This project, Applying Instrumental Analysis to a Computerized Process, seeks to improve the instructional methodology by which analytical instruments are taught. Students have been receiving training in the Chemical Technology program with regard to performing analysis of a sample, but they also need the ability to evaluate the analytical results in terms of what they indicate about a given chemical process. The objectives of the project are to set up a complete computerized process in glassware, providing a lab environment for teaching instrumental analysis in which the student learns not only to operate the analytical instruments but also to interpret the analytical results in the context of a multistep process; enhance computer skills through a computerized, controlled lab process, data collection, calculation, and analytical instrument control; provide students with an overview of an entire multistep process on a small scale, and of how these operations are linked together and how one operation affects succeeding operations; provide students with a representative sample of the analytical instruments used in the local chemical industry; and provide the organic lab students with instruments with which to do product analysis, giving them feedback on the purity of the products they are synthesizing. This project also provides students with hands-on experience at interpreting spectra. To accomplish these objectives, the department is using Fourier-transform-infrared and ultra-violet spectrophotometers to provide a representative sample of the instruments used in the chemical industry. Assembly of a computerized, small-scale, glassware, multistep process is used to illustrate the interrelation of processes and how the analysis is tied to a particular operation. As a result of the project, other colleges may be able to design a lab facility that better meets the need of the chemical industry. Information on the project can be disseminated through journal articles, conference presentations, and lab tours. The project is evaluated based on enrollment and input from instructors, students, and industry.
