The Laboratory Use of Chemical Instrumentation in the Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum George M. Pickral Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, VA 24450 Instruments have become important tools
for today's chemist. Thus, the proper choice and use o f instrumentation in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum is a n i m p o r t a n t factor in t h e training o f students in chemistry. T h e purchase of new instrument a t i o n a n d replacement o f older equipment is an issue of major coneern t o most under-
graduate chemistrydepartments. ~
~
and available instructional time have become major factors in selecting instrumentation. Thepurpaseofthestudy reparted here was t o determine present use of chemical instrumentation in the undergraduate chemistry c u r r i c u ~ u moffour-year and ""iver.
This papw is based on a reparf "Use of Chemical Instrumentation in the Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum/ developed for NSF project SHNC (Scientific Instrumentation InformationNetwork and Curricula). Dr. Frank A. SeUle, Jr., Director. Virginia Military institute. Lexington. Virginia 24450.
sities in the U n i t e d States. T h i s is t h e f i r s t study t o break dawn instrument usage i n t o six course areas: general chemistry, organic, analytical, physical, integrated laboratories, and research.
Survey of College Professors two-page questionnaire on the use of chemical ~ instrumentation d i ~ was mailed ~ to a random of 320 professm, each a t a
*
different Or There was a with 146 (45.6%) of t h e Progood fessors returning the completed Westionnaire. Each was asked t o indicate, for the 26 instruments listed, the course areas in which each instrument received laboratory use.
~
~1, b~~b use l of ~ instrumentation in General Courses
..--. .--.
% ~rhnnl. f-",.,w lcinn
Instrument PH tdeter Visible Spectrophotometer Laboratorv . Comouters . Thin Layer Chromatography IR Spectraphatometer UV Spectrophatometer Radiochemical Equipment specific 10" ~ ~ conductance ~~~~~~~~~~t~
instwment
~
79 71 17 14 12 9 8 6~
6
instrument use by Course Areas General C O U ~ S ~ S As shown in T a b l e 1, t h e p H meter a n d visible spectrophotometer are used in about three-fourths o f t h e general chemistry courses in the schools surveyed. There is then
a sharp d r o p in usage rate t o about 15% for laboratory computers, thin layer chromatography, and infrared ( I R ) spectrophotom-
INTRODUCTION to Chemicallnstrumentation This issue marks ihe renewal of the ChemicalInstrumentationfeature. The feature will continue the excellent tradition established by Professor Galen Ewing, the immediate past feamre editor. Feature articles will address both Specific instrumental methods and more general topics. Articles dealino with soecific methods will feature new develooments in theorv. desian. ao&cations, and avaiiabiiiw of anaivtical instrume;ltation.
transform infrared spectroscopy, gas chromatographylmass spectroscopy (GCIMS), and liquid chromatography. The general topics will cover suchdiverseareasas thismonth'sreport on the use of instrumentation in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum. a modular approach to instrumentation, and the basic microelectronics required for instrumental analysis. in order to obtain an idea of the methods and topics that you would like to havediSCuSSed in future columns, both methodsand topicsare listedon this month's Readers' Service Cards. If you have any other suggestions, please contact the feature erlitor directly. Your responses will aid us in providing useful information. It is the intention oflhis editarto continue to provideuseful insightsand explanations of topics that areof practical importance to those who useor teach the use of analyiicA instrumentation and associated techniques. The editor invites correspondence from prospective contributors.
The New Feature Editor Frank A. Settle, Jr. is Professor of Chemistry at the Virginia Military Institute. Lexington, Virginia, and has taught instrumental analysis there since
A338
Journal of Chemical Education
1964. He has also been active in teaching a course in the laboratory use of microcomputers to science and engineering maiors. He is a c-author with
Professors Dean and Merritt of the sixth edition of "Instrumental Methods of Analysis." a BS deoreeat Emorv and Henrv Colleae After camoletino , - .IEmorv. . VAI.. he received a PhD in ~hemistrvfrom the ~niversitvof Tennessee. Summer
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versity as well as industrial work with Tennessee Eastman Co,and Bendix Environmental InstrumentsDivision. For the past three yean he has sewed as the director of the Scientific instrumentation information Network and Curriculum (SIINC) Project sponsored by the National Science Faundation.
The Feature Author George Pickral was Professor of Analytical Chemistry at the Virginia Military institute from 1946 until his death in 1982. After receiving his BS inchemistry from VMI he sewed in!he U,S, ~~~i~~corpsduring world war 11, H~ obtained a master.s degree from ~ iuniversity ~ t , , ~0hiaand i ap h ~ from the universitv ,,fcincinnati, H~ sewed asdeDaflment headat VMI and was res~onsiblefor the comolete revision of thd chemistrv curriculum. His knowledge of analytical chemistry was comprehensive, his patience with students was infinite, and his friendship was valued by students and facultyaiike. Shortly before his death hecompletedthe detailed survey which appears in this month's feature.
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eters. Instruments w i t h less than 10% usage are the ultraviolet ( U V ) spectrophotometer, radiochemical equipment, specific ion electrodes, and conductivity apparatus.
Organic Courses T h e IR soeetroohotometer. eas ehromagraphic techniques' are used in more than two-thirds of the organic courses. As seen in Table 2, the refractometer stands alone in the middle w i t h 56% usage. Those instruments used in one-third or leis of the courses are the U V spectrophotometer, mass spectrometer, liquid chromatograph, visible speetrophatometer, p H meter, and laboratory computers.
Analytical Courses Since the majority o f respondents t o this survey were analytical chemists, the data in Table 3 is probably the most complete and most reliable of all the data coliected. For that reason a complete listing of all 26 i n struments, from the pH meter a t 90%use, t o the Raman spectrophotometer a t 3%, is given. There are seven instruments which are used b y more than two-thirds of the schools. They are in order: pH meter; visible atomic absorption (AA) and U V spectrophotometers; gas chromatograph; polarograph; and specific i o n electrodes.
Physical Courses T h e six leading instruments in physical courses are rated a t about 50%, as shown in Table 4. They are the three basic spectrophotometers (UV, IR, and visible), p H meters. conductance instruments. and labora-
w i t h a 20% rating.
Integrated Courses Of the 144 schools responding to the survey only 58 (40%) gave information o n instrument use in integrated courses. Since the usage oercentaees in Table 5 are based on 144 w h w i i . he r ~ l ~ n tor g - the i n - l r u m e n l ~i n m t r g m t r d nwr*r- sppnnr i c w. T h e Imdmg instruments in approximate order are IR, UV, and visible spectrophotometers, p H meters, gas chromatographs, and NMR spectrometers. The next bracket includes AA, lab computers, mass spectrometers, polarographs, and conductance measurements. Table 6 gives a l l the instruments listed on
Lab Use of lnstrumentation I n Organic Courses
Instrument iR Spectrophotometer Gas Chromatograph NMR Spectrometer Tnin Layer Chromatography Refractometer UV Spectrophotometer Mass Spectrometer Liquid Chromatograph Visible Spectrophotometer pH Meter Laboratory Computers
Table 3.
Lab Use of lnstrumentation i n Analytical Courses
% Schools Using Instrument
90 83 70
T h e leading instruments w i t h about a two-thirds use rate are the basic spectrophotometers, p H meters, gas chmmatographs, and NMR spectrometers. These are fallowed a t close to the 50%rate bv laboratow computers, l i q u i d chromatographs, A A
Table 5.
% school^ Using Instrument
Instrument pH Meter Visible Spectrophotomete! AA Spectraphatometer UV Spectrophotometer Gas Chromatograph Polarographic Analyzers Specific Ion Electrodes iR Spectrophotometer Liquid Chromatograph Laboratow . Comouters . Atomic Emission Spectrophotometer NMR Spectrometer Spectrofluorometer Conductance Measurements Mass Spectrometer Thin Layer Chromatography Automatic Titrators RadiochemicaiEquipment Thermal Analyzers X-Ray Spectrometer Refractometer Eieclropnorest~Eq.opmnnl GCIMS Speclromelcr Cnem Ca. Anal/zer. A.toma1ed
Lab Use of lnstrumentation In Intearated Courses
instrument IR Spactrophotometer UV Spectrophotometer pH Meter
28 24 24
Visible Spectrophotometer Gas Chromatograph NMR Spectrometer AA Spectmphot0me:er Laboratory Computers Mass Spectrometer
23 22 21 13 12 11
Polarographic Analyzers Conductance Apparatus Refractometer
10 10 9
Table 6.
ESR Spectrometer Raman Spectrophotometer
3
Lab Use of lnstrumentation i n Physical Courses % Schools Using Instrument
UV Spectrophotometer Visible Spectraphatometer iR Spectrophotometer pH Meter Conductance Apparatus Laboratory Computer NMR Spectrometer X-Ray Spectrometer Thermal Analyzers
56 56 52 49 49 45 20 17 16
Mass Spectrometer
13 13 12 10
RadiochemicalEquipment Gas Chromatograph ESR Spectrometer Specific Ion Electrodes Spectrofluor~meter Atomic Emission Spectrophotometer Raman Spectrophotometer Liquid Chromatograph Eiechophore~isEquipment Palarographic Analyzers
6 8 6 6 6 5
Lab Use of lnstrumentation in Research Courses
instrument
Table 4.
% SC~WIS Using Instrument
Liquid Chromatograph Thin Layer Chromatography Specific Ian Electrodes Atomic Emission Spectrophotometer Electrophoresis Equipment RadiochemicalEquipment
Instrument
Research Courses
Table 2.
the questionnaire and the use rating each received in research courses. A high rating for a n instrument in research does not necessarily mean the instrument is used b y a large number of students, since research enrollments are likely t o be small and the students widely distributed.
10
9 7 6 6 6 6
% Schools Using Instrument
UV Spectrophotometer iR Spectrophotometer Visible Spectrophotometer pH Meter NMR Spectrometer Gas Chromatograph
70 67 67 63 62 62
Laboratory Computers Liquid Chromatograph AA Spectrophotometer Thin Layer Chromatography Specific Ion Electrodes Mass Spectrometer
52 51 51 44 38 36 33 31 30 27 25 24 23 20 19 19 19 17 16 7
Polarographic Analyzer Spectrofiuorometer Electrophoresis Equipment Conductance Apparatus RadiochemicalEquipment Atomic Emission Spectrophotometer GCIMS Spectrometer X-Ray Spectrometer Raman Spectrophotometer Refractometer Thermal Analyzer ESR Spectrometer Automatic Titrators Chemical Analyzer. Automated
(Continued on page A3401
Volume 60 Number 12
December 1983
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