Multi-Disciplinary Research Experiences Integrated with Industry –Field Experiences

• Main Authors: Suzanne Lunsford, Corrie Spradlin, Mary Sullivan, Phuong Khanh Quoc Nguyen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: International Institute of Informatics and Cybernetics 2015-10-01
• Series: Journal of Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics
• Subjects: Industrial applications; environmental issues; inquiry-based chemistry modules and academia
• Online Access: http://www.iiisci.org/Journal/CV$/sci/pdfs/ZA515XS15.pdf

The purpose of this environmentally inquiry-based lab was to allow the students to engage into real-world concepts that integrate industry setting (Ohio Aggregate Industrial Mineral Association) with the academia setting. Our students are engaged into a field trip where mining occurs to start the problem based learning of how the heavy metals leak in the mining process. These heavy metals such as lead and indium in the groundwater are a serious concern for the environment (Environmental Protection Agency) from the mining process. The field experiences at the mining process assist in building our students interest in developing sensors to detect heavy metals of concern such as lead and indium simultaneously by a unique electrochemistry technique called Square Wave Anodic Stripping Voltammetry (SWASV). The field experience assists building the students interest in real –world application and what qualities do they want the electrochemical sensor to possess to be successful for real world usage. During the field trip the students are engaged into learning novel instrumentation such as an SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) to study the working electrode sensor developed to understand the sensor surface morphology properties better as well. The integration of industry setting with academia has been a positive experience for our students that has allowed their understanding of real-world science research needs to succeed in an industrial setting of research.