To enrich the chemistry experience for nonmajors through the development of an introductory chemistry laboratory course for honors and nonhonors students, the department is purchasing a Parr Plain Jacket Oxygen Bomb Calorimeter and a Tecator Kjeldahl apparatus. In the laboratory, students may initially perform small-scale experiments from the Chemistry in Context Laboratory Manual, many of which involve food analyses. Using the new equipment, students analyze the caloric and nitrogen contents of popular foods as these determinations are performed in the food industry. Such an opportunity both promotes student interest and provides students with a realistic knowledge of the utility of chemistry. Inclusion of the Kjeldahl analysis provides a clear illustration of the risk/benefit considerations made when working with solutions and compounds that are commonly thought of as being hazardous.
