Degree In Chemistry Research Articles

Lessons learned from establishing and running a Mössbauer laboratory in industry

Mössbauer spectroscopy offers unique capabilities for primary industry sectors such as mining, mineral processing, and steelmaking, as well as in environmental services and advanced manufacturing. However, there are three key limiting factors: the time required to record a single spectrum, the challenges of managing an additional radioactive source on company premises, and the lack of personnel skilled in analysing Mössbauer spectra and understanding its operation. More commonly used techniques such as XRD, SEM, or XRF have technical staff who can interpret data with support from standard libraries and user-friendly software packages. In contrast, Mössbauer spectroscopists, who often hold degrees in Physics or Chemistry, typically emerge from academic settings and are less commonly employed in industry. This paper addresses the current challenges limiting the widespread adoption of Mössbauer laboratories in the industry and proposes potential solutions to overcome these obstacles. These solutions include promoting internships for undergraduate and postgraduate students familiar with Mössbauer spectroscopy in industrial settings, increasing investment in software development, hosting seminars and workshops to educate industry professionals on the capabilities of Mössbauer spectroscopy, and providing ongoing support from the scientific community to industries interested in operating spectrometers in their facilities.

A tribute to Christo Balarew on the occasion of his 90th birthday

Abstract The eminent Bulgarian chemist Christo Balarew was born on June 23, 1934 in Sofia. He received his MSc degree in chemistry from the Sofia University. Balarew devoted many years of his life to the service of Bulgarian chemical science and education. For most of his life he worked at the Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. He was a scientist, teacher, public figure, member of a number of international organizations, editorial boards of scientific journals, organizing and scientific committees of international scientific forums.

A study on the ESTS approach present in the completion work of the course of chemistry degree at CEUNES/UFES

A abordagem da relação Ciência-Tecnologia-Sociedade e Ambiente (CTSA) torna-se cada vez mais importante no ensino, de modo a oportunizar aos estudantes a compreensão dos avanços científicos e tecnológicos. A presente pesquisa buscou fazer um estudo dos trabalhos de conclusão de curso (TCCs) do curso de Licenciatura em Química do Ceunes/Ufes, apresentados entre os anos de 2014 e 2022, com o objetivo de investigar de que maneira a abordagem CTSA está inserida e quais as principais tendências encontradas nesses trabalhos. Os dados foram coletados acessando o site do curso de Licenciatura em Química Ceunes/Ufes, resultando na coleta de dez trabalhos, que foram analisados e discutidos na perspectiva CTSA. Em relação a metodologia, adotamos a pesquisa qualitativa de caráter exploratório. As análises dos TCCs foram feitas a partir de duas categorias: a perspectiva reducionista e a perspectiva crítica de CTSA, com o suporte da análise textual discursiva, em que as categorias foram criadas com base na fundamentação teórica da pesquisa, observando as principais características evidenciadas nos TCCs. Os resultados apontaram poucos trabalhos que inserem a perspectiva reducionista e um número considerável de trabalhos voltados para a perspectiva crítica, mostrando a grande potencialidade de formação inicial de professores que compreendem as relações sociais entre ciência e tecnologia nos processos de ensino e aprendizagem.

Biography Leticia Myriam Torres Guerra

Born in Monterrey, Nuevo León, in 1955, Dr. Leticia Torres graduated with a degree in Industrial Chemistry from the Autonomous University of Nuevo León and earned her PhD in Advanced Ceramic Materials from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1985. She holds a certification in Applied Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency from Harvard University. Throughout her distinguished professional career, she has held key positions such as Deputy Director of Research at the Faculty of Chemical Sciences (1995-2001), Deputy Director of Scientific Development at CONACYT (2011-2013), Head of the Department of Eco-materials and Energy at the Faculty of Civil Engineering UANL (2005-2019), and leader of the Consolidated Academic Body "Development of Environmental Materials" from 2008 to the present. Since December 6, 2019, she has been serving as the General Director of the Center for Research in Advanced Materials (CIMAV).

Professor Carla Bottoli, an enthusiastic scientific researcher, kindly spoke to BrJAC

Carla Beatriz Grespan Bottoli holds a degree in Industrial Chemistry from the Federal University of Santa Maria (1996), as well as a Ph.D. in Chemistry (2002), and a postdoctoral degree in Chemistry (2002-2004), both from the State University of Campinas (Unicamp). In 2005, she undertook an internship at the Institute of Nuclear Sciences of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) to study radiolysis in vitamins using gamma radiation from a source of Cobalt 60. In 2017, she presented her habilitation thesis (associate professor's thesis) at Unicamp. Currently, she is Associate Professor and Postgraduate Advisor at the Institute of Chemistry at Unicamp (IQ-Unicamp), where she works in the area of analytical chemistry, with emphasis on separation methods, mainly liquid chromatography. Prof. Bottoli coordinates the NovaCrom – Liquid Chromatography Laboratory (https://novacromlab.wixsite.com/novacrom), which is a research group that has been working on the development of new monolithic stationary phases for capillary liquid chromatography. Research is also focused on the development of analytical methods that employ liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry to study the translocation of pesticides in plants such as coconut, palm, and soybean. Between 2019 and 2021, Prof. Bottoli was an associate coordinator of the Research Commission of the IQ-Unicamp and is currently a member of the Research Integrity Commission at Unicamp. She is a member of the Brazilian Chemical Society and a researcher at the National Institute of Science and Technology in Bioanalytics (INCTBio). Carla Bottoli is the mother of Murilo, 13 and Mateus, 10.

Learning science with fun: pedagogical games as a facilitating tool - an experience at PIBID, conducted by a scholarship student from Uemasul's bachelor of chemistry course

Science education has evolved over time to find more effective ways to engage students and impart knowledge. In this context, educational games emerged as a valuable tool in the teaching-learning process, offering a playful and interactive approach to science disciplines, to name but a few, chemistry. This work explores the experience of a student in a chemistry degree course at UEMASUL, who used educational games as facilitator in the Institutional Program of Initiation Scholarships to Teaching (PIBID), with the theme "Learning Science with Fun". The program awards scholarships to undergraduate students to implement projects in schools and stimulate reflection on professional practice in education. The focus of this article refers to is grounded in teaching practice for training future teachers and the use of educational games in chemical science classes. The research was carried out in a 6th grade class and involved interactive activities, lectures with student participation and the use of educational games to make learning more meaningful and concrete. The research phases included bibliographic research, planning, questionnaire development, and data analysis. Generally speaking, this initiative aims to bridge the gap between theory and practice in teacher education and to improve science teaching through engaging pedagogical interventions.

Professor José Luis Capelo Martinez, a researcher who believes that science and technology have a direct and tangible impact on human well-being kindly granted BrJAC an interview

J. L. Capelo, PhD, gets his bachelor’s degree in chemistry by the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain), his doctorate in Analytical Chemistry by University of Vigo, UVIGO (Spain, award to the best doctoral thesis 2002) and his Post-Doc from the Instituto Superior Técnico de Lisboa (Portugal). His academic career comprises assistant to staff and lecturer at the UVIGO; research fellow at the Chemistry Department of the New University of Lisbon, CD-FCT-UNL, research fellow at the CDUVIGO, and assistant professor at the CD-FCT- UNL. Currently he is Associate Professor at the CD-FCT-UNL. Dr. Capelo is co-head of the bioscopegroup (www.bioscopegroup.org.) and his CV comprises (up to October 2023): 290 manuscripts; 250 congress communications (orals and posters); 23 projects; 2 Patents, 1 license agreement and 3 books (1 authored and 2 edited). He has chaired 65 international conferences and is presently involved in the direction of 7. He was a member of the advisory board of Talanta from 2006 to 2014 and is Editor in Chief of the on-line Journal JIOMICS (www.JIOMICS.com) since its creation in 2011. He is presently mentoring or co-mentoring a total of 3 doctoral theses, and he has mentored 3 post-doctoral grants, 10 doctoral grants, 9 masters and 8 final projects. His current research interest is devoted to developing new methodological approaches in personalised medicine using new proteomics approaches and unravelling bacterial resistance to antibiotics. He is a Fellow Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, member of the American Chemical Society and member of the Portuguese Society of Chemistry. H index 45 (Scopus Scholar). 8300 Citations. His skills include sampling and sample treatment for trace metals; metal speciation, proteomics, biomarker discovery; food chemistry; and development and validation of analytical procedures. Analytical techniques: HPLC-ICP-MS, ET-AAS, F-AAS, CVAAS, HG- AAS, HG-AFS, MALDI-TOF-MS/MS, RP-HPLC-ESI-IT-MS/MS. Teaching (theory and laboratory) in Analytical Biochemistry, Proteomics, and related disciplines. H index 40, circa 8000 citations. Awards: Best 2002 Doctoral Thesis in Chemistry. University of Vigo. Spain. Rainbow Prize 2017.

Progression from Chinese High School onto a TransNational Chinese-UK University joint BSc degree in chemistry; an international study focussing on laboratory practical skills

An investigation was carried out into laboratory practical skills development and students’ specific challenges in transition from laboratory chemistry at Chinese High School (HS) to a fully English style university laboratory course. To the best of our knowledge this is the first study of its type investigating practical laboratory skills for a TransNational Education (TNE) Chemistry BSc (3 + 1) degree programme between the United Kingdom (UK) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). Internationalization of such courses have become popular in recent years. The two universities in this study are Nanjing Tech University (NJTech) and the University of Sheffield (UoS). Our study is exploratory with the aim to determine the level of practical laboratory skills the NJTech students gained from High School and the challenges they encountered as they joined a UK degree laboratory programme delivered in English. For this international study, a mixed-methods approach was followed using qualitative inductive and deductive methodologies. Using open-ended questions it was found that particular challenges in the transition were around the lack of prior laboratory experience and the development of many new skills, laboratory notebook documentation, laboratory safety, and studying laboratory chemistry in a second language. Students welcomed these challenges and felt they were developing into professional chemists. Specific recommendations are made for international TNE degrees with laboratory programmes, particularly for those students who progress from Chinese High School through the Chinese GaoKao system into a western university chemistry laboratory programme. The scaffolded/structured curriculum design allowed for total and successful integration of the NJTech with the Sheffield home students during the final year of their BSc in Chemistry. After graduation, having gained high class degrees and becoming fluent in English many of the students progressed into Industry, and onto Masters or PhD programmes in the UK and throughout the world, suggesting internationalisation of students on our TNE programme was successful.

Evaluating the level of inquiry in postsecondary instructional laboratory experiments: results of a national survey

A national survey on chemistry instructional laboratories was administered to faculty members at four-year postsecondary institutions in the United States for the purpose of exploring levels of inquiry-based instruction implemented in laboratory courses. Respondents were asked to rate the level of choice their students had in deciding six key characteristics of the experiments used in their course (e.g., what research questions to explore); the more choices students get to make, the more inquiry-based instructional experience. MANOVA and post hoc analyses suggest that there are differences in the level of inquiry across chemistry course levels; lower-level courses (i.e., general chemistry and organic chemistry) implement lower levels of inquiry-based laboratory instruction compared to upper-level courses (i.e. more chemistry major-focused courses). We found no evidence of association between the level of inquiry courses and institutions’ highest chemistry degree awarded, American Chemical Society approval to award certified bachelors degrees, or external funding to transform postsecondary chemistry courses. Our study contributes to the chemical education community's growing understanding of the state of postsecondary chemistry laboratory instruction. Results further suggest that there is an opportunity for faculty members and department leaders to reflect on their instructional laboratory courses and implement more inquiry-based instructional laboratory experiences across the entirety of the postsecondary chemistry curriculum.

Structure-Property Interplay Within Microporous Manganese Dioxide Tunnels For Sustainable Energy Storage.

Tunnel-structured manganese dioxides (MnO2 ), also known as octahedral molecule sieves (OMS), are widely studied in geochemistry, deionization, energy storage and (electro)catalysis. These functionalities originate from their characteristic sub-nanoscale tunnel framework, which, with a high degree of structural polymorphism and rich surface chemistry, can reversibly absorb and transport various ions. An intensive understanding of their structure-property relationship is prerequisite for functionality optimization, which has been recently approached by implementation of advanced (in situ) characterizations providing significant atomistic sciences. This review will thus timely cover recent advancements related to OMS and their energy storage applications, with a focus on the atomistic insights pioneered by researchers including our group: the origins of structural polymorphism and heterogeneity, the evolution of faceted OMS crystals and its effect on electrocatalysis, the ion transport/storage properties and their implication for processing OMS. These studies represent a clear rational behind recent endeavors investigating the historically applied OMS materials, the summary of which is expected to deepen the scientific understandings and guide material engineering for functionality control.

Structure–Property Interplay Within Microporous Manganese Dioxide Tunnels For Sustainable Energy Storage

AbstractTunnel‐structured manganese dioxides (MnO2), also known as octahedral molecule sieves (OMS), are widely studied in geochemistry, deionization, energy storage and (electro)catalysis. These functionalities originate from their characteristic sub‐nanoscale tunnel framework, which, with a high degree of structural polymorphism and rich surface chemistry, can reversibly absorb and transport various ions. An intensive understanding of their structure–property relationship is prerequisite for functionality optimization, which has been recently approached by implementation of advanced (in situ) characterizations providing significant atomistic sciences. This review will thus timely cover recent advancements related to OMS and their energy storage applications, with a focus on the atomistic insights pioneered by researchers including our group: the origins of structural polymorphism and heterogeneity, the evolution of faceted OMS crystals and its effect on electrocatalysis, the ion transport/storage properties and their implication for processing OMS. These studies represent a clear rational behind recent endeavors investigating the historically applied OMS materials, the summary of which is expected to deepen the scientific understandings and guide material engineering for functionality control.

Introduction to Editor in Chief

Prof. Maria Daglia obtained her PhD degree in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology at the University of Pavia (Italy), and is currently a full professor of food chemistry at the University of Naples Federico II, Italy and visiting professor at the International Research Center for Food Nutrition and Safety, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang China.

Periods and practicals: how to help your students

Periods are a practical barrier that can impact the academic progression of those who experience them, particularly in physically intensive courses such as chemistry degrees. As we work towards equality in education it is important to improve the environment for those with periods and providing easy access to free period products in bathrooms across educational institutions is a practical way to do this and reduce barriers to studying chemistry.

Self-learning by Using Code-Based Games: An Easy Way to Learn Biomolecule’s Nomenclature

The Montessori method was an educational model devised at the beginning of the 20th century by the Italian pedagogue, physician, psychologist, and psychiatrist María Montessori (1870-1952). She observed that her students activated their intelligence and developed their personality by carrying out manual activities. In recent years, one of the activities that she used, gamification, is currently booming in teaching. Games based in words or letters are often used in language learning, either in presential lessons or in mobile applications. In our teaching innovation group (GINDOC-UB/180), we proposed to adapt those word games using codes so that students could achieve a self-learning on the nomenclature of biomolecules, thus improving their knowledge in metabolism. These code-based games were proposed to Biochemistry students at the Chemistry degree of the Universitat de Barcelona. Games were posted on the Virtual Campus using Moodle. A code is part of a communicative system, and it is defined as a set of elements that allows a message to be decoded. In biochemistry, the best-known code is the genetic code that translates 3 nucleotides to an amino acid. The code allows the students to see that it is a degenerated code, and it was the first code-based game used. Nevertheless, only 20 amino acids are involved, and some letters are missing. Thus, we also used other codes such as numeric codes, Morse code, Braille system code, or codes from other alphabets (Japanese katakana or hiragana, Cyrillic alphabet, Arabic alphabet, or runic alphabet). In this work some examples of the games that can be proposed to the students are shown. Proposed games were highly valued by students and allowed a self-learning on the proposed biomolecules. Games based on the genetic code were easier and more enjoyable for the students to solve, and they provided them with additional biochemical knowledge of protein translation.

GIL VALDO JOSÉ DA SILVA (1954-2023)

Gil Valdo José da Silva, from Guaimbê, São Paulo, rose above the constraints of his small-town upbringing. He moved to São Paulo in 1970 and graduated from the Antárctica Technical School with a degree in Industrial Chemistry. Initially employed by General Motors do Brasil, his zeal for knowledge drove him to pass the entrance exam at the University of S. Paulo's Chemistry Institute (IQ-USP) in 1975. Balancing studies and work, he taught chemistry in schools and developed a passion for teaching. Gil Valdo graduated in 1980 and went on to undertake doctoral studies in organic synthesis of natural goods. He was interested in research, particularly chemical synthesis and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) techniques. His accomplishments went beyond the classroom; he became a licensed pilot, a Dive Master, and a lover of languages, culinary arts, and winemaking. Gil Valdo retired in December 2021, after more than 30 years at FFCLRP-USP, to pursue his passions more freely. He died on July 21, 2023, as a result of a heart attack. He was survived by a loving family and a legacy of intellectual, scientific, and cultural achievements. Gil Valdo José da Silva will be remembered for his serenity, dedication, and the diverse interests that enriched his life and the lives of those who were lucky enough to know him.

SUSTAINABLE EXPERIMENTAL PRACTICE: THE MUCILAGE OF THE XIQUE-XIQUE CACTUS AS ACOAGULANT FOR THE TREATMENT OF TURBED WATER

Chemistry is generally viewed negatively by elementary school students. This problem in many cases is the result of the lack of applicability of methodologies that instigate the interest of students and guarantee the inclusion of all of them. Therefore, the work on screen aimed to report the development of an accessible and contextualized experimental class, in one of the 4th year of the Technical Course Integrated to the High School of Environmental Control of the Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Paraíba - IFPB, João Campus Person. This action was intended to encourage the active participation of students through the didactic approaches addressed. Thus, through a qualitative and participatory research, the scholarship holders of the Tutorial Education Program of the Degree in Chemistry - PET Chemistry, from the aforementioned institution, developed an activity entitled "Experimental Chemistry Course for High School - CQEEM". This teaching intervention exposed a low-cost process to improve water quality, through the mucilage of the Xique-Xique cactos (Pilosocereus gounellei), a natural coagulant, for the treatment of cloudy water. This theme was chosen because it is a current and relevant subject to the experience of students of environmental control courses. The activity was divided into two parts: carrying out tests to confirm the real coagulante potential of the plant, and the development of the experimental procedure, by the group, from the separation of the samples of turbid water, the treatment of the water with the cactus mucilage, until the analysis of the turbidity decrease of the samples. In this process, the students presented satisfactory considerations regarding the activity, showing that this practice was fundamentally important for their technical training.

The Enhancement of CO2 and CH4 Capture on Activated Carbon with Different Degrees of Burn-Off and Surface Chemistry.

Activated carbon derived from longan seeds in our laboratory and commercial activated carbon are used to investigate the adsorption of methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). The adsorption capacity for activated carbon from longan seeds is greater than commercial activated carbon due to the greater BET area and micropore volume. Increasing the degree of burn-off can enhance the adsorption of CO2 at 273 K from 4 mmol/g to 4.2 and 4.8 mmol/g at 1000 mbar without burn-off, to 19 and 26% with burn-off, respectively. This is because an increase in the degree of burn-off increases the surface chemistry or concentration of functional groups. In the investigation of the effect of the hydroxyl group on the adsorption of CO2 and CH4 at 273 K, it is found that the maximum adsorption capacity of CO2 at 5000 mbar is about 6.4 and 8 mmol/g for cases without and with hydroxyl groups contained on the carbon surfaces. The opposite behavior can be observed in the case of methane, this is due to the stronger electrostatic interaction between the hydroxyl group and carbon dioxide. The simulation results obtained from a Monte Carlo simulation method can be used to support the mechanism in this investigation. Iron oxide is added on carbon surfaces with different concentrations to reveal the effects of ferric compounds on the adsorption of CO2. Iron at a concentration of about 1% on the surface can improve the adsorption capacity. However, excessive amounts of iron led to a limited adsorption capacity. The simulation result shows similar findings to the experimental data. The findings of this study will contribute to the progress of gas separation technologies, paving the way for long-term solutions to climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

Microcell concentrating photovoltaics for space

Christian Ruud received his PhD in materials science and engineering at Penn State University under the guidance of Dr. Chris Giebink. His doctoral research was funded by a NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunities award and covered microcell concentrating photovoltaics for space and graded-index antireflection coatings. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Recently, Christian began a new role as a research engineer at PPG in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Jeffrey Gordon is professor emeritus at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's Department of Solar Energy and Environmental Physics in Israel, where he has been a faculty member for 45 years. He played a pivotal role in stewarding it to an internationally recognized center of research and graduate education. His research advances have led to over 250 publications in leading scientific journals and cover the fields of nanomaterial synthesis, solar energy conversion, advanced optical design, finite-time thermodynamics, biomedical science, and algae biotechnology, with several innovations having been translated into impactful commercial realities. Chris Giebink has been a professor of electrical engineering at Penn State University for 10 years and is presently moving to the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan. His research on optoelectronic and photonic devices has led to more than 80 publications and 13 patents. He received his PhD in electrical engineering from Princeton University and holds undergraduate degrees in physics and engineering science from Trinity University. Christian Ruud received his PhD in materials science and engineering at Penn State University under the guidance of Dr. Chris Giebink. His doctoral research was funded by a NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunities award and covered microcell concentrating photovoltaics for space and graded-index antireflection coatings. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Recently, Christian began a new role as a research engineer at PPG in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Jeffrey Gordon is professor emeritus at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's Department of Solar Energy and Environmental Physics in Israel, where he has been a faculty member for 45 years. He played a pivotal role in stewarding it to an internationally recognized center of research and graduate education. His research advances have led to over 250 publications in leading scientific journals and cover the fields of nanomaterial synthesis, solar energy conversion, advanced optical design, finite-time thermodynamics, biomedical science, and algae biotechnology, with several innovations having been translated into impactful commercial realities. Chris Giebink has been a professor of electrical engineering at Penn State University for 10 years and is presently moving to the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan. His research on optoelectronic and photonic devices has led to more than 80 publications and 13 patents. He received his PhD in electrical engineering from Princeton University and holds undergraduate degrees in physics and engineering science from Trinity University.

Guest Editorial: Polymer electrets and ferroelectrets

Guest Editorial: Polymer electrets and ferroelectrets

Juan Modolell (1937-2023).

Juan Modolell (1937-2023).