Prev. Article Next Article Table of Contents

Article

A Film Canister Colorimeter

Your current credentials do not allow retrieval of the full text.

Purchase the full-text

PDF/HTML,
figures/images,
references and tables,
(where available)

James Gordon , Alan James , Stephanie Harman and Kristen Weiss

Division of Science and Mathematics, Central Methodist College, Fayette, MO 65248

J. Chem. Educ., 2002, 79 (8), p 1005

DOI: 10.1021/ed079p1005

Publication Date (Web): August 1, 2002

Section:

History, Education, and Documentation

Abstract

A low-cost, low-tech colorimeter was constructed from a film canister. The light source and filter monochromator was an interchangeable LED. The detector for this system was a voltage-divider circuit composed of a photoresistor in series with a fixed resistor. The student-constructed colorimeter was used to show the Beer–Lambert relationship between absorbance and concentration and to calculate the value of the molar absorptivity for permanganate at the wavelength emission maximum for the LED. Comparisons were made between this instrument and three commercial spectrometers and colorimeters.

Keywords (Audience):

High School / Introductory Chemistry

Keywords (Domain):

Laboratory Instruction

Keywords (Feature):

Cost-Effective Teacher

Keywords (Pedagogy):

Inquiry-Based / Discovery Learning

Keywords (Subject):

Instrumental Methods

View: Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links

Citing Articles

View all 4 citing articles

Citation data is made available by participants in CrossRef's Cited-by Linking service. For a more comprehensive list of citations to this article, users are encouraged to perform a search in SciFinder.

This article has been cited by 4 ACS Journal articles (4 most recent appear below).

Highlights from The Science Teacher: December 2009 to Summer 2010
Steve Long
Journal of Chemical Education2010 87 (12), 1286-1289
- Highlights from The Science Teacher: December 2009 to Summer 2010
  Steve Long
  Journal of Chemical Education2010 87 (12), 1286-1289
  This installment of reviews of chemistry-related articles published in The Science Teacher (TST) highlights material published from December 2009 through Summer 2010. TST is the high school publication of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). ...
  Abstract | Full Text HTML | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links
The Science Teacher: Fall 2007
Steve Long
Journal of Chemical Education2007 84 (11), 1748
- The Science Teacher: Fall 2007
  Steve Long
  Journal of Chemical Education2007 84 (11), 1748
  This article reviews chemistry-related articles published in The Science Teacher from January through Summer 2007. Topics featured in these articles include a student activity simulating HPLC separation, inexpensive inquiry activities using film canisters,...
  Abstract | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links
Simultaneous Display of Spectral Images and Graphs Using a Web Camera and Fiber-Optic Spectrophotometer
Brian K. Niece , Gary A. Lourigan
Journal of Chemical Education2006 83 (5), 761
- Simultaneous Display of Spectral Images and Graphs Using a Web Camera and Fiber-Optic Spectrophotometer
  Brian K. Niece , Gary A. Lourigan
  Journal of Chemical Education2006 83 (5), 761
  A method is presented for displaying images and graphs of spectra on a single screen in the classroom. This demonstration can be used in discussions of atomic line spectra, absorbance spectroscopy, and solid-state bonding. The simultaneous display of both ...
  Abstract | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links
A LED Microtiter Plate Reader
James Gordon and Sandra Tye
Journal of Chemical Education2005 82 (6), 903
- A LED Microtiter Plate Reader
  James Gordon and Sandra Tye
  Journal of Chemical Education2005 82 (6), 903
  An inexpensive photometric detector system was designed for use with a 96-well microtiter plate. The absorbance of solutions in the wells was measured by using a light-emitting diode as the light source and a Vernier LabPro data-collection interface with ...
  Abstract | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links