safety

On February 3, 2023, a train derailed in the town of East Palestine, Ohio.^1-2 Five of the train cars were carrying vinyl chloride (Figure 1), a compound that is mostly used to make PVC.

I have always wanted to try the mercury beating heart experiment, in which a drop of liquid mercury is made to throb like a beating heart.¹ However, I have never conducted this experiment due to the issues associated with mercury toxicity.

Co-Authored by Dean J. Campbell* and Bozana Lojpur* *Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

Kermit the Frog sings, “It’s not easy being green” but the role of Green Chemistry is to show people not only is it easier, but also the way we need to be doing chemistry. Green Chemistry is defined as, “The design of chemical products and processes that reduce and/or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances.

It’s the beginning of a brand new school year, and a brand new opportunity to capture students’ interest in chemistry and the joy of lab-based sciences! In thousands of chemistry classrooms across the country, teachers will be planning labs, demos, and ways to have students be engaged and excited about learning.

One of my favorite times of the year (other than early June, when I attend the AP Chemistry Reading) is late August, which marks the beginning of the school year in Albemarle County, Virginia. I have been teaching high school chemistry for 20 years, and I absolutely love my job. There are many reasons for me to look forward to a new school year.

The ACS Committee on Chemical Safety has released the 8th edition of "Safety in Academic Chemistry Laboratories. The publication provides advice for first- and second-year university students. Free access is available in PDF format at www.acs.org/SACL.