Student-Designed Green Chemistry Experiment for a Large-Enrollment, Introductory Organic Laboratory Course

A 3-week module incorporating the principles of green chemistry was developed for a large-enrollment, introductory organic chemistry laboratory course. An emphasis was placed on students planning their own experiments with the goal of obtaining a greener reaction (week 1). Students executed their designed experiments in week 2 and were given an opportunity to repeat the experiment or further optimize the reaction conditions to improve the yields during week 3. A postlab writing assignment as well as pre- and postsemester surveys were used to evaluate student learning and confidence. These data revealed an increase in students’ understanding of green chemistry concepts as well as their confidence in their ability to modify a reaction to improve the results. We anticipate that this overall framework can be adapted to other large- and small-enrollment laboratory courses.