Experimentation with low-melting alloys, such as Wood’s metal, Rose’s metal, and lead-tin alloys, appears to be undertaken only rarely in undergraduate teaching laboratory classes.  Yet investigating how metal alloys behave as solids and in the melt can be an inspiration for students who have not directly seen such phenomena before.  We present here the results of experiments aimed at adjusting the elemental composition of low-melting alloys, and discuss how such experiments can be incorporated into lab courses, including first semester, freshmen-level laboratory classes.  We also present how such metals chemistry can be expanded into the fine arts.

Production and adjustment of low-melting alloys as research projects for the freshmen-level chemistry laboratory

ACS Fall 2021

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