Reinterpreting Popular Demonstrations for Use in a Laboratory Safety Session That Engages Students in Observation, Prediction, Record Keeping, and Problem Solving

Abstract

Eleven demonstration activities for an introductory undergraduate chemistry safety session are described. The first two activities are a safety video and a lab tour. All other activities are drawn from popular demonstrations and presented in the context of chemical safety. These include a balloon bursting via toluene, a dry ice fog created in a fume hood, a reaction forming a carbon snake, a glycerol and potassium permanganate reaction, creation of a fireproof banknote, a candle extinguished by a copper coil, a candle extinguished by a test tube, a demonstration of a can crushed by air pressure, and creation of a soda geyser. The pedagogical narratives of these demonstrations cover all four areas of chemistry safety learning outcomes using the RAMP approach (recognizing hazards, assessing risks, minimizing risks, and preparing for emergencies) recommended for undergraduate students by the American Chemical Society.

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“…Our activity is delivered in a computer lab during the first week of the course as students are yet to find their own lab coat and goggles for a chemical laboratory. As a result, the safety induction/demonstration session [ 50 ] is scheduled in the second week and the real experiment commences in the third week. This provides more time for students and staff to complete necessary arrangements and preparation associated with the laboratory class.…”

How Many Bubbles Are in the Foam Produced during the Candy-Cola Soda Geyser?

“…Because this experiment is simple to carry out and yields remarkable results, it has been popular among the general public for quite some time. The experiment has also found widespread use in science classrooms because it connects to a variety of physicochemical concepts including chemical kinetics and reaction mechanisms, 1−8 acid−base chemistry, 3 surface science, 5−9 bubble nucleation and coalescence, 1,4,7−9 inquiry-based learning, 10,12 gases, 1,11 solubility, 1,8,11 safety in the laboratory, 12 and atmospheric science. 7 Science teachers have employed a variety of techniques to quantify various aspects of the kinetics of this reaction, and these methods have been useful in elucidating various factors involved in the generation of the fountain.…”

“…When Mentos candies are dropped into a bottle of a carbonated beverage, a frothy fountain jets out that reaches a few meters high. It is well established that this stream of foam results when nucleation sites on the Mentos candies catalyze the rapid degassing of CO 2 from carbonated beverages: − Because this experiment is simple to carry out and yields remarkable results, it has been popular among the general public for quite some time. The experiment has also found widespread use in science classrooms because it connects to a variety of physicochemical concepts including chemical kinetics and reaction mechanisms, − acid–base chemistry, surface science, − bubble nucleation and coalescence, ,,− inquiry-based learning, , gases, , solubility, ,, safety in the laboratory, and atmospheric science .…”

“…It is well established that this stream of foam results when nucleation sites on the Mentos candies catalyze the rapid degassing of CO 2 from carbonated beverages: − Because this experiment is simple to carry out and yields remarkable results, it has been popular among the general public for quite some time. The experiment has also found widespread use in science classrooms because it connects to a variety of physicochemical concepts including chemical kinetics and reaction mechanisms, − acid–base chemistry, surface science, − bubble nucleation and coalescence, ,,− inquiry-based learning, , gases, , solubility, ,, safety in the laboratory, and atmospheric science . Science teachers have employed a variety of techniques to quantify various aspects of the kinetics of this reaction, and these methods have been useful in elucidating various factors involved in the generation of the fountain. − This Article reports on a new, simply constructed device (called a geyser guide) that can be used to quantitatively monitor various aspects of the kinetics of the so-called Diet Coke and Mentos experiment.…”

“…The experiment has also found widespread use in science classrooms because it connects to a variety of physicochemical concepts including chemical kinetics and reaction mechanisms, − acid–base chemistry, surface science, − bubble nucleation and coalescence, ,,− inquiry-based learning, , gases, , solubility, ,, safety in the laboratory, and atmospheric science . Science teachers have employed a variety of techniques to quantify various aspects of the kinetics of this reaction, and these methods have been useful in elucidating various factors involved in the generation of the fountain. − This Article reports on a new, simply constructed device (called a geyser guide) that can be used to quantitatively monitor various aspects of the kinetics of the so-called Diet Coke and Mentos experiment. The geyser guide can be made with easily accessible materials, and it allows for a remarkably clear view of the bubbles generated during the reaction (Figure ).…”