Research activity sheet - Compounds
You will research a chemical compound and create a PowerPoint presentation about it. It
should include
 common uses of the compound
 risks associated with the use of the compound
 its chemical formula
 its common and chemical name
 interesting pictures and info
 the elements that make up the compound and a Bohr-Rutherford diagram for each
 tests for the chemical and physical properties of the compound
You need to remember to record Search strings for any Internet searches.
You will need to cite all sources you use according to APA Style.
Stage 1: Preparing for research:
Choosing a topic
Citric Acid
Sodium chloride
Potassium chloride
Rubbing Alcohol
Ammonia
Camphor
Salicylic acid
Glucose
AntiFreeze
Ethanol
Naphthalene
Aspirin
Maltose
Lactose
Bleach
Vinegar
Vitamin E
Vitamin C
Copper chloride
Sugar/sucrose
Baking soda
Epsom salts
Hydrogen peroxide
Cream of tartar
Antacid Tablets
Gasoline
Formaldehyde
Caffeine
Aspartame
Methanol
Fructose
benzene
TNT
IBUPROFEN
Topic
Nickel
Chlorine
Sodium chloride
Mercury
Copper
Sulfur trioxide
Gold
Ethanol
Polyethylene
DEET
Lead
Nitrogen dioxide
Iron
Sulfur
Ammonium nitrate
Bleach
Sodium
Carbon dioxide
Aluminum
Methane
Ammonia
Iodine
Helium
Octane
Citric Acid
Sodium chloride
Potassium chloride
Rubbing Alcohol
Ammonia
Camphor
Salicylic acid
Glucose
Anti-Freeze
Ethanol
Naphthalene
Aspirin
Maltose
Lactose
Bleach
Vinegar
Vitamin E
Vitamin C
ANTACID TABLETS
Copper chloride
Sugar
Baking soda
Epsom salts
Hydrogen peroxide
Cream of tartar
Step 1: Find keywords on your topic
Keywords
1. Is your topic a compound or an element?
2. Is the name a common name or its chemical name?
3. Try to think of any other names (synonyms or
acronyms) for your topic. What words come to mind
for your topic immediately?
4. What area of chemistry is your topic found? E.g. is it a
drug, a cleaner, a precious metal? Do a quick
Wikipedia search…look for hyperlinked words;
synonyms
5. Try an encyclopedia
Go to the Virtual Library.
See below for how to access.
6. Try a Directory to generate keywords
a. Open Directory Project:
http://www.dmoz.org/
b. Internet Public Library
http://www.ipl.org/
c. Academic Info
http://www.academicinfo.net/
d. Links for Chemists
http://www.liv.ac.uk/Chemistry/Links/links.html
7. Try a Clustering Metasearch engine
a. Dogpile www.dogpile.com
b. Quintura http://www.quintura.com/
8. Try Career Cruising which is in the Virtual Library.
The password is below.
It will help you find careers that may use the
compound you are researching.
Career Cruising
Username: Ancaster
Password: Lion
Step 2: Find books
Try some of the books that are pulled for you.
Finding eBooks:
Access eBooks through Virtual Library.
Step 3: Finding On-line Encyclopedias
About.com –Chemistry encyclopedia
http://chemistry.about.com/od/chemistryatoz/a/aencyclopedia.htm
Encyclopedia 4U
http://www.encyclopedia4u.com/l/list-of-compounds.html
Science World
http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/chemistry/letters/
Chemical Compound Database
http://ull.chemistry.uakron.edu/erd/
Virtual Library ACCESS
Ancaster Library Website
http://schools.hwdsb.on.ca/ancasterhigh/library-2/
Virtual Library
ID: secondary
Password: library
FIND DATABASES AND ON-LINE ENCYCLOPEDIAS HERE!
ALSO TRY:
Questia (talk to the Librarians to get the password)
For Science Topics:
Step 5: Finding Quality Websites
HINTS AND TIPS TO FINDING GOOD WEB SITES:
 Use your keywords to develop “search strings” that focus your
search to a reasonable number of sites that are relevant.
 Use advanced search features and complex searches using your
keywords in Google.
 E.g. “carbon dioxide” +safety +protection –“global warming”
 Use tilde~ to ask for synonyms. E.g. ~CO should get sites that
refer to carbon monoxide.
 Use “factsheet” as a search word or article
 Look for quality domains in the URL (.gov; .edu; .k12; .org)
E.g. adding site:gov in search box with your term gives you
just sites that are .gov or add inurl:diabetes for sites that
include diabetes in the URL. Add inurl:ca for Canadian sites
e.g.: www.diabetes.ca for the Canadian Diabetes Association.
 Look for sites that contain current information (check for
dates uploaded; revised and/or updated)
 Look for sites with adequate and accurate information. (check
other sites to back up facts)
 Look for good authors (contact info; good background on
author)
 Look for sites by quality organizations.
National Science Digital Library
http://www.chemeddl.org/collections/
http://nsdl.org/
Specialized Directories
Links for Chemists
http://www.liv.ac.uk/Chemistry/Links/links.html
Chembiofinder
http://chembiofinder.cambridgesoft.com/chembiofinder/simplesearch.aspx
NIST
http://webbook.nist.gov/chemistry/name-ser.html
Chem Synthesis
http://www.chemsynthesis.com/structure-search.html
How to find MSDS sheets
http://www.msds.com/
http://hazard.com/msds/links.html
http://ccinfoweb.ccohs.ca/msds/search.html
http://www3.3m.com/search/ca/en001/msdssearchform.do
Chemical Compounds
http://www.allatoms.com/CompoundWebSites.htm
Chemical of the week sheets
http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/chemweek/chemweek.html
WebElements - look for link on left to compounds
http://www.webelements.com/webelements/scholar/index.html
Household Products website:
http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/index.htm
Properties of materials
www.unb.ca/safety/hazmaterial.html
www.cpuc.ca.gov/environment/info/esa/pgedivest/swaps/final/swapch_2vii.html
For Information on Elements:
1) This site is great for pictures.
http://www.webelements.com/webelements/scholar/
2) This site provides you with the state, melting & boiling points, and density.
http://www.chemicalelements.com/
3) This site provides you with the state, some human uses, health & environmental effects.
http://www.lenntech.com/periodic-chart.htm
4) This site has human uses, and harmful effects.
http://www.kids.net.au/encyclopedia-wiki/pe/Periodic_table
5) This site has uses, and general information.
http://www.chemsoc.org/viselements/pages/pertable_fla.htm
6) Some other sites
http://www.chemicool.com/
http://periodic.lanl.gov/
http://www.tryagain.com/chemistry/elements.htm
http://www.lenntech.com/periodic-chart.htm
CHEM COLLECTIVE -HAS LINK TO VIRTUAL LAB
http://chemcollective.org/
Answer.com
-add the name of your metal and it gives you lots of info
http://www.answers.com/main/science.jsp
CITING SOURCES AND NOTE-TAKING
For note-taking sheets for your project see the Library website or click
here.
Try on-line Citation help software to write your REFERENCES in APA style:
1. KnightCite http://www.calvin.edu/library/knightcite/index.php
2. Citation machine http://citationmachine.net/
To help you format your REFERENCE sheet, read the guides on our website.