Quiz your analytical knowledge: Projects 1415

I really like this time of year. Why is that? I like this time of year because the students are doing their projects. On the one hand, it is all a bit crazy. CHEM1415, the introductory analytical chemistry course, has nearly 70 students and all of them (except those exempt from labs) do a short project. Each project is meant to be unique and they are allowed to titrate, weigh, and do spectrophotometry (includes atomic methods). It is amazing what you can do with these “simple” starting points. Here is your chance to test your knowledge. Trust me, these projects test mine and every time I run the course I learn something.

So here it goes, how would you do the following analyses?

Acidity and alkalinity of water.
Water Hardness.
Dissolution kinetics of spherical objects.
Carbonate in Detergent.
Calcium in antacids.
Vitamin B12 in supplements.
Acidity of vinegar.
Fluoride in toothpaste (not using an electrode!)
Zinc in supplements.
Antacid strength.
Phosphate in water.
Iron in Spinach.
Biological oxygen demand.
Test of a water purification system to remove calcium.
Free and bound potassium in soil.
Citric acid content in citrus juice.
Acidity of soft drinks.
Lead in plants and soil.
Fatty acid in soap.
Base content of cleanser.
Caffeine in tea.
Ca in milk (2 ways).
Solubility of Calcium Hydroxide.
Free alkali in soap.
Iron content of tap water.
Dissolved Oxygen in Seawater.
Phosphoric acids content of Coca-Cola.
Na (well Cl) content in potato chips.
Volatile acids in wine.
Characterization of the Cabbage juice indicator (pKas).
Caffeine content of sodas.
Aluminum content of deodorant.
Glucose in Urine.
Lead in paint.
Fat content of milk.
Aspirin content of a tablet.
Copper in pennies (two methods).
Pb in seawater.
Hydroquinone in skin lightener.
Fe in supplements. (two different methods)
Caffeine in Chocolate.
Ethanol in drinks (no chromatography!).
Mg and hydroxide content of milk of magnesia.

This is only the first 40 students or so. It is amazing what students can teach you.

I want to thank the technical staff for putting up with the difficulty of running this part of the course.