Module III. Sustainable Adhesives from Soybean Oil: A Green Chemistry Laboratory Experiment

Some notes from initial piloting of the module:

SC 149 - Chemistry for Cosmetics (Junior year, 20 students x 3 sections, marketing majors)
This year's theme was 'glues' and explored from a cosmetic ingredient/packaging perspective. The content was very relevant, as students are interested in natural/organic alternatives to artificial/synthetic ingredients. Soy provided an abundant, 'local', and renewable resource to explore. The design took some adaptation, as their lab periods were only 2 hours, and the experiment 4. The resources were quite usable, the student concurrently take a business math course and were familiar with the economics metrics/calculations.
Students enjoyed getting to follow a multi-step synthesis, and work in groups across the procedure. They were engaged, and were asking questions about the economics/pricing aspects of the adhesives. There is a lot of meat in the resources, take your time and section out what is relevant. You will need dedicated time outside of the laboratory (Module III) to work on Module IIB elements. Students were interested to apply the adhesives/compare results with other formulations.

CHEM1041: Organic Chemistry 1, class size was 10 students, student majors are chemistry (3), chemical engineering (1), pre-PA (1), biology (2), biochemistry (1), and undecided (2).
The module is exciting as it is green chemistry with interesting applications (underwater adhesives). The background information to the lab was complete and well-written. The procedure was a bit general and could have more details/alternatives for students. The design and usability of the lab was appropriate for first semester organic chemistry. A limiting factor in the lab is if the lab does not have access to NMR.
The students loved the idea of piloting a lab and being the first to experience and trouble-shoot the experiment. They also enjoyed the green aspects of getting their starting material from the grocery store and using a green oxidizer. They were very engaged and inquisitive when it came to the experiment and real-life applications.
The only improvements were really in the clarity of the procedure. There are a few moments where we had to make assumptions or guess as to what to do. For example, if 1-2 mL of the oxone solution was added every 15 minutes, then the entire 20 mL of the oxone solution would not be added by the time the two hours were complete. There was also a "cloudy" aqueous layer during separation that made separation difficult - it would have been nice to talk through what to do when that happened. Lastly, an alternative to concentrating the solution is to allow the solution to evaporate over night (if you have a broken rotovap like myself).
This lab is best used for end of organic chemistry 1 or in organic chemistry 2. It is helpful to come up with alternatives if you don't have the equipment - you can even use the "answer key" NMR for your students if you do not have an NMR.