Flame Tests Using Improvised Alcohol Burners

Inquiry-based experiments require students to take an active role in the learning process by having them develop their own procedures and data tables. This shift in responsibility requires students to think for themselves and show what they have truly learned . In the accompanying investigation, students help Sherlock Holmes solve the poisoning death of Holly Bernard-Schneider, the wife of the German ambassador to England. Hints are placed throughout the story to help students in their choice of experiments. These experiments include flame tests, qualitative analysis, molar mass determination using freezing point depression, and identification of crystal shapes. Though intended for use as a culminating activity, the unit can be easily modified to be used as separate modules throughout the course of the year.

Section: Summary Of Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Raven and the Ambassador's Wife: An Inquiry-Based Murder Mystery

Grove

Bretz

2005

“…The flame test is a longstanding demonstration in chemistry classrooms. From 1928 to 2015, the Journal has published 32 different procedures for conducting flame test demonstrations. − Flame tests are a colorful, visually interesting demonstration of the anchoring concept − that matter consists of atoms that have an internal structure that dictates their properties often as part of the evidence that led to the development of the quantum model. Despite the showy nature of this demonstration, there is scarce evidence that it promotes student learning: “students move on, graduate, and [when] I cross paths with them, they remember that flame test that I did for them; they may not remember the chemistry, but they remember the demo.” While limited research has been reported regarding students’ understandings of atomic line spectra, there are no reports published to date of investigations into student thinking about flame tests and atomic emission.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of the Flame Test Concept Inventory: Measuring Student Thinking about Atomic Emission

Bretz

Mayo

2017

This study reports the development of a 19-item Flame Test Concept Inventory, an assessment tool to measure students’ understanding of atomic emission. Fifty-two students enrolled in secondary and postsecondary chemistry courses were interviewed about atomic emission and explicitly asked to explain flame test demonstrations and energy level diagrams. Analysis of students’ explanations offered insight into students’ alternative conceptions and was used to design items and distractors for a 19-item Flame Test Concept Inventory about atomic emission. Results from a pilot study with first-year university chemistry and with upper-division chemistry students were analyzed to create a final version of the inventory that was administered to both secondary students (N = 459) and first-year university students (N = 100) who had completed formal instruction and course assessment about atomic emission. Analysis of student responses indicated the inventory generated valid and reliable data. Common alternative conceptions about atomic emission that remain postinstruction and their prevalence are discussed.

“…Thus, some variations to the flame test have been proposed over the past years. These include using cotton swabs or filter paper instead of a nichrome wire or an atomizer, using common household items as sample, and improvising burners, , among others. − One common problem in demonstrations outside a laboratory setting, especially when a candle or an alcohol burner is used, is the interference due to the yellow flame. In this article, the authors describe how to make a low-cost burner made from soda cans and ethanol as a fuel.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Making a Low-Cost Soda Can Ethanol Burner for Out-of-Laboratory Flame Test Demonstrations and Experiments

Domingo

Yanza

et al. 2014