Chemical Education Today
Book & Media Reviews
Chemistry: An Industry-Based Laboratory Manual by John Kenkel CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL, 2000. 225 pp. ISBN 1566703468. $39.95. reviewed by Sue K. Ballard
Welcome to the world of Innovative Options and New Solutions Corporation (I.O.N.S.). This is a fictitious consulting company whose chemical-based laboratory technicians wrestle with the quality problems of industrial clients. The C.E.O. is Claire Hemistry (C. Hemistry) and the Safety Officer is Ben Well. These people, along with other experts, direct the technicians to solve a multitude of vexing, interesting problems for clients. These problems include measuring and control-charting the specific gravity of windshield washer fluid for a fluids plant with a suspected quality control problem, and determining if there is too much sodium in soda pop sold by the Tasti Cola Bottling Company. John Kenkel has chosen this real-world simulation format to produce a well-organized, well-researched lab manual crammed with a variety of chemical problems for potential chemistry-based lab technicians to identify or solve. Kenkel is a 23-year veteran at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, NE. He has written a manual for students like those in his vocational program Environmental Laboratory Technology, who need real-world chemical-problem-solving experience. A variety of experienced academic colleagues have field tested many of the experiments. An advisory board assisted in the development of the manual. Colleagues from chemical industries such as Procter and Gamble, DuPont, and Dow Corning provided input on content at a conference dubbed “The DuPont Conference”. Experts provided the source for the “Safety Manual” element of the manual. The concerted effort of all these experienced people has allowed Kenkel to produce an impressively effective and comprehensive lab manual. The manual is divided into four sections: (i) I.O.N.S. Safety Manual, (ii) I.O.N.S. Laboratory Notebook and Report Memo Guidelines, (iii) I.O.N.S. New Employee Orientation, and (iv) I.O.N.S. Client Projects. The section on safety is thorough and appropriate for both industry- and laboratory-related safety issues. The importance of safe practices and housekeeping is emphasized throughout the manual. The guidelines for laboratory notebook entries and upkeep are very detailed and helpful to students. Steps for reporting results and writing memos are outlined. I do disagree with
the instructions to begin the body of a memo with a Dear _____ salutation. I believe memos should omit this salutation, which is more appropriate in a letter. This is a minor fault, for this section is well written and offers clear instructions. In the real world of industrial employment, an employee will face hours of initial orientation and training. Section iii is six experiments long. This section gets students accustomed to performing basic laboratory procedures, making basic observations, and practicing workplace safety procedures. Students are trained to name compounds, write formulas, and access information from well-known reference manuals. They are also introduced to industry-wide terminology and acronyms (such as FDA, GLP, OSHA, and MSDS). Armed with the training from the first 3 sections, the I.O.N.S. “lab technician” is now ready to tackle any of the 19 client projects. Each of these projects involves an initial directive memo from C. Hemistry. Memos from experts may also inform the I.O.N.S. technician of the nature of the problems and the suggested means for determining if a problem exists, or for solving it. The experiments selected all seem well worth including in the manual. They are practical and develop an extensive variety of technical skills and chemical concepts appropriate for the lab technician body of knowledge. Students gain experience in the use of the visible spectrophotometer, refractometer, infrared spectrometer, atomic absorption instrument, conductivity meter, and pH meter. A safety report specific to the experiment is included in every experiment where needed. The Appendix contains the supplies and equipment lists for each of the total 25 experiments from sections iii and iv. For each experiment there is also an author’s statement. Here Kenkel spells out the purpose of the experiment and offers helpful advice or instructions. A minor flaw I noticed in the experiments of section iv was in the initial memorandums issued by C. Hemistry. These memos appear to assume that a student would understand the technical/chemical language used by the C.E.O. in her memos. Concentration units such as ppm and references to terms such as atomic absorption are included to as if, early on, a student would understand these terms. I am not sure this is true without diligent planning on the part of the instructor. Despite this concern, I find this to be an excellent lab manual for training potential chemistry-based laboratory technicians. It is apparent that a lot of thought, effort, and expertise went into producing a lab manual that students and teachers alike can appreciate. Buy it! You’ll like it! Sue Ballard teaches at Elizabethtown Community College, Elizabethtown, KY 42701;
[email protected].
JChemEd.chem.wisc.edu • Vol. 78 No. 2 February 2001 • Journal of Chemical Education
167
