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Happy Holidays from the ACS Green Mountain Local Section!
Welcome to the
ACS Green Mountain Local Section Home Page. We are
located in beautiful
Vermont and are one of the 189 Local Sections of the American Chemical
Society. ACS Local Sections promote public awareness of chemistry by
being involved in community outreach programs and by working with
students of chemistry and science. Our meetings and dinners provide a
opportunity to network and socialize with other Vermont chemists, and
to hear some excellent speakers. If you are a chemistry professional or
educator, or a student studying chemistry, please consider joining us
at our next event.
Sincerely,
Fiona Case
Fiona Case
Green Mountain Local Section ACS December Meeting
“Holiday Party”
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Details: We will be again hosting our annual Holiday Party at the Swift House Inn on 25 Stewart Lane in Middlebury. Please join us from 6 to 9 p.m. for the festivities with free hors d’oeuvres, one free drink, and a cash bar thereafter. All members are cordially invited to attend with one guest. This event is a wonderful opportunity to network and socialize with other local section members.
RSVP: If you are interested in attending, please RSVP no later than December 2 to Beth Medeiros at (802)770-7238 or by e-mail at greenmntacs@yahoo.com.
Directions:
From Rutland: Take Route 7-North to Middlebury. Proceed through town. At the end of town, you will come to a traffic light with a Mobil gas station on your left. Turn right at the light onto Stewart Lane. Once on Stewart Lane, park in the lot across from the main house.
From Burlington: Take Route 7-South to Middlebury. Just before you enter Middlebury, there is a traffic light with a Mobil gas station on your right. Turn left at the light onto Stewart Lane. Once on Stewart Lane, park in the lot across from the main house.
We look forward to celebrating the holidays with you!
“Holiday Party”
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Swift House Inn in Middlebury
Details: We will be again hosting our annual Holiday Party at the Swift House Inn on 25 Stewart Lane in Middlebury. Please join us from 6 to 9 p.m. for the festivities with free hors d’oeuvres, one free drink, and a cash bar thereafter. All members are cordially invited to attend with one guest. This event is a wonderful opportunity to network and socialize with other local section members.
RSVP: If you are interested in attending, please RSVP no later than December 2 to Beth Medeiros at (802)770-7238 or by e-mail at greenmntacs@yahoo.com.
Directions:
From Rutland: Take Route 7-North to Middlebury. Proceed through town. At the end of town, you will come to a traffic light with a Mobil gas station on your left. Turn right at the light onto Stewart Lane. Once on Stewart Lane, park in the lot across from the main house.
From Burlington: Take Route 7-South to Middlebury. Just before you enter Middlebury, there is a traffic light with a Mobil gas station on your right. Turn left at the light onto Stewart Lane. Once on Stewart Lane, park in the lot across from the main house.
We look forward to celebrating the holidays with you!
Middlebury Marble Quarry Open House 2009
On Saturday October 17th Local Section members had the opportunity to explore some real "hands-on" inorganic chemistry at the OMYA quarry open house in Middlebury
Fiona Case and Benjamin in the quarry Martin Case and Benjamin playing with the trucks
Photos from the 2008 event are HERE
On Saturday October 17th Local Section members had the opportunity to explore some real "hands-on" inorganic chemistry at the OMYA quarry open house in Middlebury
Fiona Case and Benjamin in the quarry Martin Case and Benjamin playing with the trucks
Photos from the 2008 event are HERE
Cancer Research Seminars in Plattsburgh
Northern
New York ACS Local Section member Vinay Likhite is organizing a series
of seminars and discussions on cancer research at the Clinton Community
College in Plattsburgh, New York. The group meets every third Wednesday
of the month from 6:00pm to 7:00pm to discuss the fascinating story of
how the sciences of chemistry, biochemistry, biology are being used to
diagnose, treat, and even now prevent cancer. Coffee will be available
and the group will adjorn to a local restautant for dinner after the
meeting. We are warmly invited to participate.
ACS Project SEED Students at UVM
Sierra
Costanza and Blake Ingram, seniors at South Burlington and Burlington High
Schools, respectively, undertook research projects in the Department
of Chemistry at the University of Vermont this summer as ACS Project SEED
Students, sponsored in part by the Green Mountain Local Section. Sierra worked
under the direction of Prof. Rory Waterman investigating new, efficient ways to
form chemical bonds to the element phosphorus, and Blake worked with Prof.
William Geiger investigating electro-catalysis. Amsal Karic, a Project SEED
student from 2008, returned to Waterman’s laboratory for a second summer of
research before beginning studies at the University of Rochester this fall.
We got good feed back from all of them about the summer. They enjoyed the experience. Blake and Sierra are in the process of applying to colleges and looking forward to coming back as Summer II students next year.
Beyond the paid summer internship, the Project SEED program also encourages students through competitive college scholarships for former participants, one of which was won by UVM/Green Mountain LS Project SEED alumna Stephanie Chan of South Burlington earlier this year.
We got good feed back from all of them about the summer. They enjoyed the experience. Blake and Sierra are in the process of applying to colleges and looking forward to coming back as Summer II students next year.
Beyond the paid summer internship, the Project SEED program also encourages students through competitive college scholarships for former participants, one of which was won by UVM/Green Mountain LS Project SEED alumna Stephanie Chan of South Burlington earlier this year.
Chemistry Olympiad Contest for High School Students
Vermont Coordinator Needed!
Vermont Coordinator Needed!
The
U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad and the International Chemistry
Olympiad are multi-tiered competitions that bring together the world’s
most talented high school students to test their knowledge and skills
in chemistry. Nations around the world conduct examinations to nominate
the most high-performing students for the International Chemistry
Olympiad. But it all starts at the local level. Approximately 10,000
U.S. students between the ages of 13 and 18 enter local Chemistry
Olympiad competitions each March vying for a chance to compete in the
National or International events. For a number of years now High
School students in Vermont have not had the oppportunity to participate
in a local contest because the ACS Green Mountain Local Section has not
had a coordinator. Although we are a small local section, I wonder
if there is someone out there who might be willing to take on this
task? This is a moderately demanding, but very rewarding, job -
requiring interaction with local high schools and keeping to strict
deadlines to ensure that our students are correctly entered in the
contest. but the ACS in Washington DC provides a lot of support.There is more information here, and we can also contact coordinators in neiboring states for advice.
Please let Fiona Case know if you might be interested in this position.
You might be interested in taking a look at this years local exam. I've posted it here: WPCP_012582.pdf. I thought it was quite challenging and brought back memories of my undergraduate years!
Please let Fiona Case know if you might be interested in this position.
You might be interested in taking a look at this years local exam. I've posted it here: WPCP_012582.pdf. I thought it was quite challenging and brought back memories of my undergraduate years!
ACS Green Mountain Local Section 2009 Outstanding Senior Award in Chemistry
On
May 23rd Fiona and Martin Case presented The 2009 ACS Green Mountain
Local Section
Outstanding Senior Award in Chemistry at Middlebury College. The award
was presented to Michelle Personick whose academic and research
achievements while at Middlebury have indeed been outstanding! Michelle
plans to continue her chemistry studies at graduate school. This was
the first "outstandind senior award" presented by the Green Mountain
Local Section, we hope to expand the program in 2010 and present awards
at other chemistry degree awarding institutions in the state.
Fiona
presents a certificate and book token to Michelle Personick during
the Middlebury College awards ceremony. Roger Sandwick (Head of
Department) and Sunhee Choi, (Michelle's research advisor) join in the
applause.
Message from the Green Mountain Local Section Government Affairs Committee:
The week of April
20, our Government Affairs Committee (Sarah Locknar, Ralph Stuart and Deb
Gaynor) met with Kelly Lucci, Community Liason specializing in Energy from
Senator Sanders' office, and Tricia Coates, State director for
Representative Welch. We spoke with them about the concept of Green
Chemistry and how it is essentially a paradigm shift in the way all chemical
disciplines are practiced. We also discussed HR 2850. This Green
Chemistry bill was co-sponsored by Peter Welch and passed the House in fall of
2007. It is currently stuck in the Senate Commerce, Science and
Transportation Committee and has been there for over a year. Kelly
expressed interest in this bill and said she would bring it to the
attention of Senator Sanders as a co-sponsoring possibility. We also
discussed the importance of fully funding Climate-Change studies and the
associated infrastructure. Now that the Administration admits that
Climate-change exists, we need to make sure that the satellites that
collect data are properly maintained and replaced as
necessary. This will also enable us to monitor the various strategies
that are developed to counteract Global Climate-Change.
Since Peter
Welch is already a champion of Green Chemistry, we decided to take the
opportunity to discuss a topic that ACS has no official stance on, but has
a big impact on chemistry and other small businesses in VT. That
is reauthorization of the SBIR program. Many of you know that SBIR
is short for "Small Business Innovation Research" and it is a mandatory
2.5% of 11 federal agencies' grant budgets (including NIH, NSF, Army, Navy,
etc.) to be set aside SPECIFICALLY for small-business grant applications.
This program is currently funded through a continuing resolution. Full
reauthorization is expected some time this year. The definition of a
"small business" for an SBIR application is less than 500 employees (this
describes all but about 40 VT employers) and minority (or no) venture capital
(VC) ownership or control. It turns out that many congress members
are rethinking the VC restrictions. As a small state with
virtually no VC presence, that would leave VT companies at a significant
disadvantage. We were delighted to find that Rep. Welch has already
indicated his support of maintaining the current definition of a
"small business" for the reauthorized bill and keeping VC-based companies out of
the SBIR grant process. The SBIR programs have been a boon to Vermont
start-up companies. According to the VT Technology Council, in 2007 alone
there were $4.7 million in grants from 8 different agencies awarded to 16 small
businesses around the state. It's small potatoes to
the government, but a huge boost to the businesses that win the
grants.
Overall, the
meetings went quite well. We're really starting to establish a
relationship with Tricia from Peter Welch's office. We've met with
her about 3 times now. It was also great to meet face-to-face with someone
on Senator Sanders' staff. We've only been able to schedule one phone
meeting with his office over the last 3 years (and not for lack of
trying).
More information about the Green Mountain Local Section Government Affairs Commitee (GAC)
More information about the Green Mountain Local Section Government Affairs Commitee (GAC)
2009 Vermont Math and Science Fair
The
2008 Vermont Math and Science Fair as held at Norwich University on
April 5th. Several
ACS Green Mountain LS members served as judges for the event. Fiona,
Martin and Willem were judges for the ACS Green
Mountain Local Section awards for chemistry projects.
First Place ($100 award) - Brian Ribbans
Mount Saint Joseph Academy (12th Grade), teacher Timothy J. McCue
Abstract:
Biodiesel
made from waste vegetable oil can be a viable alternative to
petroleumbased
fuel. It is possible that biodiesel will be one of the many solutions for sustainable alternative fuels. This experiment examines the results of varying the conditions during the transesterification process used to make biodiesel from waste vegetable oil. Transesterification is the process of breaking down esters, fat molecules, using alcohol and a catalyst producing a refined ester,biodiesel, and glycerin as a by-product. For this experiment varying amounts of methanol, the alcohol, sodium hydroxide, the catalyst, and temperature will test the results of the process. To produce high quality biodiesel the results of the transesterification process requires additional processing to remove impurities, mainly glycerin, suspended in the oil. Mixing water with the oil does this. The glycerin and impurities will dissolve in the water and separate from the oil. A dry washing method is also possible. Magnesol is used by adding it in with the processed oil to absorb the impurities and filtering the magnesol with the impurities out. The completed oil is also tested for completion, the absence of impurities and pH. Altering the process will have dramatic affect on the result of the reaction and ultimately the quality of the biodiesel. The affects of varying the amount of lye, methanol and heat in the reaction will be apparent by the outcome of the biodiesel with a pH that is too high, an incomplete reaction and/or biodiesel with too many impurities. After testing, it was concluded that not using enough methanol, using too much or too little catalyst, and using a temperature that is too high or too low will produce poor quality and unusable biodiesel that is unable to pass one or more of the qualifying tests.
fuel. It is possible that biodiesel will be one of the many solutions for sustainable alternative fuels. This experiment examines the results of varying the conditions during the transesterification process used to make biodiesel from waste vegetable oil. Transesterification is the process of breaking down esters, fat molecules, using alcohol and a catalyst producing a refined ester,biodiesel, and glycerin as a by-product. For this experiment varying amounts of methanol, the alcohol, sodium hydroxide, the catalyst, and temperature will test the results of the process. To produce high quality biodiesel the results of the transesterification process requires additional processing to remove impurities, mainly glycerin, suspended in the oil. Mixing water with the oil does this. The glycerin and impurities will dissolve in the water and separate from the oil. A dry washing method is also possible. Magnesol is used by adding it in with the processed oil to absorb the impurities and filtering the magnesol with the impurities out. The completed oil is also tested for completion, the absence of impurities and pH. Altering the process will have dramatic affect on the result of the reaction and ultimately the quality of the biodiesel. The affects of varying the amount of lye, methanol and heat in the reaction will be apparent by the outcome of the biodiesel with a pH that is too high, an incomplete reaction and/or biodiesel with too many impurities. After testing, it was concluded that not using enough methanol, using too much or too little catalyst, and using a temperature that is too high or too low will produce poor quality and unusable biodiesel that is unable to pass one or more of the qualifying tests.
Joint Second Place ($50 award) - Meghan Lavoie,
Mater Christi School, teacher Michelle Donlon
Abstract:
The
purpose of the science fair project is to determine which fruit
contains the
highest amount of protein-digesting enzymes, bromelain and papain.
These enzymes,
classified as proteolytic, conduct the process of proteolysis in which
protein
catabolism occurs by hydrolysis of the peptide bonds that link amino
acids together in
the polypeptide chain. Alternatively stated, they break protein down using a chemical reaction to split a specific bond that is crucial in linking acids together to create a protein-based chain that is a foundation for matter. After research, it was discovered this process is easily visible in gelatin because if these certain enzymes are incorporated in it, they will prevent it from solidifying. Therefore, the setting of gelatin was made the sole determiner of the enzyme levels in eight different fruits. A hypothesis was made based on prior research stating that a high concentration of
bromelain existed throughout all areas of a pineapple: If various types of fruit are tested in gelatin, then pineapple will cause the least amount to solidify; it contains the most enzymes. To begin the experimenting procedure, all materials were gathered and fruits were sliced and weighed out to 56 grams each. Next, the gelatin mixture was prepared according to the instructions on the box, a half cup of liquid was poured into each bowl, and the plain gelatin was refrigerated for an hour before the 56 grams of fruit were stirred into their respective bowls. They were refrigerated for 16 additional hours and observations were taken every four. After the entire procedure was completed twice and results were averaged, it was concluded the hypothesis was correct; pineapple contains the highest amount of protein-digesting enzymes as demonstrated by the least amount of gelatin solidifying, 25 percent, when pineapple
(and its abundant content of proteolytic enzymes) were incorporated.
Joint Second Place ($50 award) - Alex Drost
Windsor High School (10th Grade), Teacher
Jennifer Townsend
Abstract:
The purpose of this experiment was to explore the relationship between various salt concentrations and conductivity, and how conductivity effects the amount of hydrogen and oxygen produced by electrolysis. It was thought that the solutions with higher salt concentrations will have a greater conductivity, allowing them to produce a greater volume of gas during electrolysis. Electrolysis is the process of breaking water down into hydrogen and oxygen gas.
This is achieved by the flow of electricity through water. Oxygen forms on the electrode carrying the positive charge because it is the anion in the compound H2O. Hydrogen gas will form on the negative electrode because it is the cation in the compound. Hydrogen and oxygen gas were collected by using a simple electrolysis apparatus. Two electrodes were attached to the positive and negative battery terminals and into a beaker of salt and water solution. The apparatus was run for a set period of time and the gas that was collected in each solution was measured and recorded by volume. The results strongly supported the hypothesis. As the conductivity of the solution increased, more electrons were able to pass through the solution, allowing more water to be split into hydrogen and oxygen gasses.
the polypeptide chain. Alternatively stated, they break protein down using a chemical reaction to split a specific bond that is crucial in linking acids together to create a protein-based chain that is a foundation for matter. After research, it was discovered this process is easily visible in gelatin because if these certain enzymes are incorporated in it, they will prevent it from solidifying. Therefore, the setting of gelatin was made the sole determiner of the enzyme levels in eight different fruits. A hypothesis was made based on prior research stating that a high concentration of
bromelain existed throughout all areas of a pineapple: If various types of fruit are tested in gelatin, then pineapple will cause the least amount to solidify; it contains the most enzymes. To begin the experimenting procedure, all materials were gathered and fruits were sliced and weighed out to 56 grams each. Next, the gelatin mixture was prepared according to the instructions on the box, a half cup of liquid was poured into each bowl, and the plain gelatin was refrigerated for an hour before the 56 grams of fruit were stirred into their respective bowls. They were refrigerated for 16 additional hours and observations were taken every four. After the entire procedure was completed twice and results were averaged, it was concluded the hypothesis was correct; pineapple contains the highest amount of protein-digesting enzymes as demonstrated by the least amount of gelatin solidifying, 25 percent, when pineapple
(and its abundant content of proteolytic enzymes) were incorporated.
Joint Second Place ($50 award) - Alex Drost
Abstract:
The purpose of this experiment was to explore the relationship between various salt concentrations and conductivity, and how conductivity effects the amount of hydrogen and oxygen produced by electrolysis. It was thought that the solutions with higher salt concentrations will have a greater conductivity, allowing them to produce a greater volume of gas during electrolysis. Electrolysis is the process of breaking water down into hydrogen and oxygen gas.
This is achieved by the flow of electricity through water. Oxygen forms on the electrode carrying the positive charge because it is the anion in the compound H2O. Hydrogen gas will form on the negative electrode because it is the cation in the compound. Hydrogen and oxygen gas were collected by using a simple electrolysis apparatus. Two electrodes were attached to the positive and negative battery terminals and into a beaker of salt and water solution. The apparatus was run for a set period of time and the gas that was collected in each solution was measured and recorded by volume. The results strongly supported the hypothesis. As the conductivity of the solution increased, more electrons were able to pass through the solution, allowing more water to be split into hydrogen and oxygen gasses.
Our
section wins a hospitality award
The Green Mountain Local Section received an award recognizing our hospitality to members of the ACS speaker service who visit our local section. Willem Leenstra received the award for the section during the ACS Spring 2008 National Meeting in New Orleans.
The Green Mountain Local Section received an award recognizing our hospitality to members of the ACS speaker service who visit our local section. Willem Leenstra received the award for the section during the ACS Spring 2008 National Meeting in New Orleans.
Outreach: Chemistry at the VT Achievement Center (VAC)
Michele
Johnson Reports: I recently (July 13) visited the VT Achievement Center (VAC) to perform chemistry
demonstrations for the pre-K classroom (which my son Liam is
in). We hope to get these kids interested in science
at a young age. We had fun with polymers: I showed them a disappearing
water trick (with sodium polyacrylate, the absorbent polymer used
in diapers) and we all made "super stretchy slime" (in Omya blue no less)
that they were each able to take home. When
I left, I'm sure that many of the kids thought that "chemistry is
cool"!
cool"!
The
GMLS received a Local Section Innovative Project
Grant to fund a science cart for the early education department at the VT
Achievement Center (VAC)
Results from the 2007 Math and Science Fair
Results from the 2008 Math and Science Fair
Report from 2006 - photos and descriptions of all our 2006 activities
Chemistry on local TV: download a movie file with Jeff Beyers recent WCAX appearance talking about the chemistry of chocolate!
Results of our Earth Day Chemistry Haiku Contest are here
Be a Voice for Chemistry - join our Government Affairs Committee
Report from 2005 - photos and descriptions of all our 2005 activities
Report from 2006 - photos and descriptions of all our 2006 activities
Officers 2009
Chair..................................... Fiona Case (Fiona's Website)
Chair Elect.....................................................................Open
Secretary................................................Jody Chamberlain
Treasurer...................................................... Beth Medeiros
Councilor..................... Willem Leenstra (Willem's Website)
Alternate Councilor.............. Martin Case (Martin's Website)
Committee Chairs
Awards....................................................................... Michele Johnson
PR/Web Master................................................................... Fiona Case
Government Affairs Committee.......................................Sarah Locknar
Newsletter Editor........................................................ Willem Leenstra
Web page last updated September 30th, 2009
The views expresssed in these pages are strictly those of the Green Mountain Local Section. The contents have not been reviewed or approved by the American Chemical Society. The Green Mountain Local Section assumes all responsibility and liability for the content of its pages.
If you need more information or would like to submit information, E-mail our Local Section WebMaster
The views expresssed in these pages are strictly those of the Green Mountain Local Section. The contents have not been reviewed or approved by the American Chemical Society. The Green Mountain Local Section assumes all responsibility and liability for the content of its pages.
If you need more information or would like to submit information, E-mail our Local Section WebMaster