GCTLC Library

In this class, students will learn about successful Green Chemistry technologies that have been awarded by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Students will have the opportunity to research previous winners and discuss with their fellow classmates.

This course was developed and authored by:

Philip Coish
Kimberly Chapman
Paul Anastas
Seon Augusto Ferreira
Karolina Mellor
Amy Cannon ...

In this class, students will learn various processes for recycling and how to leverage it to think of the possibilities to design compounds to biodegrade.

This course was developed and authored by:

Philip Coish
Kimberly Chapman
Paul Anastas
Seon Augusto Ferreira
Karolina Mellor
Amy Cannon
Derrick Ward

In this lecture, students will learn about the importance of catalysis and the added benefits it provides at all levels of chemistry. Students will see how catalysts make reactions more efficient by means of the activation energy. More importantly, students will be introduced to alternative types of catalysis that Green Chemistry utilizes to create more environmentally responsible processes.

This ...

In this class, students will learn the roles and responsibilities that solvents have in chemical transformations. The advantage and disadvantages will be discussed following the various categories of solvents used today. After learning about the effects of solvent use, students will be introduced to the need for alternative solvents and their role in advancing technology, humans, and the ...

In this class, students will learn about the possibilities of performing chemical transformations without the presence of an organic solvent. Students will explore alternative methodologies ranging from supercritical fluids to solventless conditions. The goal of this lecture is not only to inform students of alternative methodologies but also to provide real examples of how these approaches are ...

Exam 2 and Exam 2 Answer Key

This course was developed and authored by:

Philip Coish
Kimberly Chapman
Paul Anastas
Seon Augusto Ferreira
Karolina Mellor
Amy Cannon
Derrick Ward

In this lecture, students will learn about the current state of energy production and consumption. Traditional sources of energy include non-renewable sources such as coal and oil. Renewable energy sources will be explored such as biofuels, solar cells, and fuel cells. Students will learn how energy is used within the laboratory to heat, cool, and for processing, along with alternative energy ...

In this class, students will learn about Green Analytical Chemistry. The lecture includes information about analytical method assessment, including tools and techniques for assessing the greenness of methods. The lecture addresses sample preparation, analytical techniques, and methods including chromatography and spectroscopy, and Process Analytical Technology (PAT).

This course was developed and ...

This lecture introduces toxicology. Students will learn different toxicology terms, including definitions, types of toxic compounds, and factors influencing toxicity. At the end of the lecture, students will revise potential toxicology endpoints to molecular features which are derived from the periodic table. In addition to periodic table trends, the lecture also introduces the concept of pKa and ...

In this lecture, students learn components of risk – hazard and exposure and how green chemistry aims to minimize hazard, which ultimately leads to minimizing the risk. This lecture also defines the concept of dose and how toxicity testing is currently done through dose-response curves. A small class activity on the dose-response curve for solvents allows students to use their newly learned ...

This lecture introduces Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Excretion (ADME) concepts and how chemists can take advantage of physicochemical parameters like logP, molecular weight, and vapor pressure to redesign molecules that won’t absorb into the body, limit distribution, and facilitate metabolism and excretion. These concepts are reinforced by an in-class exercise that explores potential ...

This lecture continues to explore different approaches to hazard minimization by changing molecular design. After several practical examples and a case study, students will learn about current methods that scientists use to assess chemical toxicity on a large scale. In vivo and In vitro studies are discussed.

This course was developed and authored by:

Philip Coish
Kimberly Chapman
Paul Anastas ...

The last two lectures, lecture 25 and lecture 26, allow students to explore safer chemical design and ADME through an educational online computer game. The game encourages students to think like professional chemical designers and to develop a chemical product with respect to function and improved human and environmental health. The developed worksheet leads students through the game challenges ...

Exam 3: Final Exam and Exam 3: Final Exam Answer Key

This course was developed and authored by:

Philip Coish
Kimberly Chapman
Paul Anastas
Seon Augusto Ferreira
Karolina Mellor
Amy Cannon
Derrick Ward

Frontiers for Young Minds is an outreach journal aimed at and reviewed by 8-15 year olds, so has a very different demographic to other academic journals and reviewing process responding to young people's opinions on the draft article. This article presents the Principles of Green Chemistry and the concept of Life Cycle Assessment in an accessible format for a younger audience.
Authors: Jessica ...

A novel course using green chemistry as the context to teach general chemistry fundamentals was designed, implemented and is described here. The course design included an active learning approach, with major course graded components including a weekly blog entry, exams, and a semester project that was disseminated by wiki and a public symposium. Results include self-reports of gains in knowledge ...

The teaching of Chemistry is largely disconnected from students’ daily lives. Intersectional themes such as Green Chemistry (GC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are essential for building a society more aware of socio-environmental issues. Thus, it is crucial to adopt didactic alternatives to enhance contextualization, and the use of games emerges as a viable strategy. However, it is ...

Qualitative analysis of inorganic salts and mixtures is a common component of high school, undergraduate, and graduate-level curricula. The hydrogen sulfide scheme given by Fresenius is a widely accepted scheme used for studying Le Chatelier's Principle, the common-ion effect, and solubility products. However, H2S is deadly even at low air concentrations, can cause permanent physiological damage ...

This experiment focuses on the greener extraction of eugenol from cloves using steam distillation and ethyl acetate. By employing steam distillation, we isolate eugenol at lower temperatures, preserving the compound’s integrity while minimizing thermal degradation. Ethyl acetate, a less hazardous solvent compared to dichloromethane (DCM), is used for further extraction to reduce environmental and ...

This is an undergraduate organic laboratory experiment for the preparation of either of two medicinally relevant amide products from a biorenewable carboxylic acid and an amine using a green, non-sensitizing coupling reagent combination in acetonitrile. The procedure could also be adapted for different acids and amines, particularly when the amide products can be readily precipitated and filtered ...

This is a problem set involving greenhouse gas calculations, which are, quite simply unit conversions. Instead of doing textbook problems, these problems employ the type of calculations done to determine carbon footprints.

The Blue Bottle demonstration, involving the colorful redox cycling of methylene blue, is often used to introduce and illustrate the scientific method to younger science students and to study reaction rates and mechanisms with advanced high school and university students. This paper describes a greener blue bottle demonstration that reduces the total amount of material used in the demonstration ...

The amount of each reactant present and the temperature of the reaction vessel typically influence the rate at which a chemical reaction proceeds. And, typically, this relationship between the reaction rate and reagent concentration takes a simple form known as the rate law: rate = k[A]x[B]y

Clock reactions can be performed with a variety of reagents, including ...

While the Wittig reaction is often used as an example of a reaction with poor atom economy, it is still important to recognize that any reaction, the Wittig included, can be made greener. This solvent-less Witting not only eliminates the hazards associated with traditional solvents but also uses reagents with little or no known toxicity. This is particularly notable given the relatively high ...

Do you love the look and feel of leather? Many luxury items like handbags, belts, wallets, and coats are made from leather. What if you could make your own vegan leather in a few weeks? Could it be a greener, more sustainable option than cowhide leather? In this science project, you will grow your own vegan leather from kombucha and see how different growing conditions affect the resulting leather ...

Imagine a wonderful summer day at the beach. You play in the sand, swim in the ocean—and, of course, put a lot of sunscreen on. The sunscreen protects your skin from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Special ingredients absorb or reflect the UV rays so they do not harm your skin. Different types of sunscreen have different types of ingredients, and some of them can be harmful to the environment ...

Styrofoam is a popular packaging material that is non-biodegradable and takes centuries to decompose. Ecovative has developed a mushroom-based alternative that can be customized to any shape and used for packaging and insulation. Iron concentration in the mixture prevents the growth of spores, making it safe for industrial use. The project can be completed in 7 to 12 days and is split into three ...

Hear how advances in green chemistry can help address environmental justice challenges and how engaging with affected communities can help green chemistry experts more effectively target their solutions.

My guest is Sederra Ross of the American Chemical Society's Green Chemistry Institute.

This episode includes 1) a 2-minute preview video, 2) a 45-minute video of the full interview... and 3) ...

Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) have found increasing application in the analysis of biological samples. Using these techniques to solve problems in analytical chemistry should be an essential component of the training of undergraduate chemists. We present an experiment that teaches students how to ...

Embracing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the chemistry classroom is crucial for creating an inclusive learning environment that will have a positive effect on student’s learning, success, and hence, retention in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). As such, a number of DEI approaches have recently been identified to foster awareness and appreciation of DEI into ...

This is a J Chem Ed article that outlines how we redesigned an Inorganic Chemistry laboratory course to create a consistent and focused approach to green chemistry, leading to an increase in a research mindset.
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.5b00281

Authors: Marta Guron, Jared Paul, Margaret Roeder

This module is part of a collection of nine green chemistry teaching modules developed in the early 2000s by a team of faculty (Donna Narsavage-Heald, Trudy Dickneider, David Marx, Timothy Foley, Joan Wasilewski) led by Michael Cann at the University of Scranton and has been migrated to the GCTLC. The subjects of the modules are based on winners of the Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. The modules ...

In Organic Chemistry I, many connections can be made to the new reactions and content students learn. As such, in the lecture, students see weekly a connection to Green Chemistry Principles modeled in preparation for an infographic activity on one green principle. In this activity, students work in small groups of 2-3 students to create an infographic on one slide (ppt) and present it to their ...

This assignment is used in a 4th year/senior undergraduate course to encourage students to engage with the broader green chemistry community and learn about a green chemist of their choosing. This assignment also has them re-engage with software/websites that they have used previously such as Web of Science and SciFinder to find journal articles, and ChemDraw to prepare reaction schemes. The ...

This module is part of a collection of nine green chemistry teaching modules developed in the early 2000s by a team of faculty (Donna Narsavage-Heald, Trudy Dickneider, David Marx, Timothy Foley, Joan Wasilewski) led by Michael Cann at the University of Scranton and has been migrated to the GCTLC. The subjects of the modules are based on winners of the Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. The modules ...

One of the keys to achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in education is to introduce novel pedagogical strategies into university curricula in order to promote an enhanced acute sense of sustainability in future professionals, teachers, and decision-makers. This paper aims at analyzing the effectiveness of including green and sustainable chemistry on the basis of a ...

The most important learning objective in green chemistry education is the ability to identify the synthesis, process, or chemical that is least environmentally harmful. Existing metrics fall short for different reasons. Mass-based metrics fail to assess environmental harm, while life cycle assessment (LCA) is much too complex to insert into the existing curriculum without displacing a significant ...

Incorporation of social justice into chemistry curricula remains rare despite the recent increase in awareness of equity issues. Social justice topics and pedagogy offer a way towards developing culturally-responsive, inclusive curricula that acknowledges the social facets of scientific knowledge. This chapter describes the creation of an in-depth social justice project that prompted students to ...

Dr. John Warner speaks at a Bioneers conference in 2014 on "Intellectual Ecology". This is a great inspirational introductory video for understanding Green Chemistry.

A guide to several tools created by a group of people at the Center for Sustainable Separations of Metals to gamify and introduce the ideas of critical metals.

Maxwell H. Furigay (a), Nikhil S. Chellam (b), Marta Guron (a), Juno Johnson (c), Sarah Bennett (c), Leighton O. Jones (b), Wenqi Liu (b), George C. Schatz (b), Eric J. Schelter (a), J. Fraser Stoddart (b), Shane S. Galley (c), and Jenifer ...

The iodine clock reaction is a favorite demonstration reaction in chemistry classes that usually requires toxic or hazardous chemicals. During the reaction, two clear liquids are mixed, resulting in another clear liquid. After some time, the solution suddenly turns dark blue. The reaction is called a clock reaction because the amount of time that elapses before the solution turns blue depends on ...

A two-step synthetic sequence using vanillin was developed for undergraduate organic chemistry labs to replace traditional experiments with greener alternatives. The first step involves iodinating vanillin with Oxone® and potassium iodide in refluxing water, enabling students to analyze substitution positions via ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The iodovanillin is then used in an aqueous Suzuki-Miyaura ...

This is an improvement over a similar lab published in Harris’ Analytical Chemistry text. Instead of using organics to form reddish solutions, the catechins or polyphenolic compounds in green tea form colored complexes with iron. UV-Vis spectroscopy in conjunction with Beer’s law can then be used to determine the concentration of Fe in vitamin tablets.

Other authors: Davis Winn (Georgia Gwinnett ...

This article, authored by 52 Black scientists, establishes the context of Juneteenth in STEMM and discusses the barriers Black scientists face, the struggles they endure, and the lack of recognition they receive.

Mays, A., Byars-Winston, A., Hinton, A., Marshall, A. G., Kirabo, A., August, A., Marlin, B. J., Riggs, B., Tolbert, B., Wanjalla, C., Womack, C., Evans, C. S., Barnes, C., Starbird, C ...

A two-part high school-aged resource to accompany a practical synthesis of aspirin. The first part includes an individual writing reflection on drugs and the pharmaceutical industry, and a group work activity to watch a video and discuss and share ideas from the writing reflection. Students will also discuss epistemic harm and the origins of medicinal chemistry knowledge. The second part includes ...

Green chemistry is becoming one of the most timely and popular chemistry courses taught in schools. In fact, this decade has been listed as the age of “Green Chemistry” according to a recent ACS compilation. As I began teaching it, I decided to develop a "living" text that responds to student interests and needs. The existing third edition of my text, which offers a perspective of the green ...

This resource links to a recent laboratory experiment published in the Journal of Chemical Education by Francis Bru and Catherine S. K. Cazin, highlighting green chemistry principles by comparing three synthetic routes toward a Copper N-heterocyclic carbene complex. It includes the mechanochemical synthesis using a planetary mill and assessments of several green chemistry metrics, including atom ...

This lesson is for use as part of an introduction to high school chemistry lab. Teachers need to have information on the 12 Principles of Green Chemistry and how to use them to evaluate a lab procedure. They are attached in the appendix to this lab activity. This lesson will be set up as both an at home (remote learning) and in class lab activity taking into account social distancing.

This ...