Lab Report Format
Name:
Title of Experiment
Date of Completion of Expt: Date Report Submitted:
Objective of Experiment:
This should be brief (one or two sentences) but complete. If there was more one objective, be sure to state them all
Introduction:
Every experiment has a theoretical basis. As a brief introduction, discuss the theory behind the experiment you are about to perform. The textbook does a good job presenting the theoretical framework of each experiment. Review those introductions before each experiment and write (in your own words) the introduction.
Chemical Equation (s):
Write the complete overall chemical equation for the major chemical reaction using structural formulas. Chemdraw is a program available to draw chemical structures. Mechanisms are generally not necessary unless specifically requested.
Materials:
Give the quantities (grams and moles) of the reactants and products in the chemical reaction. If the experiment involves no chemical reactions, list the materials used. Present the above information in a table format (an example is shown below). Do not list apparatus, glassware, or incidental materials, such as quantities of solvents or solutions used in the workup procedure.
Name of
compound
Mol. Weight
m.pt/b.pt
Grams used
Moles used
Experimental Procedure & Observation:
Use the passive voice. Do not refer to yourself as “I” or “We” or “The students” and avoid beginning sentences with numbers.
Results:
This section should contain any data collected or information gathered during the experiment. Use tables and charts to organize the data for a clear presentation. The percent yield of any chemical reaction should be presented along with the method of computation.
Discussion:
What does your result mean? Do you have the correct product? Was your reaction yield or recovery (after recrystallization) within the expected range? This section is specifically reserved for the discussion of your results.
Conclusions:
Provide a concise summary of your experiment, which should declare briefly whether the objectives of the experiment were achieved, which, of course, should be supported by your results and discussion.
Answers to questions assigned.
Prepare the lab report following the outline provided above; include tables, charts, and structural formulas. Laboratory reports are due one week after completion of the experiment. Late submissions will attract a 20% grade deduction (penalty) for the specific lab report. The quality of the lab report, which includes the evaluation of your data and overall performance, decides the final grade.
In addition to following the outline, write the narrative section of your laboratory report (i.e., procedure, result, and discussion) in the style in which scientists report their findings in scientific journals. Generally, this means that you should write using the third person, passive voice. The following is an example of how the procedure should be written:
Dicyclopentadiene (20 mls) was placed in a 100 ml round bottom flask to which was attached a fractionating column, condenser, vacuum takeoff adapter, and a 50 ml round bottom flask as receiver. A calcium chloride filled drying tube was attached to the takeoff and receiver was cooled in ice water. Distillation was carried out slowly to avoid frothing of the liquid. Approximately 1/3 or ½ of the total liquid was distilled to give a clear liquid (cyclopentadiene) which was collected in the range 40 – 42ºC.
Maleic anhydride (6.0g) was placed in a 50 ml Erlenmeyer flask along with 22 ml of ethyl acetate. The mixture was warmed to dissolve the solid and then 10 ml of hexane was added. Some crystallization became evident as this mixture cooled to room temperature, but this was ignored. Six milliliters (6 ml) of the cold distilled cyclopentadiene was then added to the maleic anhydride mixture. It became perceptibly warm and then produced a copious crystalline precipitate. The mixture was warmed on a steam bath to completely dissolve the crystals and then coold slowly. This resulted in long crystals which were collected in a Buchner funnel and washed with a little cold 1:1 ethyl acetate:hexane. The crystals were dried in air to give 3.64g (36%) of endo-norbornene-5,-6-dicarboxylic anhydride, m.p. 162 – 164 ºC (lit 164 – 165). Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) in chloroform showed a single spot for the crystals. The mother liquor contained more of the product along with unreacted malic anhydride, but time did not permit isolation.
Note the following:
At no time do you refer to yourself in the first person, I …
Do not begin sentence with numbers.
Describe the entire report as events that have taken place in the past (passive voice)
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