The use of hands-on models is a staple of organic chemistry education: the visualization of molecules in 3D space is a critical skill for understanding how concepts including molecular geometry and stereochemistry relate to chemical reactivity. In addition to traditional ball-and-stick model kits, the proliferation of affordable 3D printing technology has enabled the rapid construction of more complicated models, such as proteins and nanostructures. Academic libraries have embraced the development of makerspaces, or communal creative spaces, with new technologies for patron use, including 3D printers. As a collaboration between the Marston Science Library and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Florida, we have designed tactile models for use in the undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory course using 3D printing that are both easy and inexpensive to make. We specifically targeted hands-on aids for our polymer teaching laboratory experiments to illustrate the how a diblock copolymer would crystallize in bulk samples. Using a combination of rigid and flexible materials to create polymer “block” pieces, these tactile models could help students visualize the intermolecular interactions between polymer strands which give rise to the brittle or rubbery bulk samples they synthesize in the laboratory course.

Modeling polymers for tactile learning with 3D printing

2019 Fall National Meeting

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