CHEM 111/112: General Chemistry I/II
General chemistry has a bad rap as being weeder courses in freshman year of college (and beyond). But fear not! At Chico State, I strive to make this two-semester college sequence accessible and a quality learning experience for hardworking students looking for a challenge. We focus on not only the principles of chemistry but emphasize their connection to materials and their application to engineering, environmental, and biological systems. We start with answering fundamental questions, like what is the relationship between electronic structure, chemical bonding, and atomic order? Then, we explore how something as simple as water can impact so many daily reactions, and discover that some of the reasons acids and bases can have a huge impact on the environment. To help students learn CHEM 111/112, we use flipped classroom approach! Specifically, students use Tro's 5th edition of Chemistry: A Molecular Approach, asynchronous lecture videos, synchronous Learning Catalytics sessions, Mastering Chemistry, weekly tutoring hours, SI sessions, and fun weekly labs.
Check out the syllabi for CHEM 111 here and CHEM 112 here.
General chemistry has a bad rap as being weeder courses in freshman year of college (and beyond). But fear not! At Chico State, I strive to make this two-semester college sequence accessible and a quality learning experience for hardworking students looking for a challenge. We focus on not only the principles of chemistry but emphasize their connection to materials and their application to engineering, environmental, and biological systems. We start with answering fundamental questions, like what is the relationship between electronic structure, chemical bonding, and atomic order? Then, we explore how something as simple as water can impact so many daily reactions, and discover that some of the reasons acids and bases can have a huge impact on the environment. To help students learn CHEM 111/112, we use flipped classroom approach! Specifically, students use Tro's 5th edition of Chemistry: A Molecular Approach, asynchronous lecture videos, synchronous Learning Catalytics sessions, Mastering Chemistry, weekly tutoring hours, SI sessions, and fun weekly labs.
Check out the syllabi for CHEM 111 here and CHEM 112 here.
CHEM 331/332: Physical Chemistry I/II
Notorious for its complexity, physical chemistry is so difficult to learn that the subject even has its own bumper sticker that reads, "Honk if you passed P-Chem (Physical Chemistry)!" At Chico State, I strive to engage chemistry and biochemistry students in the detailed study of the physical principles underlying chemical phenomena while relating them to useful spectroscopy (EPR, NMR, UV-vis, fluorescence, Raman, FT-IR) and imaging techniques (MRI). Topics in physical chemistry can generally be grouped in three broad areas (quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, and kinetics). To help students excel in CHEM 331 and 332, we use team-based learning (TBL)! Students use Engel and Reid's 3rd edition of Physical Chemistry with asynchronous lectures, synchronous TBL sessions, customized homework sets, review sessions...and occasional references to pop culture.
Check out the syllabi for CHEM 331 here and CHEM 332 here.
Notorious for its complexity, physical chemistry is so difficult to learn that the subject even has its own bumper sticker that reads, "Honk if you passed P-Chem (Physical Chemistry)!" At Chico State, I strive to engage chemistry and biochemistry students in the detailed study of the physical principles underlying chemical phenomena while relating them to useful spectroscopy (EPR, NMR, UV-vis, fluorescence, Raman, FT-IR) and imaging techniques (MRI). Topics in physical chemistry can generally be grouped in three broad areas (quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, and kinetics). To help students excel in CHEM 331 and 332, we use team-based learning (TBL)! Students use Engel and Reid's 3rd edition of Physical Chemistry with asynchronous lectures, synchronous TBL sessions, customized homework sets, review sessions...and occasional references to pop culture.
Check out the syllabi for CHEM 331 here and CHEM 332 here.
CHEM 381: Integrated Laboratory I
Since Chico State gets year-round sunshine, why not harvest it and convert it into electricity? That's what students do in this upper division lab every semester! The modular chemistry and processing of perovskites offer a unique opportunity to give chemistry students hands-on experience in mainstream photovoltaics. Students will learn about thin-film polycrystalline solar cells, energy conversion, materials and methods, chemical reactivity, stoichiometry, and the optical and electronic properties of perovskites - all through inquiry-based learning.
Students will be making perovskites exhibiting an optical bandgap of 1.5 eV. These properties make perovskites promising solar cell materials. Furthermore, the facile solution processability offer a unique opportunity to give chemistry students hands-on experience in mainstream photovoltaics. Students will learn about spincoating, dipcoating, UV-visible spectroscopy, SEM, XRD, and solar simulation measurements. Check out the syllabus here.
Since Chico State gets year-round sunshine, why not harvest it and convert it into electricity? That's what students do in this upper division lab every semester! The modular chemistry and processing of perovskites offer a unique opportunity to give chemistry students hands-on experience in mainstream photovoltaics. Students will learn about thin-film polycrystalline solar cells, energy conversion, materials and methods, chemical reactivity, stoichiometry, and the optical and electronic properties of perovskites - all through inquiry-based learning.
Students will be making perovskites exhibiting an optical bandgap of 1.5 eV. These properties make perovskites promising solar cell materials. Furthermore, the facile solution processability offer a unique opportunity to give chemistry students hands-on experience in mainstream photovoltaics. Students will learn about spincoating, dipcoating, UV-visible spectroscopy, SEM, XRD, and solar simulation measurements. Check out the syllabus here.
CHEM 382: Integrated Laboratory II
What happens after you convert that electricity? You need to store it in devices like batteries. During the spring semester, students make polyaniline batteries to power a mini fan! In the neutral state, conducting polymer precursors are inherently insulators. However, doping by the addition of low densities of an electron donor or acceptor yields a significant increase in conductivity. The development of conducting polymers has opened the door to a new approach of “plastic electronics”. One of these is polypyrrole and polyanilne batteries which convert chemical energy to electrical energy. Students will learn about electrochromism, conduction testing, cyclic voltammetry, and preparation of polymer batteries - all through inquiry-based learning!
Students will be making a sensor, another type of electronic device which converts activity of a specific ion dissolved in a solution into an electric potential. They provide information about the chemical composition of liquid or gaseous phases with great selectivity and sensitivity. Doped polypyrrole films, for instance, can be used as highly selective membranes in ion-selective electrodes (ISE) for rapid determination of ionic species. Members will learn electrochemical oxidative polymerization, fabrication of ISEs, SEM, EIS, CV, and real-time testing of ISEs in agricultural areas in Chico. Check out the syllabus here.
What happens after you convert that electricity? You need to store it in devices like batteries. During the spring semester, students make polyaniline batteries to power a mini fan! In the neutral state, conducting polymer precursors are inherently insulators. However, doping by the addition of low densities of an electron donor or acceptor yields a significant increase in conductivity. The development of conducting polymers has opened the door to a new approach of “plastic electronics”. One of these is polypyrrole and polyanilne batteries which convert chemical energy to electrical energy. Students will learn about electrochromism, conduction testing, cyclic voltammetry, and preparation of polymer batteries - all through inquiry-based learning!
Students will be making a sensor, another type of electronic device which converts activity of a specific ion dissolved in a solution into an electric potential. They provide information about the chemical composition of liquid or gaseous phases with great selectivity and sensitivity. Doped polypyrrole films, for instance, can be used as highly selective membranes in ion-selective electrodes (ISE) for rapid determination of ionic species. Members will learn electrochemical oxidative polymerization, fabrication of ISEs, SEM, EIS, CV, and real-time testing of ISEs in agricultural areas in Chico. Check out the syllabus here.
