ERIC Number: EJ1243327
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020-Feb
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0021-9584
EISSN: N/A
Evaluating Feedstocks, Processes, and Products in the Teaching Laboratory: A Framework for Students to Use Metrics to Design Greener Chemistry Experiments
Journal of Chemical Education, v97 n2 p390-401 Feb 2020
Exciting developments in the field of Green Chemistry spur the continuous innovation of experiments in the teaching laboratory. Beyond learning practical techniques, students can critically assess experiments using relevant metrics to propose further improvements and identify the most important interconnected impacts of these alternative products and processes. Herein we review popular laboratory experiments through the simple framework of feedstocks, processes, and products, offering data-driven methods for student evaluation of experiments used in the teaching laboratory. These evaluations employ techniques from lifecycle assessments and techno-economic analyses leveraging freely available data from online databases and safety data sheets. These methods may be used by students and educators to first assess seemingly distinct facets of a chemical transformation (energy inputs, reagent toxicity, etc.) and then relate these to meaningfully address system-wide improvements (replacing harmful solvents, reducing reagent costs, etc.).
Descriptors: Chemistry, Science Experiments, Science Instruction, Laboratory Experiments, Conservation (Environment), Evaluation Methods, Data Use, College Science
Division of Chemical Education, Inc. and ACS Publications Division of the American Chemical Society. 1155 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 800-227-5558; Tel: 202-872-4600; e-mail: eic@jce.acs.org; Web site: http://pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A