project. (CP)

Describes a British secondary school's use of a spectrometer to identify minerals. Discusses the origins of mineral spectra, the preparation of the specimen, the actual spectroscopic scanning, and the interpretation of the spectra. (TW)

Presents background information, laboratory procedures, classroom materials/activities, and chemistry experiments. Topics include sublimation, electronegativity, electrolysis, experimental aspects of strontianite, halide test, evaluation of present and future computer programs in chemistry, formula building, care of glass/saturated calomel…

Presents chemistry experiments, laboratory procedures, demonstrations, teaching suggestions, and classroom materials/activities. These include: game for teaching ionic formulas; method for balancing equations; description of useful redox series; computer programs (with listings) for water electrolysis simulation and for determining chemical…

Describes 13 activities, experiments and demonstrations, including the preparation of iron (III) chloride, simple alpha-helix model, investigating camping gas, redox reactions of some organic compounds, a liquid crystal thermometer, and the oxidation number concept in organic chemistry. (JN)

Describes equipment, activities, and experiments useful in chemistry instruction, including among others, a rapid method to determine available chlorine in bleach, simple flame testing apparatus, and a simple apparatus demonstrating the technique of flash photolysis. (SK)