Nonconventional Methods in Teaching Matter, Atoms, Molecules

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Nonconventional Methods in Teaching Matter, Atoms, Molecules How-to-Dolt NonconventionalMethods in Teaching MIatter, Atoms, Molecules & the Periodic Table for Nonmajor Students Abour A. Cherif Gerald E. Adams Charles E. Cannon Downloaded from http://online.ucpress.edu/abt/article-pdf/59/7/428/48245/4450349.pdf by guest on 26 September 2021 Instructional strategies that allow the visible particles called molecules, and abstract topics. Randy Moore (1994) integration of a variety of approaches that these molecules are made of even has urged teachers to ask their students such as hands-on activities, visualiza- smaller, invisible particles called atoms, to write, because writing is a powerful tion, writing, demonstrations, role and that atoms and subatomic particles tool, not only for putting down what is play, and guided inquiry are important are even further removed from direct already in their heads, but also for in bridging the gap between concrete experience. Likewise, it is not at all helping them to think, to discover, to and abstract understanding of scien- obvious how the list of elements that develop and to organize ideas, and to tific concepts and principles among we call the periodic table has any sense learn effectively. In 1986, "a survey students. The following are a few of the of organization at all. Students, espe- conducted by the National Assessment instructional strategies that we have cially those who prefer the sens- of Educational Progress (NAEP) of used in classes (from middle school ing mode of learning and perceiving 95,000 high school seniors showed that through introductory college courses) (Schroeder 1993), might have difficulty 76% of the students could not write an and have found to be useful in helping with these concepts, as a result of both imaginative essay, 80% could not write nonscience majors better understand the abstract nature of atomic theory a persuasive letter, and 62% wrote un- the nature of matter, atoms, molecules, and the extremely formal pattern rep- satisfactory prose" (Moore 1994, p. the periodic table, and other related resented by the periodic table'. There- 290). On the average, "high school stu- topics. fore, we attempt to find ways to help dents in the United States write fewer The understanding of matter and its our students understand these con- than 500 words per semester, while atomic properties is fundamental to the cepts, through methods like visualiza- students in England write about 1,000 study of most biological and physical tion of atomic and subatomic struc- words per week" (Moore 1994, p. 287). sciences in their present forms. For tures, writing stories or short essays example, in biology, a basic under- about atomic interactions that form standing of chemistry (the study of molecules, and by designing games Why Do We Believe There matter and the changes it undergoes) is and maps to navigate the periodic ta- Are Such Things fundamental to understanding how ble. We have collected, designed and as Atoms? cells, organisms, and ecosystems work. modified activities based on our expe- It is also important in understanding riences with our students who are spe- Classical experiments that led to the physiology, genetics, evolution, and cializing in areas of arts, media and development of given scientific con- the origin of life on the planet Earth. communication. cepts and principles we hold today, Therefore, students need to learn the The common thread among all the such as the principle that atoms are the atomic basis of matter and the periodic learning activities and ideas in this building blocks of matter, can be pow- properties of the elements, in order for paper is the integration of hands-on erful learning tools for the illustration them to succeed in understanding most activities and writing. This integration of the tenets of science. We have found scientific concepts presented in any sci- is the tool for interpretation, learning, these experiments, either in descriptive ence class. At the same time, it is not at expressing thoughts and ideas, and of form or as actual demonstrations in the all obvious that matter consists of in- demonstrating the understanding of classroom, to be powerful learning tools helping students conceptualize the invisible particles that we call at- 1 In a learning environment, effective in- oms. Following are a few of the class- Abour Cherif, Ph.D., teaches biology structors are always able to recognize stu- room demonstrations that are direct and science education; Gerald Ad- dents who prefer the "sensing" mode of analogies to the classical experiments ams, Ph.D., teaches geology and en- learning and perceiving (a practice-to-the- of Ernest Rutherford and his assistant, vironment; and Charles Cannon, ory route through highly structured instruc- Hans Geiger. These demonstrations led Ph.D., is the Chairperson of the De- tion), and those who prefer the "intuitive" partment of Science and Mathemat- mode (theory-to-practice approach through to Rutherford's model of an atom with ics, and teaches chemistry, all at Co- open-ended interaction), and can balance a tiny nucleus containing practically all lumbia College, Chicago, IL60605. their teaching styles accordingly (Schroeder the mass of the atom, with the rest of 1993). the atom's volume being empty space 428 THEAMERICAN BIOLOGY TEACHER, VOLUME 59, NO. 7, SEPTEMBER1997 through which subatomic particles can middleof thesphere is as smallas a peabut like planets, which orbit through easily pass. weighs severalmillion tons. A few flies mostly empty space around the sun.2 If matter is made of atoms, then flitting here and there throughoutthe there should be spaces between the sphererepresent the electrons. atoms through which smaller particles (Hill & Kolb 1995, pp. 61-62) Activity #2: Experimenting with might pass. If matter filled all the Aluminum Foil, a Geiger space, Rutherford reasoned, the parti- Activity #1: Using Analogy To cles would have no chance of getting Understand the Concept Counter, and a Low-Level through. With this idea in mind, Ruth- of Atoms Radioactive Source erford and Geiger (in 1908) bombarded One approach in helping your stu- Another possibility for simulating a thin metal foil with a beam of fast- dents through the concept of atoms this experiment is to use a Geiger moving particles (positively charged and the Rutherford and Geiger experi- counter and a low-level, alpha-emit- "alpha" particles from a radioactive ment involves a simple, yet effective, ting radioactive source, such as mona- source material). Specifically, they used a analogy. Ask your students to imagine zite, carnotite, fergusonite, thorite, zir- gold leaf beaten to a thinnessof only one taking a garden hose and spraying con, allanite, columbite-tantalite, or fifty-thousandth of an inch (which was water at a solid wall. Ask them how commercially prepared non-mineral still at least 2,000 atoms thick). In con- sources. (Note: many primary and sec- trast to their expectations, Rutherford much water would get through the ondary schools are and Geiger observed that almost all of wall and how much would bounce prohibited by state back, and discuss why this is the case. or local safety regulations from having the particles (approximately 95%) went Downloaded from http://online.ucpress.edu/abt/article-pdf/59/7/428/48245/4450349.pdf by guest on 26 September 2021 right through the seemingly solid foil Then ask your students what would such materials on the premises, so without being deflected at all, and amaz- happen if holes were cut in half the check on the regulations before trying ingly, only a few (approximately 5%) of surface of the wall, and then water was to obtain them.) Monazite and ferguso- the particles were sharply deflected; sprayed through the hose at that wall. nite are more radioactive, and should some even bounced back in the direction Ask how much water, in this case, be stored in a lead-lined container, or from which they came. would go through, and how much packed in lots of paper. They can be To provide a sound interpretation of would bounce back. Again, discuss obtained from scientific catalogs (such the gold-foil experiment, Rutherford why this is the case (hopefully, the as Sargent-Welch, VWR Scientific, or hypothesized that the solid material collective conclusion will be that half Science Kit & Boreal Laboratories) in was made of atoms, with most of the the water will go through and half will forms that are not harmful, or bor- "solid" part being concentrated in a bounce back). You might also give a rowed from the physics, chemistry or central region, the atom's nucleus. In second example, with a different frac- geology departments of local colleges addition, he proposed an arrangement tion of holes to solid wall (or perhaps a or universities. Aluminum foil may be of the positive and negative parts of the percentage of holes to solid wall), to used as the thin metal foil. atom with all the positively charged reinforce the direct relationship be- First, to demonstrate that the foil has matter and almost all of the mass also tween the percentage of holes and the no perceptible holes, take a piece of the concentrated in the nucleus. percentage of water getting through or foil and a six-inch length of plastic pipe bouncing back. (like the pipe you can get in a hardware Whenan alphaparticle, which is positively Now, ask your students what they the store for indoor plumbing, around one charged,approached positivelycharged think the wall would be like if they nucleus,it wasstrongly repelled and there- inch in diameter), and seal one end of sprayed water at it, and 95% went Since a the pipe with the foil. You may need to fore deflected. only few alphapar- through the wall and only 5% bounced ticleswere deflected, Rutherford concluded use a little petroleum jelly to form the back.
Recommended publications
  • LIGHT METAL BOROHYDRIDES and Mg-BASED HYDRIDES for HYDROGEN STORAGE
    LIGHT METAL BOROHYDRIDES AND Mg-BASED HYDRIDES FOR HYDROGEN STORAGE by SHENG GUO A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY School of Metallurgy and Materials College of Engineering and Physical Sciences University of Birmingham December 2014 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. Synopsis This work has investigated structural and compositional changes in LiBH4, Mg(BH4)2, Ca(BH4)2, LiBH4-Ca(BH4)2 during heating. The crystal and vibrational structures of these borohydrides/composites were characterized using lab-based X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy, with particular attention to the frequency/width changes of Raman vibrations of different polymorphs of borohydrides. The thermal stability and decomposition pathway of the borohydrides was studied in great detail mainly using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), in/ex situ XRD and Raman measurements, whilst the gaseous products during heating were monitored using a mass spectrometry (MS). Hydrogen is the main decomposition gaseous product from all of these compounds, but in some cases a very small amount of diborane release was also detected.
    [Show full text]
  • United States Patent Office Patented Feb
    3,233,442 United States Patent Office Patented Feb. 8, 1966 1. 2 metal are prevented or substantially decreased. A re 3,233,442 lated object is to provide a rolled light metal Surface which METHOD AND COMPOSITIONS FOR has good physical properties and is protectively coated ROLLING LIGHT METALS against corrosion and abrasion. Other objects and ad Carl M. Zivanut, Alton, E., assignor to The Dow Chemical 5 vantages will be apparent from the description, which de Company, Midland, Mich., a corporation of Delaware scribed but does not limit the invention. No Drawing. Filed Mar. 21, 1960, Ser. No. 16,201 These objects are accomplished in accord with the 17 Claims. (C. 72-42) present invention as hereinafter explained. It has now This application is a continuation-in-part of my co been found that roll contamination during the rolling of pending application filed May 21, 1954, Serial No. 431, O light metals and the effects thereof at the interface of 571. the roll and metal can be prevented or substantially de This invention relates to lubricants for use in working creased by maintaining at said interface, a lubricating and protectively coating aluminum and magnesium, and composition consisting essentially of an alkali metal alkyl alloys containing greater than 70 percent by weight of phosphate and a polypropylene glycol, especially aqueous one of these metals. More particularly, the present in 5 solutions thereof. vention concerns an improved method of rolling alumi Suitable alkali metal alkyl phosphate compounds for num and magnesium, and said alloys of these metals, by use in accord with the invention are those having from using certain lubricants as hereinafter described.
    [Show full text]
  • Investigative Science – ALIEN PERIODIC TABLE Tuesday September 17, 2013 Perry High School Mr
    Investigative Science – ALIEN PERIODIC TABLE Tuesday September 17, 2013 Perry High School Mr. Pomerantz__________________________________________________________________________Page 1 of 2 Procedure: After reading the information below, correctly place the Alien elements in the periodic table based on the physical and chemical properties described. Imagine that scientists have made contact with life on a distant planet. The planet is composed of many of the same elements as are found on Earth. However, the in habitants of the planet have different names and symbols for the elements. The radio transmission gave data on the known chemical and physical properties of the first 30 elements that belong to Groups 1, 2, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18. SEE if you can place the elements into a blank periodic table based on the information. You may need your Periodic Table as a reference for this activity. Here is the information on the elements. 1. The noble gases are bombal (Bo), wobble, (Wo), jeptum (J) and logon (L). Among these gases, wobble has the greatest atomic mass and bombal has the least. Logon is lighter than jeptum. 2. The most reactive group of metals are xtalt (X), byyou (By), chow (Ch) and quackzil (Q). Of these metals, chow has the lowest atomic mass. Quackzil is in the same period as wobble. 3. The most reactive group of nonmetals are apstrom (A), volcania (V), and kratt (Kt). Volcania is in the same period as quackzil and wobble. 4. The metalloids are Ernst (E), highho (Hi), terriblum (T) and sississ (Ss). Sissis is the metalloid with the highest mass number.
    [Show full text]
  • Heavy Metals in Cosmetics: the Notorious Daredevils and Burning Health Issues
    American Journal of www.biomedgrid.com Biomedical Science & Research ISSN: 2642-1747 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mini Review Copyright@ Abdul Kader Mohiuddin Heavy Metals in Cosmetics: The Notorious Daredevils and Burning Health Issues Abdul Kader Mohiuddin* Department of Pharmacy, World University of Bangladesh, Bangladesh *Corresponding author: Abdul Kader Mohiuddin, Department of Pharmacy, World University of Bangladesh, Bangladesh To Cite This Article: Abdul Kader Mohiuddin. Heavy Metals in Cosmetics: The Notorious Daredevils and Burning Health Issues. Am J Biomed Sci & Res. 2019 - 4(5). AJBSR.MS.ID.000829. DOI: 10.34297/AJBSR.2019.04.000829 Received: August 13, 2019 | Published: August 20, 2019 Abstract Personal care products and facial cosmetics are commonly used by millions of consumers on a daily basis. Direct application of cosmetics on human skin makes it vulnerable to a wide variety of ingredients. Despite the protecting role of skin against exogenous contaminants, some of the ingredients in cosmetic products are able to penetrate the skin and to produce systemic exposure. Consumers’ knowledge of the potential risks of the frequent application of cosmetic products should be improved. While regulations exist in most of the high-income countries, in low income countries of heavy metals are strict. There is a need for enforcement of existing rules, and rigorous assessment of the effectiveness of these regulations. The occurrencethere
    [Show full text]
  • Crystal Chemistry of Light Metal Borohydrides
    Crystal chemistry of light metal borohydrides Yaroslav Filinchuk*, Dmitry Chernyshov, Vladimir Dmitriev Swiss-Norwegian Beam Lines (SNBL) at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), BP-220, 38043 Grenoble, France nd th Abstract. Crystal chemistry of M(BH4)n, where M is a 2 -4 period element, is reviewed. It is shown that except certain cases, the BH4 group has a nearly ideal tetrahedral geometry. Corrections of the experimentally determined H-positions, accounting for the displacement of the electron cloud relative to an average nuclear position and for a libration of the BH4 group, are considered. Recent studies of structural evolution with temperature and pressure are reviewed. Some borohydrides involving less electropositive metals (e.g. Mg and Zn) reveal porous structures and dense interpenetrated frameworks, thus resembling metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). Analysis of phase transitions, and the related changes of the coordination geometries for M atoms and BH4 groups, suggests that the directional BH4…M interaction is at the ori- gin of the structural complexity of borohydrides. The ways to influence their stability by chemical modification are dis- cussed. Introduction Borohydrides, also called tetrahydroborates, are largely ionic compounds with a general formula M(BH4)n, consisting of n+ – metal cations M and borohydride anions BH4 . Due to a high weight percent of hydrogen, they are considered as prospective hydrogen storage materials. Indeed, some borohydrides desorb a large quantity of hydrogen (up to 20.8 wt %), although the decompositon temperatures are usually high. The search for better hydrogen storage materials, with denser structures and lower binding energies, has been hampered by a lack of basic knowledge about their structural properties.
    [Show full text]
  • Investigative Science – ALIEN PERIODIC TABLE Thursday February 15, 2018 Perry High School Notebook Page: 37 Mr
    Investigative Science – ALIEN PERIODIC TABLE Thursday February 15, 2018 Perry High School Notebook page: 37 Mr. Pomerantz___________________________________________________________________________Page 1 of 2 Procedure: After reading the information below, correctly place the Alien elements in the periodic table based on the physical and chemical properties described. Imagine that scientists have made contact with life on a distant planet. The planet is composed of many of the same elements as are found on Earth. However, the in habitants of the planet have different names and symbols for the elements. The radio transmission gave data on the known chemical and physical properties of the first 30 elements that belong to Groups 1, 2, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18. SEE if you can place the elements into a blank periodic table based on the information. You may need your Periodic Table as a reference for this activity. Here is the information on the elements. 1. The noble gases are bombal (Bo), wobble, (Wo), jeptum (J) and logon (L). Among these gases, wobble has the greatest atomic mass and bombal has the least. Logon is lighter than jeptum. 2. The most reactive group of metals are xtalt (X), byyou (By), chow (Ch) and quackzil (Q). Of these metals, chow has the lowest atomic mass. Quackzil is in the same period as wobble. 3. The most reactive group of nonmetals are apstrom (A), volcania (V), and kratt (Kt). Volcania is in the same period as quackzil and wobble. 4. The metalloids are Ernst (E), highho (Hi), terriblum (T) and sississ (Ss). Sissis is the metalloid with the highest mass number.
    [Show full text]
  • Conversion Coatings
    Conversion Coatings Conversion Coatings By John W. Bibber Conversion Coatings By John W. Bibber This book first published 2019 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2019 by John W. Bibber All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-3850-8 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-3850-4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ................................................................................................ 1 Chapter 1 .................................................................................................... 3 The Light Metals Chapter 2 .................................................................................................. 17 Cleaning and Deoxidation of the Light and Heavy Metals Chapter 3 .................................................................................................. 41 Light Metal Conversion Coating Systems Chapter 4 .................................................................................................. 55 Anodizing Chapter 5 .................................................................................................. 67 Heavy Metals Conversion Coating Systems Chapter 6 .................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Elements.Pdf
    A Periodic Table of the Elements at Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos National Laboratory's Chemistry Division Presents Periodic Table of the Elements A Resource for Elementary, Middle School, and High School Students Click an element for more information: Group** Period 1 18 IA VIIIA 1A 8A 1 2 13 14 15 16 17 2 1 H IIA IIIA IVA VA VIAVIIA He 1.008 2A 3A 4A 5A 6A 7A 4.003 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 2 Li Be B C N O F Ne 6.941 9.012 10.81 12.01 14.01 16.00 19.00 20.18 11 12 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 3 Na Mg IIIB IVB VB VIB VIIB ------- VIII IB IIB Al Si P S Cl Ar 22.99 24.31 3B 4B 5B 6B 7B ------- 1B 2B 26.98 28.09 30.97 32.07 35.45 39.95 ------- 8 ------- 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 4 K Ca Sc Ti V Cr Mn Fe Co Ni Cu Zn Ga Ge As Se Br Kr 39.10 40.08 44.96 47.88 50.94 52.00 54.94 55.85 58.47 58.69 63.55 65.39 69.72 72.59 74.92 78.96 79.90 83.80 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 5 Rb Sr Y Zr NbMo Tc Ru Rh PdAgCd In Sn Sb Te I Xe 85.47 87.62 88.91 91.22 92.91 95.94 (98) 101.1 102.9 106.4 107.9 112.4 114.8 118.7 121.8 127.6 126.9 131.3 55 56 57 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 6 Cs Ba La* Hf Ta W Re Os Ir Pt AuHg Tl Pb Bi Po At Rn 132.9 137.3 138.9 178.5 180.9 183.9 186.2 190.2 190.2 195.1 197.0 200.5 204.4 207.2 209.0 (210) (210) (222) 87 88 89 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 114 116 118 7 Fr Ra Ac~RfDb Sg Bh Hs Mt --- --- --- --- --- --- (223) (226) (227) (257) (260) (263) (262) (265) (266) () () () () () () http://pearl1.lanl.gov/periodic/ (1 of 3) [5/17/2001 4:06:20 PM] A Periodic Table of the Elements at Los Alamos National Laboratory 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 Lanthanide Series* Ce Pr NdPmSm Eu Gd TbDyHo Er TmYbLu 140.1 140.9 144.2 (147) 150.4 152.0 157.3 158.9 162.5 164.9 167.3 168.9 173.0 175.0 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 Actinide Series~ Th Pa U Np Pu AmCmBk Cf Es FmMdNo Lr 232.0 (231) (238) (237) (242) (243) (247) (247) (249) (254) (253) (256) (254) (257) ** Groups are noted by 3 notation conventions.
    [Show full text]
  • Light-Metal Hydrides for Hydrogen Storage
    !" #$%# "$ % $ &'(' '&&') *$+%* ! "#"$$%$&#' ' '( )* + , ) !-)"$$%).- ' ! )/ ) 000)#0 ) )%12.%.##3.1#2#.1) ' 4 . + 5 ' + ) 6 ' ' + )- ' +' )! ' ' ))-* /)* + ' + ) - 71)0 +)8 9 ' -": + 4 '' + '' ). + ' ' + ' ' + ) ; . )* '' + + ) * + 4 <. + '' + '' ) = + ) -.>. ' -" . ) 6 -")* ' ' 4 : + ' >")!/.- ' ' )= ' !" /7-9 ' ) = + '!" 3$$?@ + ) -. <. '' '' !" ! !# $%&'! !()*%+,+ ! A- !"$$% =!!B0#.0"3 =!CB%12.%.##3.1#2#.1 & &&& .$1D2$7 &EE )6)E F G & &&& .$1D2$9 Publications included in this thesis This thesis is a summary of the following publications, referred to in the text by their Roman numerals: I Hydrogen desorption studies of the Mg24Y5-H system: Formation of Mg tubes, kinetics and cycling effects C. Zlotea, M. Sahlberg, S. Oezbilen, P. Moretto and Y. Andersson. Acta Materialia, 56 (2008) 2421-2428 II Hydrogen absorption in Ti doped Mg24Y5 C. Zlotea, M. Sahlberg, P. Moretto and Y. Andersson Journal of Alloys and Compounds, In submission III YMgGa M. Sahlberg, T. Gustafsson and Y. Andersson Acta Crystallographica, E63 (2007) i195 IV YMgGa as a hydrogen storage compound M. Sahlberg, C. Zlotea, P. Moretto and Y. Andersson Journal
    [Show full text]
  • Elements Game and Elements Quiz
    Elements Game and Elements Quiz Originally adapted by Eve Levin from the Avon Section 11 team at Fairfield Grammar School in Bristol from Dave Smith's (Hounslow Section 11) game of the same name in 1994. I am mining our archive and, since you can't keep a good activity down, producing an online version. I encountered Theodore Gray's Elements Book at ASE conference this January and am now planning a follow up version soon using less well know elements some of which had not been discoverd in 1994. Essentially, this is a revision activity with a gamelike twist. One team collects the right information for their elements and the other team checks their information and then vice versa and versa vice until 12 elements are checked. The sets of cards are best printed in different colours. You also might want to give teams six matrix cards rather than one. PS Arsenic is not included in this set! The webaddress for this activity is http://www.collaborativelearning.org/elementsgame.pdf Last updated 4th February 2010 COLLABORATIVE LEARNING PROJECT Project Director: Stuart Scott We support a network of teaching professionals to develop and disseminate accessible talk-for-learning activities in all subject areas and for all ages. 17, Barford Street, Islington, London N1 0QB UK Phone: 0044 (0)20 7226 8885 Website: http://www.collaborativelearning.org BRIEF SUMMARY OF BASIC PRINCIPLES BEHIND OUR TEACHING ACTIVITIES: The project is a teacher network, and a non-profit making educational trust. Our main aim is to develop and disseminate classroom tested examples of effective group strategies that promote talk across all phases and subjects.
    [Show full text]
  • Enhancement in Hydrogen Storage Capacities Oflight Metal Functionalizedboron–Graphdiynenanosheets
    Enhancement in Hydrogen Storage Capacities ofLight Metal FunctionalizedBoron–GraphdiyneNanosheets Tanveer Hussain1,*, Bohayra Mortazavi2, Hyeonhu Bae3,Timon Rabczuk2, Hoonkyung Lee3and Amir Karton1 1School of Molecular Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia 2Institute of Structural Mechanics, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Marienstr, 15, D-99423, Weimar, Germany 3Department of Physics, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Republic of Korea Corresponding Author: [email protected] Abstract The recent experimental synthesis of the two-dimensional (2D)boron-graphdiyne (BGDY) nanosheet has motivated us to investigate its structural, electronic,and energy storage properties. BGDY is a particularly attractive candidate for this purpose due to uniformly distributed pores which can bind the light-metal atoms. Our DFTcalculations reveal that BGDY can accommodate multiple light-metal dopants (Li, Na, K, Ca)with significantly high binding energies. The stabilities of metal functionalized BGDY monolayers have been confirmed through ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. Furthermore, significant charge-transfer between the dopantsand BGDY sheet renders the metal with a significant positive charge, which is a prerequisite for adsorbing hydrogen (H2) molecules with appropriate binding energies.This results in exceptionally high H2 storage capacities of 14.29, 11.11, 9.10 and 8.99 wt% for the Li, Na, K and Ca dopants, respectively. These H2storage capacities are much higher than many 2D materials such as graphene, graphane, graphdiyne, graphyne, C2N, silicene, and phosphorene. Average H2 adsorption energies for all the studied systems fall within an ideal window of 0.17- 0.40 eV/H2. We have also performed thermodynamic analysis to study the adsorption/desorption behavior of H2, which confirmsthat desorption of the H2molecules occurs at practical conditions of pressure and temperature.
    [Show full text]
  • THE MAJOR RARE-EARTH-ELEMENT DEPOSITS of AUSTRALIA: GEOLOGICAL SETTING, EXPLORATION, and RESOURCES Figure 1.1
    CHAPTER ONE WHAT ARE RARE- EARTH ELEMENTS? 1.1. INTRODUCTION latter two elements are classified as REE because of their similar physical and chemical properties to the The rare-earth elements (REE) are a group of seventeen lanthanides, and they are commonly associated with speciality metals that form the largest chemically these elements in many ore deposits. Chemically, coherent group in the Periodic Table of the Elements1 yttrium resembles the lanthanide metals more closely (Haxel et al., 2005). The lanthanide series of inner- than its neighbor in the periodic table, scandium, and transition metals with atomic numbers ranging from if its physical properties were plotted against atomic 57 to 71 is located on the second bottom row of the number then it would have an apparent number periodic table (Fig. 1.1). The lanthanide series of of 64.5 to 67.5, placing it between the lanthanides elements are often displayed in an expanded field at gadolinium and erbium. Some investigators who want the base of the table directly above the actinide series to emphasise the lanthanide connection of the REE of elements. In order of increasing atomic number the group, use the prefix ‘lanthanide’ (e.g., lanthanide REE: REE are: lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce), praseodymium see Chapter 2). In some classifications, the second element of the actinide series, thorium (Th: Mernagh (Pr), neodymium (Nd), promethium (Pm), samarium 1 (Sm), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), terbium (Tb), and Miezitis, 2008), is also included in the REE dysprosium (Dy), holmium (Ho), erbium (Er), thulium group, while promethium (Pm), which is a radioactive (Tm), ytterbium (Yb), and lutetium (Lu).
    [Show full text]