Chemistry Show Spring 2016
The Illinois Tech Chemistry Department and American Chemical Society Chemistry Club performed a Chemistry Show to welcome in the spring on Thursday, April 7th, 2016 in Wishnick Hall Auditorium. Some of the demonstrations included a “chemical traffic light,” “blooming crystals,” and a scientific explanation for the former chemical used in dyeing the Chicago River green.
- Nicholas Politis (CHEM 4th year) performs the “chemical traffic light demo,” in which shaking the solution introduces oxygen, causing a color change from yellow to green to red to yellow.
- Andrew Shahidehpour (CHEM 2nd year) holds up a supersaturated solution to which he added a crystal of sodium acetate, initiating the blooming phenomenon while releasing heat in an exothermic reaction.
- Ismael Sanchez (CHEM 2nd year) demonstrates the fluorescent properties of fluorescein, the original dye used to turn the Chicago River green, while Andrew Shahidehpour looks on. The dye is dark when in a concentrated solution but glows a bright green when diluted.
- Abdallah Hasan (CHEM 1st year) brings a new twist to “April showers bring May flowers” by turning a muddy yellow solution into beautiful golden crystals in a simple double replacement reaction.
- Grace Wischmeyer (CHEM 4th year) demonstrates a combination of two clear liquids that turn into a solution that glows a very bright blue. This solution contains luminol, the chemical used to detect blood at crime scenes.
