Chemistry Department

Periodic Table of the Elements

Read More

Environmental Chemistry

Water quality is an important area of environmental chemistry. “Pure” water does not exist in nature; it always has some minerals or other substance dissolved in it. Water quality chemists test rivers, lakes and ocean water for characteristics such as dissolved oxygen, salinity, turbidity, suspended sediments, and pH. Water destined for human consumption must be free of harmful contaminants and may be treated with additives like fluoride and chlorine to increase its safety.

Food Chemistry

Food science deals with the three biological components of food — carbohydrates, lipids and proteins. Carbohydrates are sugars and starches, the chemical fuels needed for our cells to function. Lipids are fats and oils and are essential parts of cell membranes and to lubricate and cushion organs within the body. Because fats have 2.25 times the energy per gram than either carbohydrates or proteins, many people try to limit their intake to avoid becoming overweight.

Chemical Engineering

Industries require chemical engineers to devise new ways to make the manufacturing of their products easier and more cost effective. Chemical engineers are involved in designing and operating processing plants, develop safety procedures for handling dangerous materials, and supervise the manufacture of nearly every product we use. Chemical engineers work to develop new products and processes in every field from pharmaceuticals to fuels and computer components.

What is Chemistry?

We encounter chemical substances and compounds everyday.
The substances under the kitchen sink that we use to clean our houses as well as
those that are staples in our medicine cabinet are made up of chemical substances.
These chemicals are made up of a fixed proportion of atoms,
and these atoms are arranged in a certain way.
In order to figure out what these proportions are
and how they are arranged for any given substance,
we need to know the chemical formula of the substance or compound.

Chemical Principles

The current model of atomic structure is the quantum mechanical model. Traditional chemistry starts with the study of elementary particles, atoms, molecules, substances, metals, crystals and other aggregates of matter. This matter can be studied in solid, liquid, or gas states, in isolation or in combination. The interactions, reactions and transformations that are studied in chemistry are usually the result of interactions between atoms, leading to rearrangements of the chemical bonds which hold atoms together. Such behaviors are studied in a chemistry laboratory.

The chemistry laboratory stereotypically uses various forms of laboratory glassware. However glassware is not central to chemistry, and a great deal of experimental (as well as applied/industrial) chemistry is done without it.