Involving undergraduates in scientific research early in their collegiate careers has been shown to improve student persistence in STEM fields of study. However, providing quality research experiences to a substantial number of first-year chemistry students can be particularly challenging due to the limited subject expertise of this student population, as well as budgetary and time constraints of chemistry departments and faculty mentors. Course-based research projects provide a scalable way to facilitate scientific participation and engagement of undergraduate STEM students.<br/>During the 2017-2018 academic year, chemistry faculty at Southeast Missouri State University have introduced a research module focused on crystals and crystallography into our second semester general chemistry lab. Using the Cambridge Structural Database, several crystals with only poorly refined crystal structures were identified. After learning about crystals and touring our x-ray diffractometer instrument lab, students worked in groups to grow crystals of these substances and determine a usable crystallization method. This research project ties into several course concepts, such as structure, bonding, energy and light, and intermolecular forces, as well as laboratory skills including crystallization, engaging with scientific literature and sources, and data interpretation. The ultimate goal is to submit the newly refined structures to the Cambridge Structural Database. The progress and future directions of this project will be discussed.<br/>

Implementation of a course-based crystallography research project in the general chemistry laboratory

255th National Meeting (2018)

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