Module I. Introduction to Soybean History, Cultivation, and Chemistry

Module I traces the historical journey of the soybean, beginning in China ca. 3,000 years ago, to its cultivation worldwide, including in the United States. While the historical perspective is optional for chemistry educators, a key takeaway is the shift from soybean use primarily as food for humans and animals to its modern applications as a renewable feedstock to replace fossil fuels. This section also introduces connections to green chemistry principles, sustainable farming practices, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

The module then examines the chemistry of soybean components, emphasizing how molecular structure governs both its properties and suitability for applications. Representative chemical structures provide opportunities to address concepts ranging from basic functional group recognition and intermolecular forces (common in introductory general or organic chemistry courses) to more advanced topics such as organic reactions, polymerizations, and biological molecules such as carbohydrates, amino acids, and proteins.

Module I also presents a simplified overview of soybean processing to oil, meal, and lecithin - concepts that instructors may link to laboratory techniques or engineering concepts. The module concludes with a survey of commercial applications, with the closing section designed to spark instructor interest in integrating one or more case studies into their classroom teaching.

The module includes a detailed Word document along with a PowerPoint presentation that summarizes the content for effective use in the classroom.

The module was reviewed by Liza Abraham (Ph.D.), Jessica Tischler (Ph.D.) and Jesse Morin (Ph.D.) and pilot tested by Jihyun Kim (Ph.D.), Faith Sutu Patrick-Inezi and Anita Nehra (Ph.D.).