r/chemistry 1d ago

Weekly Careers/Education Questions Thread

3 Upvotes

This is a dedicated weekly thread for you to seek and provide advice concerning education and careers in chemistry.

If you need to make an important decision regarding your future or want to know what your options, then this is the place to leave a comment.

If you see similar topics in r/chemistry, please politely inform them of this weekly feature.


r/chemistry 31m ago

How to isolate the water-soluble organic compound from salt

Upvotes

Hello everyone,

My desired product is a water-soluble compound but the in aqueous phase it also contains NaCl. How can I isolate my product from it?


r/chemistry 35m ago

Mass spec from spectra base

Post image
Upvotes

Can anyone with subscription to "spectrabase" share the full GCMS full fragments for this compound.


r/chemistry 47m ago

Iodine clock reaction took 4 mins?!?

Upvotes

I’m a homeschooled student, and my first lab I got was this one, I follow the instructions as close as I could and was just curious what are some reasons why it took so long?


r/chemistry 55m ago

Some questions for the synthetic chemistry enjoyers out there.

Upvotes

Hey guys, I'm a second-year Uni student studying materials science and engineering + chem, and recently I've been really interested in going down the synthetic path. I wanted to ask y'all about your experiences as a synthetic chemists, so I can get a feel of what the field is like:

  • When was the last time that you needed to create a route for something you've never synthesized before? What exactly did you do, step-by-step, to tackle it?
    • What resources did you use to help you with the synthesis (SciFinder, Reaxys, Google search, another chemist, published journals, etc.)?
    • Do you have a department or Uni that pays for those resources, or do you pay out-of-pocket? how expensive is it?
    • After finding what you need for a specific route, what did you do to prep for the actual synthesis? Did you check to verify the source is valid? How?
  • When was the last time you failed a synthesis? What went wrong with it, and how did you fix it in a later synthesis?

Thank you all for your assistance!


r/chemistry 1h ago

Has anyone obtained an exemption for Section 56?

Thumbnail
Upvotes

r/chemistry 3h ago

What’s a good detailed periodic table for a college chemistry class that i can either print out or buy?

5 Upvotes

I’m back in college after 5 years so I can’t remember what info should be on it. I should be able to either fit it in my large tote bag or in a binder and it should be color coded preferably. It’s allowed to be as detailed as possible.


r/chemistry 5h ago

Has anyone here done alkaline hydrolysis of PET in a lab? Looking for practical advice

2 Upvotes

I’m currently doing a school research project on the alkaline hydrolysis of PET to recover terephthalic acid (TPA).

My basic setup uses PET flakes, NaOH, an ethanol/water mixture, heating under reflux, followed by filtration, acidification to precipitate TPA, washing, drying, and finally a back-titration to estimate purity.

I’d like to hear from anyone who has
actually done PET alkaline hydrolysis in a lab. What were the biggest practical problems you ran into? what would you do differently if you repeated the experiment?

I’m mainly interested in practical laboratory experience.


r/chemistry 6h ago

Is research supposed to make you feel stupid?

58 Upvotes

I’m a senior in university, and I’m just now getting into research after a long time debating what I really want to do. I’ve joined a project at my school and while I enjoy lab work, I feel like most of the time I have absolutely no clue what I’m doing while everyone else is sure of themselves. Does anyone else feel like this?


r/chemistry 9h ago

How do I open this flask?

Post image
198 Upvotes

My supervisor gave me a bunch of glassware to clean, among the other things there’s this round bottomed flash with the cap stuck, they have no clue what’s inside, I tried both gently heating the joint with a blow torch but it didn’t work, also I don’t want to heat it up too much because I don’t know what’s inside. I also tried cooling the cap but also didn’t work. I tried putting the whole thing in an ultrasound bath hoping the cap would pop off but didn’t work either. Suggestions are welcome.


r/chemistry 15h ago

Electrically charged raindrops can corrode cars and buildings: « Charge picked up as water and surfaces interact may be damaging buildings like the Eiffel Tower. »

Thumbnail
cen.acs.org
35 Upvotes

r/chemistry 16h ago

soluble Plastics

4 Upvotes

Does anyone know what plastics are soluble and what equivalent the solvent is.
i need it for a experiment i want to run but i can't find any research on the matter

EG: Styrofoam in acetone


r/chemistry 20h ago

Chemdraw

0 Upvotes

Is there any way to get ChemDraw for free?


r/chemistry 21h ago

Anything that dissolves polyester but does not do anything to cotton?

7 Upvotes

Title says it all. I have a mystery fabric claiming its cotton, which its not. Don't know what it is, I think its polyester, but it could be a poly cotton blend. Only thing I know for sure is its some kind of plastic fabric, because it melts instead of chars and acetone doesn't do anything to it. Best way I can think of figuring that out is seeing what melts it. Any chemicals that eat polyester and are fairly easy to get?


r/chemistry 1d ago

I cannot find any reference to a Middle school science experiment from the 2010s

24 Upvotes

Back in eighth grade my chemistry teacher did a demonstration of this crazy chemical reaction between a piece of candy and a beaker of powder i don't remember the explanation, or what the powder was. But I remember him wearing these big gloves and using tongs to drop a circular piece of candy about the size of a Skittle into the beaker which was in the vent window box thing (I don't remember what that thing was called but it was a glass box built into the wall between the schools two chemistry labs it had a vent to pull out potentially toxic fumes) and the moment the candy touched the powder it started sparking and popping like a miniature firework it didn't last long maybe a minute or two before it died out and all that was left in the beaker was a non edible saline solution. I also remember the teacher saying that he couldn't redo the demonstration cause he only had a little of the chemical and needed enough for his other classes.


r/chemistry 1d ago

Found this weird piece of lab glassware during a cleanout — does anyone know what it is? B. Braun Melsungen, E 7433

Thumbnail
gallery
49 Upvotes

Found this during a lab cleanout and I have absolutely no idea what it is. It has two very thin graduated capillary-like tubes, each marked from 0 to 30 cm, and it says “B. Braun Melsungen” and “E 7433” on it.

Any idea what this weird thing was used for?


r/chemistry 1d ago

Clear my doubts , regarding the cause of citric acid production in a fermentation mixture.

Post image
5 Upvotes

Is this wrong???

Google says it's a fungus Aspergillus niger which produces citric acid not any bacteria.

I am in my first year of biochemistry (graduation)

Doing it from a distant learning program

This is a book they provided.


r/chemistry 1d ago

Do you have any amateur research or discoveries that you would like to write a paper on that I will publish in an amateur journal I have made (MJCR)?

0 Upvotes

Anything you would like to publish? Volume 1 has not yet been published, you may therefore give any papers you write. If you are interested, ask for the template article.


r/chemistry 1d ago

Tattoo Idea

Thumbnail
gallery
0 Upvotes

I am getting a tattoo and I am looking for some suggestions. I am looking for the artistic representations of gold and silver. I have looked up their valence electron configurations.

If anyone knows any interesting or cool representations for these elements that would be greatly appreciated.


r/chemistry 1d ago

Designing a DIY Galvanic Cell Array – Concentric Copper/Zinc in PVC Tubes

Post image
0 Upvotes

This investigation is a fun side project—My main project is building a wooden boat on my channel, JungleRanch, but this battery build is a fun side project…)

I’ve been studying YouTube videos, papers, and earth battery concepts. Combining my engineering background with extensive Q&A with Gemini, I’ve settled on what I believe is the optimal DIY concentric galvanic cell design.

Anyone who have ideas knowledge and want to comment this post?

I have been studying several Youtube videos and other information some about earth batteries and in general galvanic cell.

Latest I have been communication with an AI (Gemini). Through different questions to this AI and combined my own engineering background, I have come a conclusion of the best DIY galvanic cell.

Key Design Conclusions:

A selection of the question to this AI;
- A Copper Zink cell  in moisture soil will decline rather rapid?
- What if using other material like aluminum?
- So if doing that how long time before needed to upgrade or change
- So if using Epsom salt will have better sustainability but less current?
- How thick should the aluminum or zinc folie be?
- Well the inner roll has less area. Wouldn’t it be better to have the zinc sheet as the outer layer?

Together we came to this Key Design Conclusions;

  • Metals: Copper (Cathode) and Zinc (Anode) sheet metal provide the best balance of steady voltage and low internal resistance.
  • Geometry: Zinc sheet forms the outer cylinder inside the tube wall to maximize anode surface area, reduce internal resistance, and increase sacrificial mass.
  • Thickness: Minimum 0.5 mm metal sheet for structural integrity and long service life.
  • Dimensions: At least 100 mm in length (preferably longer) to maximize active area.
  • Container: 2-inch plastic conduit, PVC drain pipe, or clear vinyl/acrylic tubing with end caps for isolated cell units.
  • Electrolyte: Epsom salt ($\text{MgSO}_4$) dissolved in water and held in saturated sand/peat moss to prevent aggressive pitting corrosion.
  • Separator: Heavy-duty landscape fabric, felt weatherstripping, or heavy paper towel wrapping between the concentric metal layers.

Expected Lifespan (0.5 mm Zinc + Epsom Salt): 3 to 6 months of steady discharge per cell before anode maintenance or electrolyte replenishment is needed.

Does anyone have long-term test data on Epsom salt cell current density ($\text{mA/cm}^2$), or suggestions for optimizing the concentric spacing? Would love to hear your thoughts!

When I have built a test example I will log logging exact discharge curves using a ZKETECH (灼智) 4-wire electronic load tester connected to PC logging software to track precise voltage decay and capacity


r/chemistry 2d ago

Experimental Chemistry Youtubers who are women?

80 Upvotes

Are there any women on Youtube who run channels independently showing practical chemistry experiments being done (e.g. NileRed). I hvae yet to find any such channels. In contrast, there are many men doing this on Youtube.

NileRed

Nurdrage

Doug's Lab

Cody's Lab

Apoptosis (https://www.youtube.com/@integral_chemistry)

Chemiolis

Amateur Chemistry

vibzz lab

Cranial Construction, Chemplayer, Scrap Science, Prussian Blue, Thoisoi2, NightHawkinLight, and many more. but these are all men.

There are some women who appear on the ACS Reactions channel, but that is not focused on synthesis/experiments as much and is not independent.


r/chemistry 2d ago

Rinsing detergent from pans.

2 Upvotes

I work in a pie shop, and I also have OCD, so almost everyday it’s a challenge for me.

After I was the aluminium pans and other containers with soap, I rinse them like 100 times cause I think that the soap will be toxic for people.

The owner tells me that just rinse it with water once or twice, and that I don’t need to rub it with my hands to remove the detergent completely, cause the oven(400-450 degree), will get rid of that. And since the pan will be there for ~20 min, this makes it even safer.

I just want to know, how big of a danger is it if I rinse the dishes once or twice, only until I can’t see the soap anymore, but I don’t rub them and I also can’t smell them cause it’s very busy sometimes.

Is this gonna be toxic for the people buying it?

Maybe it’s just my OCD talking, cause I asked the other people and they told me it’s okay since the oven has a very high temperature, but I also asked chatGPT and it told me that it’s not very concerning but also it’s not fine…


r/chemistry 2d ago

Designing a DIY Galvanic Cell Array – Concentric Copper/Zinc in PVC Tubes

Post image
5 Upvotes

This investigation is a fun side project—My main project is building a wooden boat on my channel, JungleRanch, but this battery build is a fun side project…)

I’ve been studying YouTube videos, papers, and earth battery concepts. Combining my engineering background with extensive Q&A with Gemini, I’ve settled on what I believe is the optimal DIY concentric galvanic cell design.

Anyone who have ideas knowledge and want to comment this post?

I have been studying several Youtube videos and other information some about earth batteries and in general galvanic cell.

Latest I have been communication with an AI (Gemini). Through different questions to this AI and combined my own engineering background, I have come a conclusion of the best DIY galvanic cell.

Key Design Conclusions:

A selection of the question to this AI;
- A Copper Zink cell  in moisture soil will decline rather rapid?
- What if using other material like aluminum?
- So if doing that how long time before needed to upgrade or change
- So if using Epsom salt will have better sustainability but less current?
- How thick should the aluminum or zinc folie be?
- Well the inner roll has less area. Wouldn’t it be better to have the zinc sheet as the outer layer?

Together we came to this Key Design Conclusions;

  • Metals: Copper (Cathode) and Zinc (Anode) sheet metal provide the best balance of steady voltage and low internal resistance.
  • Geometry: Zinc sheet forms the outer cylinder inside the tube wall to maximize anode surface area, reduce internal resistance, and increase sacrificial mass.
  • Thickness: Minimum 0.5 mm metal sheet for structural integrity and long service life.
  • Dimensions: At least 100 mm in length (preferably longer) to maximize active area.
  • Container: 2-inch plastic conduit, PVC drain pipe, or clear vinyl/acrylic tubing with end caps for isolated cell units.
  • Electrolyte: Epsom salt ($\text{MgSO}_4$) dissolved in water and held in saturated sand/peat moss to prevent aggressive pitting corrosion.
  • Separator: Heavy-duty landscape fabric, felt weatherstripping, or heavy paper towel wrapping between the concentric metal layers.

Expected Lifespan (0.5 mm Zinc + Epsom Salt): 3 to 6 months of steady discharge per cell before anode maintenance or electrolyte replenishment is needed.

Does anyone have long-term test data on Epsom salt cell current density ($\text{mA/cm}^2$), or suggestions for optimizing the concentric spacing? Would love to hear your thoughts!

When I have built a test example I will log logging exact discharge curves using a ZKETECH (灼智) 4-wire electronic load tester connected to PC logging software to track precise voltage decay and capacity


r/chemistry 2d ago

Fix of error 8 from IKA RCT Basic

Thumbnail
gallery
6 Upvotes

So thanks to u/PeterHaldCHEM, I am gonna try recalibrating the IKA-DT5 temperture probe, for that I am using a recirculating heater/chiller from Julabo, because I dont have any other accurate heating device, I ve also tried hold a max+-0,3K difference on the recalibration with the recirculating chiller which worked pretty good I think, this fixed my problem with the error 8, thanks alot for this :). Disclaimer: dont judge the improvisation


r/chemistry 2d ago

Needed:

0 Upvotes

Looking for experienced chemist in or around the Nazareth Pennsylvania area to assist in gold pgm and other valuable metals separation from large lot of industrial sourced scrap, have done it myself in the past however am currently without the tools chemicals and other set ups (personal issue about 5 years ago) necessary. Can discuss percentage splitage or per hour fee based on total value of recoveries at your bequest. text four8four55three3seven5four and i will respond usually by the end of the day (have hacking issue with my phone, this is number can be reached at). Thank you for your time in advance.