Physical Chemistry Laboratory
Physical Chemistry Laboratory
Laboratory experience in physical chemistry may accompany each semester of the lectures. The laboratory program may be separate and given as an intensive course in a single semester. Also, many programs combine physical chemistry laboratory experience with instrumental analysis and possibly with inorganic chemistry in an integated laboratory program.What follows is a list from which a typical set of experiments in physical chemistry might be selected. Within the physical chemistry area itself, as well as in an integrated laboratory, it is common for individual experiments to combine several aspects. These aspects consist of various experimental methods and various theoretical concepts. For example, a Knudsen effusion study gives a student experience with vacuum system techniques and uses kinetic theory ideas to yield the vapor pressure of a substance such as naphthalene as a function of temperature. From this temperature dependence,
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In today's physical chemistry laboratory microcomputer methods should be readily available. Computers should assist in the collection of data as well as in the workup of data, in graphing data and in writing reports. Students should also have experience with spreadsheet programs. Students might also do some computer simulated experiments in which the opportunity to design much of the experiment would be emphasized. Experiments using modern computational techniques (quantum calculations, molecular modeling) are encouraged.
Report writing and error analysis are two other standard features of the physical chemistry laboratory. Students should also routinely make reasonable estimates of errors in primary experimental variables. Some experimental reports should include a substantial error analysis.
Thermodynamics
Phase EquilibriaKinetic Theory
Kinetics
Spectroscopy
Macromolecules