Chemistry 111 2009
Laboratory
The laboratory portion of Chem 111 takes place in either Room 202 or 203 in the Physical Sciences Building. For lab, you must bring a printout of the experiment (downloaded from table below) and a completed Prelab Assignment. You must also either bring or have left in your locker safety goggles. The lockers do not lock, despite the impression the name “lockers” might give, so you take your chances leaving the goggles in the lab.
Safety
Safety is the most important concern in the Chemistry Lab. Read the linked Safety Document.
Schedule and Downloads
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Week |
Lab Title and Experiment Download |
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Aug. 31 |
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Sep. 7 |
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Sep. 14 |
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Sep. 21 |
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Sep. 28 |
Break Week: No labs |
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Oct. 5 |
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Oct. 12 |
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Oct. 19 |
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Oct. 26 |
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Nov. 2 |
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Nov. 9 |
Print all Three |
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Nov. 16 |
Copper Continued |
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Nov. 23 |
Break Week: No labs |
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Nov. 30 |
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Dec. 7 |
Clean Up and Check Out |
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Makeup Lab: Download Handout and Two Videos. Use the videos to complete the handout and then hand in the hand out.
Lab Notebook
If you do an experiment and do not accurately record the data, it’s as if you never did the experiment at all. You must have a lab notebook, separate from your regular lecture notebook. Any notebook is fine except a loose leaf. The notebook will not be graded per se, but all data in your lab reports must be derived from data in your notebook. Your instructor may, at any time, ask you to show where data in your lab reports is found in your notebook.
When you record data, you should note what you are measuring and include appropriate units.
For example, don’t write
1.023
instead, write
Step 1. mass of aluminum: 1.023 g
It is not necessary to rewrite the lab procedure in the notebook but you should note any differences between the procedure and what you actually do.
Do NOT write on the experiment handout except when it also serves as a report form. It is a very bad habit.
When an experiment asks you to “accurately weigh about 1 g” of a material, that means you should know the mass exactly but it does not need to be exactly 1.000 g. Anywhere from 0.900 to 1.100 is fine. It is considered bad form to weigh exactly 1.000 g.
Lab Reports
For each experiment you will hand in a Lab Report. These will generally be due at the start of the next lab period, but sometimes you will complete it the same day you do the lab. All reports should reflect your own work. It is fine to work together on understanding the chemistry, and sometimes you will be asked to work in pairs or teams during the lab, but your writeup should always be done individually. Copying wording or calculations from each other represents plagiarism.
A sample lab report with directions on how to prepare one is posted here:
Laboratory Technique Videos
Laboratory
Technique Videos
Using a Spectronic-20 Spectrophotometer
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Policy on Course Attendance, Participation and Behavior
1. Students are expected to attend all scheduled course sessions and should be prepared by reading in advance any relevant material assigned or provided. Participation (defined by interacting with the instructor, working problems at the board, individually or in groups, using personal response “Clicker” systems and other mechanisms defined in the syllabus) is expected.
2. Students are reminded that instructors are not required to accept assignments submitted late, except in instances allowed according to College policies. College Policies as defined in the Student Code of Conduct apply to lecture, recitation and laboratory portions of all courses.
3. Laboratories are an integral part of education in chemistry courses. As a result, participation in all laboratories scheduled for a course is expected. Unless alternate activities are scheduled, students can expect that their laboratory section will meet each week, and failure to attend laboratories may lead to failure in the course.
4. The laboratory for a course must be passed, normally by earning 60% of the available score, in order to pass the course. Exceptions may be noted in syllabus.
5. Students are expected to bring to laboratory the laboratory manual (or printout of the experiment), a laboratory notebook (if required), a calculator, ruler or other materials as specified by the instructor or in the syllabus.
6. Students are not allowed to work in the laboratory without direct faculty supervision.
7. Unless announced in advance, SAFETY GOGGLES (WHICH PROVIDE A COMPLETE SEAL AROUND THE EYES AND ARE EQUIPPED WITH INDIRECT VENTS) ARE REQUIRED TO BE WORN AT ALL TIMES IN THE LABORATORY. STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE THEIR OWN SAFETY GOGGLES.
8. Open-toed shoes (e.g. sandals, “Birkenstocks”, flip-flops, etc), unrestrained long-hair, excessively loose clothing and other items which may be easily ignited or snag on apparatus are not allowed.
9. Food, drink, candy, cosmetics, tobacco products, etc. are not allowed in the laboratory.
10. Students are expected to be attentive to the material and any experiments and apparatus in the laboratory. The following must be turned off and stored away from the laboratory bench while in laboratories:
Portable music players (e.g. iPods, MP3 players and the like)
Cellular telephones, pagers, text messaging devices and the like
Other portable electronic devices as defined by the laboratory instructor
11. Horseplay, practical jokes, “goofing around” or interfering with other students’ work is not allowed in the laboratory.
12. Students should not expect to be able to makeup missed laboratory sessions or experiments. If a makeup session is possible, it will be at the discretion of the laboratory instructor and will normally be during the same week as the missed laboratory section.
13. Students will not be permitted to work in any laboratory section other than that they are registered for unless they have the written approval of both their regular instructor AND the instructor in the section they wish to enter.
Course instructors may modify these guidelines as necessary to meet the requirements of individual courses or chemical specialties in consultation with the Department Chairperson. Students should expect to receive a copy of these guidelines in their course syllabus or be given a copy by the course instructor (either in paper form or by electronic mail).