Chemistry Puns

I've decided to dedicate this specific post to funny and encouraging pictures to help brighten your day amid the stresses and tortures of AP testing and finals looming over our heads.

Air Bag Lab

This lab was actually really helpful and a great way to review the concepts we've learned from previous units. We were told to formulate our own procedure as our pre-lab quiz. Although it took me a while to figure it out entirely, it was a relief when I actually understood the steps I had to take to pass this lab. We were to make a bag fill up only using baking soda and vinegar to a point where the bag is stretched, but not bursted. Thankfully, I passed and understood the calculations involved to get the answer.

Preparing for the Weekly Quiz

This week preparing for the quiz was easier because of the online practice tests on schoology that were made available to us. Being that half of the test is concepts and the other half is math indicated that we would need to know the material in all facets. It's getting down to crunch time and I'm nervous how my grade is going to come out since I'm also trying to cram things in for a bunch of other classes. So the week to come will definitely be a stressful one.

Charles' and Boyle's Laws

This unit over gas laws seems to be fairly straightforward. I'll definitely need a few days to get back into the swing of things after being focused on another project for so long.  Here are some useful supplements to guide you to a better understanding of these basic gas laws we've been covering in class.

Useful supplement for both laws

Heat Capacity of a Metal Lab

This lab didn't require much on the part of calculations, but it was still kind of fun to do. We had to find the specific heat of the copper we were given using only water in a cup and a probe to measure temperature. After all of the work we completed, Tyler and I felt confident that we had done everything right in the lab, and we compared our answers with the groups who had calculated it with lead instead. 

Similar type of lab

Specific Heat Lecture

Video Lecture

Phase Changes

What is specific heat?

Boat Races

So, Tyler and I constructed a boat to race using our newly made biodiesel, which would be used to compete against our classmates for extra credit points. Our first attempt was lame at best. Below you can see our first attempt. We ended up scrapping the entire thing and rebuilt it using a soda can instead. Although it wasn't the fastest boat in the class and we didn't get the extra credit, we crossed the finish line and got full points for the lab.

Our Video Submission

My lab partner Tyler and I made a short video to submit to a contest on how biodiesel is a better alternative than regular gasoline. Please take a minute to watch our video and learn a little about how biodiesel can better our world.

Biodiesel Video

What is biodiesel?

Biodiesel Basics

Benefits of Biodiesel

Unit Exam Reflection

This unit I didn't really get a chance to review. I think because I was so focused on spring break and all other things, I wasn't as prepared as I could've been for this test. I did all of the online quizzes but didn't understand many of the answers. I really need to go in to get help on this unit before I take the final for this semester. As long as I improve my understanding of the subject, I will be happy.

Lessons

Overview and Practice Questions

Electron Dot for Molecules

Bond Polarity Overview

Modeling Activity

Today we were in the Learning Commons to construct our own chemical bonds with balls and connectors, so that we could actually see the structure of the molecules being built. Along with it, we were able to draw on the tables with expo markers, which was one of the highlights of my day. It was a fun way to get out of the classroom and apply the concepts we'd been learning to a hands-on experience.

Test Reflection

Oh my. This last test was 50 questions, and as soon as I saw it I got nervous. Even though it was so long, I only had a few questions that I had no idea about which gave me a little more comfort. The questions went fairly quickly and I felt pretty good about how I did. To prepare I reviewed all of the unit's notes and I took the final schoology quiz on periodic trends. The quiz online was extremely beneficial because most of the concepts that were on the quiz were also on the test. Plus the questions online that I didn't know, I was able to ask some classmates about and I understood them after they explained it so I knew it for the test. We'll see how I did soon!

New Periodic Table Activities

This week we completed two activities involving placing letters in place of elements on the periodic table to make a new one. The first one was just identifying which elements represented which letter and putting them on the blank periodic table (not including transition elements). This one was more straightforward and took a lot less time because we only needed to identify which description fit which element and put it in the corresponding position. For the second activity though, it was not based on the real periodic table and we had to place made up elements on a blank table using density, atomic trends, and its reactions with other elements. This activity took a lot longer, but it was a little fun because it was kind of like a puzzle, a very frustrating, and complicated puzzle. Although, it was difficult, it gave me a better understanding of how elements are placed on the periodic table and how atomic trends work in that regard as well.

Quiz Preparation and Reflection

For this quiz, I tried something new and completed all of the practice tests on schoology and felt a lot more confident after going over the ones I had gotten wrong. This unit comes a lot more easily to me it seems like. Once I miss a problem, it only takes a little bit of an explanation for me to figure it out, but for previous units, it would take continued effort all throughout the unit in order to see my score improve. After taking the quiz, I felt fairly confident and I understood every question on the test and felt that I did an adequate amount of studying to prepare. This quiz score, I believe was one of my best this whole year, meaning that if I want to keep doing well, I think I should continue to complete those schoology quizzes because they seem to be working!
 

Spectroscopic Analysis

This lab wasn't as fun as ones previous. It was still an interesting concept, and it was a good way to practice and see things put to practice from lecture. We used a very large machine called a spectrophotometer and recorded a whole lot of % transmittance and absorbency from the Chromium and Cobalt ions for many different wavelengths. This was just a time-consuming lab because we had to use the distilled water before each recording to re-calibrate the machine and we did over 15 different wavelength calculations.

Retake for Aqueous Solutions

Well. I got the same grade on the retake as on the 1st round of this unit test. I was extremely disappointed because I studied  for hours for this test and yielded the same results. I guess this just wasn't my unit. For the next unit test though, I heard it will be a lot easier from now on, so that's something to look forward to!

Flame Test Lab

For this pre-lab, we were told to do a wavelength calculation for partner A, then partner B had to interpret the results of partner A's calculations to tell what color is produced. Mikayla and I both passed, so we were let back into lab. I found this lab to be particularly fun because we got to use a bunsen burner to burn different substances to produce different colors. This lab was a fun way to burn stuff, but also to practice our wavelength calculations for the upcoming quiz.

Fireworks Reading

Today, our teacher wasn't in class, so we were told to read a packet on how fireworks work and why they do the things they do. I found it really interesting to read about this because we see fireworks every year, yet we don't really know that much about how they work. I really liked learning through this reading because taking notes and filling out worksheets really helps me to learn faster and retain the information longer. It was a good way to ease into this new unit focusing on periodic trends and electronic structure, and I'm eager to get started with a lecture tomorrow.

Post-Test Review

I felt like I had a good grasp on that test. The first half was fairly easy, but as I got to the end of the test I didn't have enough time to complete it to the best of my abilities. I got an answer down for every question though. I feel like I need to budget my time better and I will find that I will succeed on these tests more. I'm anxious to know my score and to begin a new unit next week that I will hopefully enjoy!

Preparing for the Unit Test

I find myself studying for another unit test and completing the practice tests in the hopes that I will improve from my quiz score. As usual I find the schoology quizzes posted to be the most helpful and I completed every problem in preparation for the test tomorrow. Again, I am nervous about how this test will be and how I will fair this unit. I heard that this unit is the hardest of the year and from here on out everything will be smooth sailing. I hope this is true, despite the fact that I like a good challenge. Happy studying everyone!

Titration Lab #2

This next week, we were told to complete a similar lab as last week, but instead of the unknown acid being a liquid, it was a solid. We used the same procedure as the one from last week to complete this lab. It was all the same, except we had to heat the acid in the distilled water on a hot plate to make sure all of the acid was dissolved before we began to titrate. For this lab, we only worked on it for one day, but we yielded pretty good results, only having a six percent error, giving us a respectable grade on this lab. After completing the lab, we completed a notecard, as usual, presenting our findings.

Titration Lab #1

Our first titration lab was one of my favorite labs so far. Mikayla and I were very focused and committed to getting this lab right. We were given the procedure for the lab, and were told to briefly outline the procedure for our pre-lab question. We both got in no problem. Once we were back in lab, we conducted our standardizing process for our baseline data. Then, we proceeded to test our 10mL of unknown acid to find its molarity. We were looking for a light pink color to indicate that the titration of the acid was complete. Our first day in lab yielded a larger percent error than we were hoping for, so we took to lab the next day to give it one more go. After completing the calculations, Frank told us that we had a zero percent error! It was such an awesome moment because we had worked so hard and put a lot of time and effort into this lab.

Our first attempt (not as good as we'd hoped):

Our second best titration, but still not perfect:

Our best attempt (zero percent error worthy):

Wednesday Lecture

Another week, another unit. This week we were introduced to the concept of acids and bases and how they behave. Wednesday we mainly focused on the basic types of acids and bases: arrhenius and Bronstead-Lowrey. In arrhenius acids and bases, the acid or base breaks apart into their separate ions. On the other hand, Bronstead-Lowrey acids donate a proton and bases accept a proton. B-L acids produce conjugate bases and its bases produce conjugate acids; these types of reactions can also be performed backwards, but don't to it backwards unless, it specifically says to in the problem. Acids have varying strengths depending on the ratio of oxygens to hydrogens; if the oxygens outnumber the hydrogens by 2 or more, then the acid is strong.

A few strong acids are:
HCl
HBr
HI
HClO4
HClO3

Vitamin C Lab

Beginning this week in Chemistry, we started and finished a lab which tested the concentration of Vitamin C in different juices by using a technique called a titration. Iodine was used as an indicator to turn the solution a dark blue to signal the endpoint of the reaction, as seen below:

Hamming and I were the ones who created the standard for this experiment which was used by everyone in this class, so hopefully it produced consistent enough results across the class. We found that it took the least amount of iodine to react with the pear nectar and the most amount of iodine to react completely with unsweetened grapefruit juice.  

Hydrogen Peroxide Lab

Since our teacher was out last Friday and was unable to set up the lab, we were given the data we would've collected during the lab and filled out the calculations based on that data. I was a little bummed that we weren't able to do the lab ourselves, but it was nice to not have to worry about the pre-lab question and to not worry about the red lines on my face from the indent of the goggles. The calculations were fairly easy after doing the practice calculations when I prepared for the lab. Plus, the one where we were told to do conversions, we were given the steps to follow along with which made it a lot easier to understand. The follow-up questions helped me to visualize the lab as well and better understand what we were exactly calculating without actually doing it. I also thought it was beneficial that we completed all of this in class because it gave us a sense of urgency to complete the task, and it gave us a chance to ask questions and reason through each problem instead of putting it off and having to worry about it later when we got home.

This what commercial hydrogen peroxide looks like (what we were testing in lab):

Murder Investigation Lab

This was actually a pretty fun lab! After Hamming and I finished our outline of a  procedure, we ventured back to the lab station to start our experiment. We began by testing .5 mL of the unknown solution with .5mL of each of the test solutions (NaCl and Na2CO3). We determined that the murder substance was silver nitrate because the reaction produced a precipitate and we were able to do the reaction on a larger scale. We measured out 10mL of the silver nitrate and 10mL of NaCl and reacted it in the flask while filtering the precipitate into the filter paper. The liquid produced wasn't filtered nearly enough, so we made sure to run it through the filter again to get the best results. After obtaining all of the data needed, we made sure to calculate the molarity of the solution to catch the killer, which was Mr. Green. We completed a lab write-up as well to turn in a few days later, complete with our materials used, our procedure, our calculations, and a conclusion summing up what our data told us.

Below is our substance being filtered the first time into the first flask:

And here is the culprit:

1st Lecture of 2nd Semester

Welcome back! Today we jumped right in to introduce our new unit: aqueous solutions. We hit mostly on how to calculate molarity and what composes a solution.

You can use the formula:
M= mol of solute/L of solution
to determine the molarity of a substance (can be used as a conversion factor).

Also the formula:
M1V1=M2V2
comes in handy when you are given molarity and volume of a solution. That way you are able to solve for a single variable in the equation.

You can be given a molarity problem in many different ways:

1. originally given molarity
2. # of moles of chloride ions
3. grams of a substance that needs to be prepared

These are all being used to determine concentration of ions in a solution.

This whole unit elaborates on a majority of what we learned last semester and building upon it little by little, testing our knowledge of past topics as we move through the rest of the year.

This image provides a good visual of the comparison of concentration of a solution and molarity of a solution: