Supercritical fluids are gaining increasing importance as chromatographic mobile phases and extraction solvent systems. In response to the expanding use of supercritical fluids, the incorporation of the extensive study of supercritical fluids in the chemistry laboratory curriculum is an important and novel aspect of this project. So that the potential of this study of supercritical fluids can be fully realized, students are given training on equipment that is ubiquitous in industrial, governmental, and academic laboratories, a supercritical fluid extractor is being connected on-line with a gas chromatograph-mass selective detector. Another goal of this project is to improve upon the scientific reasoning skills of science graduates by administering five labs beyond general chemistry that utilize the discovery approach. Unlike traditional verification laboratories, the discovery approach requires that students devise hypotheses, formulate predictions, design experiments, and reach conclusions, thereby participating fully in the scientific method. Additionally, environmental samples (air, water, and soil) can be analyzed such that the full utility of the equipment is demonstrated. The environmental samples give the students experience with complex, real-world samples, experience that is not gained with the more traditional `unknown` samples that are typically analyzed in undergraduate laboratories. This project influences chemical education by introducing the developed laboratories at the regional and national level by way of publications and presentations. Primarily, the target audiences are chemistry, biology, environmental science, and natural science (with and without certification in education) majors. Also, public school teachers can benefit from the project through collaboration with the regional office of Project Discovery (housed on campus), and general chemistry students can benefit from the project by receiving an introduction to this equipment.
