Use of Computers in General Chemistry Labs
Photograph
Michael D. Seymour
Professor, Department Chair
Chemistry
seymour@hope.edu
By using computer based data collection in the general
chemistry lab, students are able to collect more data of
higher quality in less time, thus allowing more time to be
spent thinking about the chemistry behind the data. Much
of the data can be analyzed via a spreadsheet, such as
Excel, providing the students with another important tool for
future lab work.
HCl titrated with NaOH
Areas of expertise: Analytical Chemistry,
Computers in General Chemistry Labs
pH titration data
collected directly to
computer with
overlaid first
derivative curve for
equivalence point
determination.
14.000
12.000
25.0000
deriv
pH
10.000
20.0000
8.000
pH
B.A., St. Johns University, 1972
Ph.D., University of Arizona, 1978
Hope College, 1978 -
30.0000
15.0000
6.000
10.0000
4.000
5.0000
2.000
0.0000
24.00
0.000
25.00
26.00
27.00
28.00
29.00
30.00
31.00
32.00
mL NaOH
Grants and awards:
• Identification, Quantification and Fate of Antibiotics and Estrogens in
Surface and Ground Water, co-PI with Jonathon Peterson, The Hope
College-Howard Hughes Medical Institute Faculty Development Grant for
Interdisciplinary Research, 2005.
• “Acquisition of an ICP for Environmental Metals Analysis and Undergraduate
Training at Hope College”, National Science Foundation Major Research
Instrumentation,10/01/01–9/30/03 (co-PI Graham Peaslee).
Recent publications and presentations:
• O’Meara, Theresa, Seymour, Michael D., Peterson, Jonathon W., 2005,
Experimental investigation of cephapirin adsorption to sands: implications
for transport of antibiotics in groundwater. 2005 Salt Lake City Geological
Society of America Annual Meeting. Paper # 68-6.
• Michael Seymour and David Gorno, A Two for One Kinetics Experiment,
Biennial Conference on Chemical Education, Purdue University, August 1,
2006.
Acknowledgements: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, National Science
Foundation
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
400
Series1
Series2
Series3
Series4
Series5
Series6
Series7
Series8
Series9
450
500
550
600
Absorbance data for
indicator at different
pH values for
determination of the
indicator Ka.
650
wavelength nm
HPLC-MS is being used
to identify and quantify
antibiotics in water/soil
systems. The goal is to
model the behavior and
predict the transport of
these compounds in the
environment.
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Structure of the antibiotic cephapirin