Thin layer chromatography (TLC) is often taught for the first time in the undergraduate organic chemistry lab. Published experiments and those within text books provide specific solvent mixtures to use, utilize short-wave UV light as the sole visualization method, and focus on how to use a provided protocol rather than how to design their own. Students learn the process of TLC though these experiments, but often lack the ability to develop their own experiment from following these protocols. Presented here is an experiment for the undergraduate organic chemistry lab that requires students to design their own TLC experiment. This experiment promotes a working knowledge of some common stains, long wave and short wave UV light, and different mobile phases to differentiate between two similarly polar molecules, m-nitroaniline and benzoic acid, and two similarly non-polar molecules, naphthalene and anthracene.

Development of a multi-faceted TLC experiment for organic chemistry students that teaches experimental design

ACS Fall 2021

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