Thursday, May 6, 2010

Chemistry Night 2009: It's Elemental

The Saint Mary’s University Chemistry Department hosted the annual chemistry night celebration on October 22 and October 29 to celebrate National Chemistry Week. The theme was: Chemistry It’s Elemental! Six area high schools participated: Rochester Lourdes, LaCrosse Logan, Cochrane- Fountain City, Westby, Lewiston-Altura and Winona Senior High.

We offered some paper and pencil activities:
1. a chemdoku puzzle
2. mystery element brain teasers
3. state the symbol activity: several elements have symbols that are coincidentally the same as the two-letter postal code abbreviation for one of the 50 states.


SMU professors developed 7 lab experiments that focused on different elements:
1. Iodide in Table Salt: students tested different salts for the presence of iodine.

2. Elemental Flame Tests: students identified elements present in aqueous solutions by comparing the flame colors of known solutions of salts.

3. Alchemy: students witnessed the apparent transmutation of copper to silver to gold with pennies.

4. Atomic Emission Spectra and the bug zapper: students were able to identify the element responsible for the glow in the lamp of a common bug zapper by examining its emission spectrum and comparing it to other known spectra.

5. Copper Plating of Steel: students made a copper-plated ornament using the properties of an oxidation-reduction reaction.

6. Aiding the Discovery of a Coin Alloy: students decided if the discovered alloy is German Silver using Flame Atomic Emission Spectroscopy.

7. Detecting Bromine and Chlorine containing compounds by using the GCMS: students used the spectrum of an unknown compound to determine its identity.



AWARDS FROM October 22, 2009
LaCrosse Logan took 1st place. Each student was awarded with a reoccurring scholarship to SMU and an iTunes gift card. The students were: Kacie Lvcchini, Ryan Garson, and Whitney Weymille.

Rochester Lourdes took 2nd place. Each student was awarded with a reoccurring scholarship to SMU andj an iTunes gift card. The students were: Emma Tschann, Ryan Brandt, Victoria Smith.

Westby took 3rd place. Each student was awarded a certificate and a gift certificate to iTunes. The students were: Luke Ashbrook, Evan Herold, and Dani Widner.



AWARDS FROM October 29, 2009
Winona Senior High School took 1st place. Each student was awarded with a reoccurring scholarship and a gift certificate to iTunes. The students were: Nicky Becher, Destiny Dux, Jodi Misar

Lewiston-Altura took 2nd place. Each student was awarded with reoccurring scholarship and a gift certifcate to iTunes. The students were Rachel Stark, Elsa Prigge, Dara Sobek.

Winona Senior High school took 3rd place. Each student was awarded a certificate and a gift certificate to iTunes. The students were: Lee Yang, Zach Erickson, Jessie Sorvaag.

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