Creative problem-solving in chemistry

Identifying four unknown solutions
Allow learner’s the opportunity to devise their own testing protocols to identify chloride ions in four solutions.
Amino acids and hair growth
Discover how quickly human hair grows, and develop learner’s understanding of amino acids too.
Carbon and copper oxide
Create tests to identify carbon and copper oxide, using knowledge of acids, redox reactions, and metal oxides.
Catalase enzyme reactions
Using four distinct questions, with open-ended methods, to explore catalysts and enzymes.
Chemical and physical properties of pheromones
Help learner’s to understand what pheromones are, and how they are used by animals such as moths.
Cobalt complexes
Devise structures for cobalt complexes given, decide how to distinguish between the four complexes, and identify some properties that are the same for all four complexes.
Defining a ‘weak’ acid
Starting from its K_a (or pK_a) value, learners calculate as much information as you need to show what is meant by ‘weak’ in weak acid.
Detecting copper in black solids
Devise experiments to identify a black solid sample by using chemicals and apparatus in the laboratory.
Driving force: what makes reactions go
Carry out certain experiments in a given order
Empty space in gaseous argon
How much ‘empty space’ is in a sample of gaseous argon? Students use their knowledge of Avogadro’s number and the concept of atomic size to find out.
Find the chloride
Devise experiments to determine which of five solids is the chloride by using chemicals and apparatus in the laboratory.
Find the pattern - alcohols
Consider data on the densities of six primary alcohols and solve four problems based on those data.
Find the pattern - metals
Consider data on the specific heat capacities for some metals and solve three problems related to those data.
Finding the right ionic compound
Devise a procedure to identify four solids and then use this to carry out the identification.
H⁺ ions in water
Allow learners the chance to develop their own testing methods to identify H⁺ ions in samples of water.
Helping an industrial chemist
Devise a method for making a copper catalyst dispersed on an aluminium oxide support.
Identifying five unknown white solids
Learners are provided with five mystery white solids, and need to devise their own experiments to identify each.
Identifying six unknown solutions
Devise experiments to label six numbered solutions correctly using chemicals and apparatus in the laboratory.
Identifying three unknown white solids
Devise experiments to label three white solids correctly by using chemicals and apparatus in the laboratory.
Ion-exchange resin and water
Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of a selection of resins and decide which one(s) would be best for producing pure water from seawater on a life raft.
Jets of liquids: the effect of charged plastic on water
Polar covalent bonds, and their affects on water are explored in this open-ended problem.
Making copper
Learners develop their own scientific methods to make copper metal starting from copper(II) nitrate crystals.
Measuring CO2 from reactions
Use chemicals and apparatus, devise experiments and determine the amount of carbon dioxide that can be obtained from a mixture of two solids
On the acid trail: discovering a 'weak' acid
Using titration and plot pH against volume to discover more about a weak, monoprotic acid.
Reacting aluminium foil with acid
React aluminium foil and hydrochloric acid with a range of catalysts to discover which serves the reaction best.
The best catalyst to decompose hydrogen peroxide
Develop learner’s ideas of catalysis with this open-ended problem using hydrogen peroxide.
The thickness of titanium atoms in paint
Discover the thickness of a film of paint, estimating how thick it is by titanium atoms/ions.
Thermodynamic quantities in a reaction
Calculate the thermodynamic quantities for a reaction using the standard enthalpy of neutralisation (strong acid and strong base) and any other information.
Using the problems
An introduction as to how to use the problems included in our creative problem-solving collection.
What compound? Identify and analyse
Learners can devise their own testing system to identify the nature of a mystery compound.
Which detergent is best?
Explain two observations related to the production of a jelly-like solid when two detergents were used in combination.