Nuclear experiments in the chemistry curriculum - Journal of Chemical

Outlines types of nuclear teaching experiments, suggests where they might be placed in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum, and considers the costs...
6 downloads 0 Views 3MB Size
Harbatl M. Clark

Rensseloer Polytechnic Institute Troy, New York 12180

Exaeriments in the Kluclear - _ _ _.. .. -

-

r

------ - - - - -

.

t'hemistry Curriculum

N u c ~ e n rsriencr hrwI its beginning s h r n I3rrquwrl dis~~c~vrrwl t h r rndionrtirity of urnnium in I ! . ithit hit^ :I mnttrr of months the lielcl of rndiorhrmistry, now n hrnnrh of nurlrnr r h m ~ i s t r y ,wn.s rstnhlishrrl. It !vns not until nftrr 1911, howrvrr, thnt. trrnm surh :IS "nurlrnr physics," "nuclenr rhemistry." d nurlrnr scirncr" npprnrerl. In thnt yrnr I ~ r Rutherford intro(lurn1 t h r rrmrrpt of t h r nrrlrnr ntom o11 the hnsis of t h r rrsults of rsprrimrnts on t h r scnttcring hy gold ntoms of :~lphnpnrtirlrs frnm n rn~lionrtivrsnurre. I'rior to t h r cliscovrry of nrtificinl rndinnrtivity in 19:i.l, only nntur:illy occurring r;~clionuclidrswrrr nvnilnhlr for rrsrnrrh r w trnrhinp in t h r nrrn of rndiorhrmistry. 13y thru, howrvrr, murh of the* groun(l\vork for t h r use of rnrlic~isntoprs:IS indirntnrs or tr:rrrrs hnrl hwn rstnhlisherl, 1::rgrly by the pionwring work of IIrvwy ( I ) puhlishd :L dr: ~ n dI':~nrth. 111 1934 Itosrt~hlun~ srription nf n roursr iu the use nf rndiorlm~rntsns indirntors. This was prnhnhly t h r first pnprr clesrribing :I fnrmnl rndiorhrmistn coursr. T h r rxprrimrnts ninrlr usr of nnturnlly orcurring rndioisntoprs r r r o v r r d frnm rnrlon hulhs nncl mrnsurrmrnts wrrr mnrlr with vnrious typrs of rlrrtrnsroprs. >\lsn in l!W, thrrr wns n symposium on ".\lodrruizing t h r Coumr in (:rnrrnl Chrmistn" nt the AC'S mrcting nt Clrrrlnn(l. Ohio. A pnprr, rntitlerl "Surlrnr C'hmmistry" WIS prrsenterl by I