ACS’ annual Chemists Celebrate Earth Week (CCEW) event focuses on the link between chemistry and efforts to protect our environment. Chemistry is critical to understanding and preserving the Earth, in areas such as energy research, and protecting resources such as clean air and water. In honor of Earth Day 2018, the Journal of Chemical Education is […]

ACS’ annual Chemists Celebrate Earth Week (CCEW) event focuses on the link between chemistry and efforts to protect our environment. Chemistry is critical to understanding and preserving the Earth, in areas such as energy research, and protecting resources such as clean air and water. In honor of Earth Day 2018, the Journal of Chemical Education is highlighting content related to the 2018 CCEW theme “Dive into Marine Chemistry”.

The articles, activities, and laboratory experiments listed below provide ideas for bringing environmental chemistry to students on a variety of topics, including marine chemistry, seawater, ocean acidification, contaminants in fish and seafood, and oil spill remediation.

Environmental chemistry engages students of all levels in learning new chemistry concepts by relating chemistry to their daily lives and creating awareness of environmental issues. With 95 volumes of interesting and useful material including a wide variety of environmental chemistry topics, it is easy to connect the classroom experience to the greater world through the Journal of Chemical Education.

Exploring Marine Chemistry

Exploring the Ocean – Stating the Case for Chemistry
J. Chem. Educ., 1999, 76 (8), p 1075
DOI: 10.1021/ed076p1075

The Role of Water Chemistry in Marine Aquarium Design: A Model System for a General Chemistry Class
J. Chem. Educ., 2008, 85 (2), p 225
DOI: 10.1021/ed085p225

Extending the Marine Microcosm Laboratory
J. Chem. Educ., 2007, 84 (2), p 306
DOI: 10.1021/ed084p306

An Aquarium as a Means for the Interdisciplinary Teaching of Chemistry
J. Chem. Educ., 2000, 77 (10), p 1311
DOI: 10.1021/ed077p1311

Examining Seawater and Properties of Sea Salt

Field and In-Lab Determination of Ca2+ in Seawater
J. Chem. Educ., 2014, 91 (11), pp 1954–1957
DOI: 10.1021/ed4005722

The Analysis of Seawater: A Laboratory-Centered Learning Project in General Chemistry
J. Chem. Educ., 2003, 80 (1), p 54
DOI: 10.1021/ed080p54

The Water Project: A Multi-Week Laboratory Project for Undergraduate Analytical Chemistry
J. Chem. Educ., 2003, 80 (1), p 58
DOI: 10.1021/ed080p58

Using Beads and Divided Containers To Study Kinetic and Equilibrium Isotope Effects in the Laboratory and in the Classroom
J. Chem. Educ., 2017, 94 (8), pp 1118–1123
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b01004

Investigating Dissolution and Precipitation Phenomena with a Smartphone Microscope
J. Chem. Educ., 2016, 93 (10), pp 1754–1759
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00248

The Dynamic Density Bottle: A Make-and-Take, Guided Inquiry Activity on Density
J. Chem. Educ., 2015, 92 (9), pp 1503–1506
DOI: 10.1021/ed500830w

Investigating Ocean Acidification

Ocean Acidification: Investigation and Presentation of the Effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxide Levels on Seawater Chemistry and Calcareous Organisms
J. Chem. Educ., 2016, 93 (4), pp 718–721
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.5b00676

Laboratory Experiment Investigating the Impact of Ocean Acidification on Calcareous Organisms
J. Chem. Educ., 2008, 85 (2), p 213
DOI: 10.1021/ed085p213

Analyzing Contaminants in Fish and Seafood

A Simplified Digestion Protocol for the Analysis of Hg in Fish by Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy
J. Chem. Educ., 2015, 92 (4), pp 698–702
DOI: 10.1021/ed500687b

Determination of Mercury in Fish: A Low-Cost Implementation of Cold-Vapor Atomic Absorbance for the Undergraduate Environmental Chemistry Laboratory
J. Chem. Educ., 2013, 90 (4), pp 487–489
DOI: 10.1021/ed300471w

Rapid Determination of Mercury in Seafood in an Introductory Environmental Science Class
J. Chem. Educ., 2005, 82 (2), p 265
DOI: 10.1021/ed082p265

An Undergraduate Experiment for the Measurement of Perfluorinated Surfactants in Fish Liver by Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry
J. Chem. Educ., 2007, 84 (2), p 310
DOI: 10.1021/ed084p310

Experimenting with Oil Spill Remediation

An Oil Spill in a Tube: An Accessible Approach for Teaching Environmental NMR Spectroscopy
J. Chem. Educ., 2015, 92 (4), pp 693–697
DOI: 10.1021/ed500364b

Magnetic Particle Technology. A Simple Preparation of Magnetic Composites for the Adsorption of Water Contaminants
J. Chem. Educ., 2004, 81 (2), p 248
DOI: 10.1021/ed081p248

Oil Spill Remediation Using Magnetic Particles: An Experiment in Environmental Technology
J. Chem. Educ., 1997, 74 (12), p 1446
DOI: 10.1021/ed074p1446

Get More Earth Day Resources From ACS Journals: ACS Earth & Space Chemistry

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