Academic Organic Chemistry Research Project

Objective:

Prepare a 5-minute presentation on a selected research topic pertaining to organic chemistry in order to develop an awareness of the wide array of everyday items that are organic compounds.

Possible Research Topics

·  Oil refining process, fractional distillation of petroleum

·  Petroleum to plastics

·  Petroleum to pharmaceuticals

·  Different types of plastics, Sorting/Recycling plastic

·  Gasoline, octane rating

·  Diamond, graphite, buckyballs (isomers of carbon)

·  Soap making

·  Synthesis of aspirin

·  Distillation

·  Organic chemistry of perfumes/scents

·  Polymers

·  Other: suggest your own topic and seek teacher approval

Project Guidelines:

·  In this project, you will present information to your classmates about a real-world application involving organic chemistry. The goal here is to teach everyone (including yourself) about the organic chemistry of your practical application.

·  You will have one class day to research and prepare your lesson.

·  You must also prepare 1 question that you classmates can answer after your presentation.

·  You may select your own group or work by yourself…no more than 3 per group though. You will receive a group grade, so select your group members appropriately so that you are working equally!

Be creative! Make your presentation interesting. You and your classmates will enjoy it much more if you make it fun and interesting. Think outside of the box!

Be effective! Make sure your students know what they need to know!

Grading: You will receive a teacher grade and an average of the peer grades based upon the organic chemistry presentation rubric. You will also be graded based upon your contribution of a question to the exit slip and your completed exit slip that shows you can answer questions about your classmates’ organic chemistry applications as well.

Period

Topic 1 / Student 1 / Student 2 / Student 3
Oil refining process, fractional distillation of petroleum
Petroleum to plastics
Petroleum to pharmaceuticals
Different types of plastics, Sorting/ Recycling plastic
Gasoline, octane rating
Diamond, graphite, buckyballs (isomers of carbon)
Soap making
Synthesis of aspirin
Distillation
Organic chemistry of perfumes/scents
Polymers
Other:
Other:
Other: