fuels

Messing about with Year 10 for our C1 module, all about the atmosphere and fuels. A couple of good fuels here, firstly hydrogen. Very explosive, which in addition to it being a gas makes transport and storage of the fuel a challenge. However, the combustion of hydrogen results in no carbon emissions, with the only product of the reaction being water.

2 H₂  +  O₂   →  2 H₂O

Secondly methanol, a very flammable alcohol. Alcohols have the distinct advantage of being renewable fuels which can be produced from the fermentation of sugars or biomass. This means that although they will still produce carbon dioxide as they burn, they are a much more sustainable form of energy when compared to traditional fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.

2 CH₃OH  +  3 O₂  →  2 CO₂  +  4 H₂O

Thanks to Josh for sending both videos in.

ping pong

You may have seen the video (elsewhere on this site) of me using liquid nitrogen to make a rather crude bomb from a plastic bottle and a bin full of water. In fact, I may have even demonstrated it live for you on the all weather pitch.

However, in the video below a Plymouth University Professor has had a fine idea and has taken it one step further.

I'm now saving up for 1500 ping pong balls.

the history of molecules

Here's a link to a new part of the RSC website that Mr Bach put me on to. It's a set of short podcasts that gives a brief history of some well known, and in many cases controversial compounds, eg. TNT, nitrous oxide, kevlar and many recreational drugs such as cocaine and LSD.

history of molecules 

Each week a leading scientist or author tells the story behind a different compound or molecule.

They can be played online or downloaded as podcasts. And they're pretty good.


The RSC have a similar set of podcasts for the elements in the periodic table as well.

history of elements 

13A class photo

Thanks to Holly for sending the photo in. One are two of the group were unsurprisingly absent for this which is a bit of a shame but not any real surprise (I'm talking to you Moosa and friends), but I guess you get what you deserve in the end. I also pleased to report that three of you pictured here also scored higher than Maria Imran on your CHEM5 paper, and she well needs to get out more as I've told her on numerous occasions. Congratulations.

Thanks for the good company and (mainly) hard work. It's been a pleasure. Best of luck for the future.

redox equilibria

If you need some answers for the predicting redox reactions worksheet you have used in class you can find them here.

predicting redox reactions worksheet

predicting redox reactions answers

Interview Tips

Found this on the website for the Chemistry Department at the University of York, a well respected Chemistry provider which has regularly been placed highly in national press top university polls. Thought it might give prospective undergraduates a bit of an insight into what to expect from the interview process.

The Times Good University Guide 2012

1. Cambridge
2. Oxford
3. Durham
4. York
5. St Andrews


A Typical Interview

Interviewers typically start by asking you specific questions about your personal statement (for example, your interest in a particular area of Chemistry, including practical work) and your reasons for applying to York, before moving on to more open-ended questions about the study of Chemistry.

We are looking primarily for skills and to assess your potential to do well at York. To help you perform at your best, we suggest that you read through your UCAS personal statement, think over what you’ve studied in Chemistry so far and what has particularly interested you.

It might also be useful for you to practice explaining why you are so passionate about Chemistry that you want to study it to degree level, and why you have applied to York. The importance of being enthusiastic cannot be underestimated!

Consider preparing some things that you would like to tell us, and also think about some questions (either course specific and/or more general questions about student life) you would like to ask us.

nitrogen triiodide

Strike day, and a bit of free time to play around with some home made explosives.

Nitrogen triiodide is worryingly easy to make, and extremely unstable. It is a contact explosive when dry, and produces a beautiful plume of iodine vapour mixed with nitrogen gas when detonated.



As you can see and hear from the video, the explosion is fairly impressive given the small quantity used. You can see that the metre ruler suffers for its art, and you may just be able to make out Mr Chivers' exclamation from his nearby office just as it goes off.

Anyone interested in why it's so unstable will need to consider the entropy change for the reaction.

2 NI₃ (s) → N₂ (g) + 3 I₂ (g)

The large increase in the number of moles from left to right, in addition to the production of gases from a solid, leads to an enormous increase in entropy. Also, the reaction is clearly exothermic. These two factors are ideal for giving a negative free energy change for the reaction, indicating a highly likely, spontaneous reaction.