Viewing Jmol Images and Animations (currently blocked) that call a Jmol Applet

Submitted by Marion Cass / Carleton College on Thu, 03/13/2014 - 22:31
Description

 

    Every day when I teach Inorganic Chemistry (and in most of my problem sets and take home exams) I create Web pages to show 3D images of selected molecules to my students.  I am a visual learner and I find the structures beautiful and informative.

    In the past few months, you likely have found that web sites scripted with Jmol scripts calling a Jmol applet (which is a Java applet) are blocked. 

Five Slides about Tanabe-Sugano Diagrams

Submitted by Sabrina Sobel / Hofstra University on Sat, 03/08/2014 - 15:32
Description

Brief introduction to d-orbital splitting, Russell-Saunders coupling, and application to UV-Vis spectroscopy using Tanabe-Sugano diagrams

Molecular Orbital of Transition Metal Complexes

Submitted by Steven Neshyba / University of Puget Sound on Wed, 02/05/2014 - 21:39
Description

Students construct computer models of two transition metal complexes, solve their electronic structures, and inspect the resulting d-type molecular orbitals to identify which are non-bonding, sigma* antibonding, or pi* antibonding. After constructing a molecular orbital diagram, they determine which of the two complexes is likely to absorb light at a longer wavelength.

Student choice literature-based take home exam question

Submitted by Hilary Eppley / DePauw University on Fri, 01/24/2014 - 15:27
Description

During my junior/senior level inorganic course, we did several guided literature discussions over the course of the semester where the students read papers and answered a series of questions based on them (some from this site!).  As part of my take home final exam, I gave the students an open choice literature analysis question where they had the chance to integrate topics from the semester into their interpretation of a recent paper of their own choice from Inorganic Chemistry, this time with limited guidance.

Electronic Absorption Spectroscopy of Aquated Transition Metal Ions

Submitted by Zachary Tonzetich / University of Texas at San Antonio on Thu, 01/23/2014 - 12:07
Description

I developed this laboratory experiment for our instrumental analysis class. The course is taken by junior and senior chemistry majors, who for the most part have had one inorganic chemistry course and some physical chemistry. The laboratory is operationally very simple and has students record the UV-vis spectra of transition metal sulfate salts in water using volumetric technique. They record the molar absorptivities for each peak and use this data to determine the number of waters of hydration for each salt by comparing with literature absorptivity values.

Crystal Field Theory: Analysis of the Iron Sites in Gillespite

Submitted by Zachary Tonzetich / University of Texas at San Antonio on Fri, 01/03/2014 - 17:36
Description

This in-class activity explores the electronic structure and spectroscopy of the square-planar iron(II) sites in the mineral gillespite through a crystal field theory approach. This activity is designed for an advanced inorganic chemistry course where group theory and more advanced topics in ligand field theory are taught. The activity is based on the work detailed in the paper: Burn, R. G.; Clark, M. G.; Stone, A. J. Inorg.

IC Top 10 first day activity

Submitted by Sheila Smith / University of Michigan- Dearborn on Thu, 09/05/2013 - 09:32
Description

I modified the Barb Reisner/Joanne Stewart/Maggie Geselbracht First Day TOC activity (https://www.ionicviper.org/class-activity/introducing-inorganic-chemist…) to take advantage of the quarterly list of Top 10 Most Read articles that IC sends out.  This is delivered to me as an email from ACS pubs and I am sure that it is available to anyone who wished to subscribe to the updates.  I have attached a pdf copy of the August 2013 update as an example.

X-ray absorption spectroscopy and its applications to LFT

Submitted by Karen McFarlane Holman / Willamette University on Tue, 06/25/2013 - 09:43
Description

This series of (not five) slides introduces X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), specifically XANES (X-ray absorption near-edge structure).  There is background in basic theory, the general technique including synchrotron radiation sources, and two specific examples from the literature that apply XANES spectra to (1) oxidation state and effective nuclear charge of sulfur in various compounds such as sulfates, and (2) measurement of energy levels in MO diagrams of coordination compounds (i.e., LFT).  Point (2) is analogous to showing PES peaks alongside MO diagrams for diatomics.

Symmetry, Group Theory, and Computational Chemistry

Submitted by Joanne Stewart / Hope College on Mon, 06/24/2013 - 22:46

These Learning Objects were used in an advanced undergraduate chemistry course that used computational chemistry as an integrative tool to help students deepen their understanding of structure, bonding, and reactivity and practice their integrative expertise by addressing complex problems in the literature and in their own research.

Virtual Schlenk Line

Submitted by Amanda Reig / Ursinus College on Mon, 06/24/2013 - 10:10
Description

This website provides a link to a simple downloadable program that introduces students to a Schlenk line through a series of short animations.  It is designed for Windows (does not appear to work on Windows 8 or on Macs).  While a bit rudimentary, it does a nice job of showing students the basic setup, discussing safety concerns with the liquid nitrogen trap, and outlining the general procedure for starting up and shutting down the Schlenk line.

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