BT Global Challenge as a case study (Chapter 1) Essay

BT Global Challenge as a case study (Chapter 1) - Essay Example It shows the ingredients needed to have a group of very different people put together to perform a task and successful manage it. The BT Challenge comprises of twelve teams, each having a set number of core members, skipper, leggers and support staff. The fifteen core members in each team are people from varying backgrounds, nationalities, ages and levels of experience. As discussed previously, the idea of the Challenge is to have a group of novices with very little or no sailing knowledge to take on this challenging assignment of driving a yacht across the world. This idea was initiated by Sir Chay Blyth who suggested that many everyday people thrive for a certain kind of adventurism and challenge which they can rarely find in everyday lives. This adventure was purported to be provided by the BT Global Challenge. Despite opposition to it, Sir Chay’s idea was immensely successful and attracted applications from all over the world. What now needed to be done was to take the model of the first challenge and streamline it so that a better route, scoring system and technologically efficient process could be engineered and accommodate all the new participants and sponsors. Training and education of the participants was also necessary before they could embark on the journey. The organizing committee was able to do just that and created a challenging program, detailing everything from the ports to support staff allotment, food requirements to team training. They recruited proficient skippers who were to take on the leadership role for the teams and steer the challenge to completion. Researching the BT Global Challenge is insightful and interesting as it provides access to information about how an untrained individual can be brought to achieve even almost impossible tasks. For example, the skippers understood the importance of getting together their team members as soon as possible so they could learn to work and live together. This shows

Project Content Elements Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Project Content Elements - Assignment Example The authors have chosen to focus on a prevalent culture-bound syndrome known as â€Å"Seizisman† for illustration of assessment, cultural beliefs and illness management among Haitians. This article will expound more on my research by showing how the Haitians’ cultural beliefs ultimately have an effect on their health care experience as the exemplification of the culture-bound syndrome, ‘Seizisman’ will indicate. Nicolas, G., DeSilva, A. M., Grey, K. S., & Gonzalez-Eastep, D. (2006). Using a multicultural lens to understand illnesses among Haitians living in America. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 37(6), 702. Published researches show that culture has a significant effect on how mental illnesses are expressed and manifested by diverse ethnic populations. Little has been done to focus on the growing number of Haitians in the United States. This article focuses on clinical observations made on Haitian immigrant women on expression of depression. The paper distinctively considers depression and how it is managed among these Haiti women by relief through God, pain in the body and fighting a losing battle. It then a more methodical and scientific depression investigation and management. Nicolas, G., DeSilva, A. M., Subrebost, K. L., Breland-Noble, A., Gonzalez-Eastep, D., Manning, N., †¦ Prater, K. (2007). Expression and treatment of depression among Haitian immigrant women in the United States: clinical observations. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 61(1),

Future Technology - Free Energy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Future Technology - Free Energy - Research Paper Example The increase in human population has not only increased demand for commodities but has also mechanized production of most commodities such as eatables. Nowadays it is very common to find totally mechanized farms and factories. Thus it is obvious that the sector most affected by this phenomenon is the energy sectors. The high demand due to increase in population and increase in mechanization of human life has exerted very high strain on these non renewable resources of energy. The oil supply of the world is dwindling throughout. It is expected that humans would completely run out of this source of energy in a few more decades. This high demand for energy has created chaos in the modern world. There have been millions of lives lost in the war for oil and if the current crisis continues worse is yet to come. In this scenario the world has to find new sources of energy which can be distributed without cost to the entire world. Only such a massive source of energy can fulfill the current needs of energy and contain the crises that stems from it. The question thus arises that what could be such a source of energy which fulfills all needs of human race and that too without be expensive. The usual answer is nuclear energy. The perception that nuclear energy is totally free is very false. First of all uranium is the basic fuel used for nuclear power plants. This fuel like other non renewable resources is an element found from earth and is thus limited in supply. This limit also makes it one of the most expensive elements in the world. Nuclear energy can be every damaging due to disposal of nuclear waste. Thus we can say that environmental costs of nuclear energy are very high. The only feasible option is thus solar energy. This form of energy is the core energy which is behind the formation of life in the world. Everything that we see around us is because of solar energy. The crops use this energy to grow and also with the photosynthesis process

In Depth Analysis of HorizontalDrilling in Old Conventional Pools Research Paper

In Depth Analysis of HorizontalDrilling in Old Conventional Pools - Research Paper Example Case studies and recommendations are included. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1.0 INTRODUCTION†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦....p. 1. Background†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦....†¦....p. 2. Purpose†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...p. 3. Scope†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦....p. 2.0 HORIZONTAL DRILLING IN WESTERN CANADA TECHNOLOGIES†¦...†¦p. 2.1 Horizontal drilling†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢ € ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..p. 2.2 History of Horizontal Drilling†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..p. 2.3 Advantages of Horizontal Drilling†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..p. 2.4 Stimulation methods used in Horizontal Drilling completion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦...p. 2.4.1 Hydraulic Fracturing†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦......p 2.4.2 Multi-Stage Fracturing†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦.†¦ p. 2.4.3 Hydraulic Fracture Fluids†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦.†¦.p. 3.0 HORIZONTAL DRILLING IN OLD CON VENTIONAL POOLS.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦....p. 3.1 Benefit of using horizontal drilling in conventional wells†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.....p. ... ....................P. 4.1Current Operational Data from the oil industry†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..P 4.2 Advantages of using horizontal drilling in old conventional pool†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦P. 4.2.1 Economical Advantage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦...P. 2.2. Environmental Advantage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..P. 4.3 Limitations of using Horizontal drilling old conventional pool†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦..p. 5.0 ACASE STUDY OF ORIZONATL DRILLING IN OLD OIL RESERVOIRS†¦P. 1. Pembina Cardium†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..p. 2. Bakken†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..p. 6.0 CONCLUSIONS AND FURTHER RECOMMENDATIONS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.p. 1.0. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background The ongoing march of technological progress pursuant to both the production and discovery of natural oil reserves is a persistent development of increasing relevance in our interconnected world. Specifically, a necessary avenue of development are the challenges and applications pursuant to horizontal drilling technology, which is increasing in utility as technology advances, sparking great interest worldwide in recent decades. This investigation is an exploration in a technical sense of the applications of horizontal drilling practices pertaining to specific types of oil deposits, some – such as oil shales may have been neglected previously due to a cost-benefit analysis between the difficulty of their extraction and the price at which oil could be sold. Over ti me, this balance changes. Prospects for improvement in the oil industry, and relevant applications for advancements in pre-existing techniques are also

Pro Porn Feminist view of career in Pornography Essay

Pro Porn Feminist view of career in Pornography - Essay Example Pornography has provided female pornography actor with the financial augment they need, especially after becoming a widow or due to the lack of suitable jobs for qualified female pornography actor. Now pornography has turned into one of the biggest and most profitable industry and thus has invited a lot of interest and charm for female pornography actor to turn towards pornography in order to make some quick buck. Before we discuss the various views of female pornography actor working in the porn industry, we should define the definition of pornography. Although this has been a very debated topic too, as various authors find the definition in quite contrasting views. However, a generally accepted definition for "Pornography" is: "Pornography (from Greek pornographia - literally writing about or drawings of harlots) is the representation of the human body or human sexual behaviour with the goal of sexual arousal, similar to, but (according to some) distinct from, erotica."(Wikipedia) It has been arugued that pornography is "degrading" for female pornography actor. However, I believe that degrading is a very vague term. It narrows down to the point where every individual is in the position to define what is "degrading" and what is not. Another thing linked to this debate is that female pornography actor are used as "sex objects" and thus their importance mitigated. If this objection is taken at face value, it is meaningless, as objects do not have sexuality, only beings do. But if we state that female pornography actor are depicted as "sexual beings" would make a poor idiom. Most female sex workers foster the view that pornography should not be restricted, not because they oppose restricting harmful speech, but because they regard pornography as relatively harmless. They identify the harm of pornography as the harm of offense and maintain that the fact that some find certain materials offensive is not a sufficient reason for restricting those materials.( Gittler,2000) However, despite the benefits of porn, there still remains strong advocates of anti-porn. MacKinnon has disagreed that pornography is an action, instead of a form of expression. In her work titled "Only Words" she strongly presents the view that pornography is an illocutionary act of subordination. Another way that MacKinnon tries to augment the view that pornography is an action involves a similarly glaring non sequitur: "Pornography is masturbation material. It is used as sex. It therefore is sex."(Mackinnon 2000) The fact that pornography is used in certain actions, though, does not make it the case that pornography is an action. Finally, MacKinnon asserts that pornography is an action because it causes harmful acts. MacKinnon defends that pornography is causally linked to acts of sexism and violence against female pornography actor. Another important argument raised against female pornographic actors is that pornography entices men to commit rape. Studies and experts have contracted this view and have refused to accept any links between the two things, which they consider as poles apart. To further proof this point, the highly "pro-censorship" Messe Commission Report also agreed to this fact.( Jones,2001) Take the case of Japan, where pornography and

Analyze of Two Kinds by Amy Tan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analyze of Two Kinds by Amy Tan - Essay Example There are many characters throughout the story, but the main focus of the story is about the relationship between Jing-Mei and her mother. By presenting the story like this, Amy Tan is able to divulge in how each character reacts to the other one. This would simply not be possibly if the focus was on a wider range of characters. Some of the other support characters are Lindo Jong (Jing-Mei’s aunt), Waverly Jong (Jing-Mei’s cousin), and Mr. Chong (Jing-Mei’s piano teacher). All of these characters are crucial to the story because they provide background to the relationship that Jing-Mei and her mother go through. Waverly Jong is an important character because she is everything that Jing-Mei is not—bright, smart and talented. Waverly’s mother’s role is mainly to point this out to Jing-Mei’s mother so as to further push her towards controlling Jing-Mei. Mr. Chong is perhaps the one character who is light-hearted; he does not overly push J ing-Mei and tries to make playing the piano fun. The setting of this story is in California back in the 1960s. Not only is this an area that received a large amount of immigrants, but older people reading the story may be able to relate to it because it is similar to what they experienced back then. Another reason why the setting is so important is because of the way that immigrants were generally perceived back then. This helped to set up the basis of the story where Jing-Mei’s mother wanted to push her to become a child protege. This was perceived to be a way out of the typical stereotype of a Chinese immigrant and a way to assimilate into American society. The structure of Two Kinds is one than is simplistic and easy to read. After the narrator jots down an experience, she then gives her own opinions and reasons why she felt the way she did. This helps the reader to understand why she felt what she did. Also, there are plenty of quotes from the mother, giving the reader a chance to understand where she was coming from. It is not until the end of the story that the reader realizes that the main character in the story is retelling it from when she was a child. The author could have chosen to mention this point at the start, but I think that is makes the story seem more real by reading it as though it could happen today. Amy Tan uses more of a narrative style in this story to get her point across. This style allows the reader to become involved in the relationship between Jing-Mei and her mother. Because there are opinions of both the daughter and the mother that are offered, the reader is able to weigh up for themselves who is in the right and who is in the wrong. While Jing-Mei disagrees with the choices that her mother made for her, the tone displayed towards her is one of frustration yet respect at the same time. Jing-Mei’s attitudes toward her mother change in a positive way as the story progresses. The piano was the main symbol of this stor y. At the beginning, it was shown contempt by Jing-Mei because of the way her mother harassed her about playing it to perfection. By the end, however, Jing-Mei was able to fully respect the gift that it was and even took the time to sit down and play it. Also, the names of the two songs played at the end (â€Å"Pleading Child† and â€Å"Perfectly Contented†) are symbolic of the way that Jing-Mei’

Dehydration of Methylcyclohexanol Essay Example for Free

Dehydration of Methylcyclohexanol Essay A common Sophomore Organic Chemistry laboratory experiment that has great potential for further research is the acid catalyzed dehydration of simple alcohols. The classic dehydration of 2-methylcyclohexanol experiment that was introduced in Journal of Chemical Education in 1967 Taber(1967)JCE:44,p620. The rather simple procedure of distilling an alcohol with an aqueous acid has spawned several investigations that have resulted in formal journal articles. At the same time, the experiment has retained its popularity in the Sophomore Organic Chemistry laboratory curriculum. In one line of inquiry it has been observed that a mixture of 2-methylcyclohexanol diastereomers gives rise to a mixture of three isomeric alkenes Todd(1994)JCE:71,p440; Feigenbaum(1987) JCE:64, p273; Cawley (1997) JCE:74l, p102. Explaining the presence of the three alkene products requires an intense synthesis of information communicated in a typical SOC textbook. The continued popularity of this experiment is corroborated by the observation that Googling the phrase â€Å"Dehydration of 2-Methylcyclohexanol† on January 13th, 2008 returned no less than 20 hits for online student handouts and/or guides for this SOC laboratory experiment. Moreover, this experiment provides fertile ground for experimentation and innovation that has not yet been fully explored. At Dominican University, the SOC students performed this experiment during the Fall 2007 semester with not only the dehydration of 2-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 153087) but also the 4-methyl (Aldrich 153095) and 3-methyl (Aldrich 139734) positional isomers. The reaction products were submitted to GC-FID analysis. As predicted from the Journal of Chemical Education articles, three methylcyclohexene products were observed. Their relative abundance measured by peak height was 80, 16, and 4%. The alkene products represented by these peaks apparently correspond to 1-methycyclehexene, 3-methycyclehexene, and methylenecyclohexane respectively. [pic] The dehydration of 4-methylcyclohexanol produce two products, that can be distinguished by our current GC column, at 90 and 10% with retention times that match 3-methycyclehexene and 1-methycyclehexene respectively. My current theory is that the retention times 3 and 4-methycyclohexene could not be distinguished with GC column and temperature program. However, there is still the issue of how 1-methycyclehexene is produced from 4-methylcyclohexanol. [pic] The dehydration of 3-methylcyclohexanol yields two products, that can be distinguished by our current GC column, at 80 and 20% with retention times that match 3-methylcyclohexene and 1-methycyclehexene respectively. [pic] Samples of 1-methyl and 3-methyl cyclohexenes purchased from Aldrich chemical confirmed two of compound assignments for the dehydration of 2-methylcyclohexanol. Obviously, it remains to separate the 3 and 4-methylcyclohexene by GC. There are several advantages of studying the dehydration of methylcyclohexanols in the first semester of Organic Chemistry: 1) The experiment involves reactions that are typically studied during first semester: E1, E2, and the 1,2-hydride shift. It is a time-tested protocol that has been run in hundreds of labs by thousands of students. 2) Analysis of the experiment involves the understanding of all three mechanisms mentioned previously and how they may compete with each other. In other words, it is a simple experiment that demands a rather involved interpretation of results. 3) It shows that textbooks â€Å"rules† such as the Zaitzev’s rule in this case, are not necessarily rules as such, but rather astute observations of general trends that can vary experimentally depending on the reactant and the reaction conditions. 4) Analytically, we are observing/measuring the presence of 3 known methylcyclohexene and methylenecyclohexane products that can be separated and detected by Gas Chromatography. I believe that the product mixtures can also be analyzed by NMR. 5) The reaction lends itself to an inquiry format that involves the study different reactants and reaction conditions on the ratio of products. In fact, this experiment, in my opinion, is an ideal candidate for a multi-institution collaborative study that combines and interprets student data. want to pursue point #5 further by first grappling with the current literature concerning the â€Å"Evelyn Effect.† The JCE article by David Todd, â€Å"The Dehydration of 2-Methylcyclohexanol Revisited: The Evelyn Effect† observes a kinetic effect that can be explained by proposing that in a mixture of cis/trans 2-Methylcyclohexanol the cis isomer reacts much faster than the trans isomer to give predominately 1-methylcyclohexene. The formation of 1-methylcyclohexene from cis-2-methylcyclohexanol would involve an â€Å"E2-like† anti-elimination of proton and the protonated alcohol. The dehydration of the trans isomer would go through a E1 mechanism that requires the formation of a carbocation before elimination of a proton. A follow-up study by Cawley and Linder: â€Å"The Acid Catalyzed Dehydration of an Isomeric 2-Methylcyclohexanol Mixture† involves a detailed kinetic study. Students began with a 36.6/63.4 cis/trans mixture of 2-methylcyclohexanol with a cyclohexanol impurity (% impurity was not reported). They performed thy typical reaction+distillation and collected fractions at 4, 8, 16, 24, and 28 minutes. They also collected a 0.1 mL volume of the sample of the reaction mixture at each of these time intervals. These fractions were analyzed by 1H NMR and GC for composition. The cis/trans rate constants for the dehydration of reaction were determined to be 8.4/1.0 – much less than 30/1 ratio reported in 1931 by Vavon and Barbier. An intriguing study! It would be very interesting to have the raw (student) data on this one. Very little is said about the product ratios in the distillate fractions, they just report that they obtained 2.1% methylenecyclohexane and not the 4% previously reported. The dehydration of methylcyclohexanols provides a fecund problem to explore. The key is to develop methods to determine the distribution of alkene products in terms of % total alkenes. There are four possible positional isomers: I. methylenecyclohexane (Aldrich, Acros, 1192-37-6); II. racemic 3-methyl-1-cyclohexene (Acros, 591-48-0); III. 1-methyl-1-cyclohexene (Aldrich, Acros 591-49-1) IV. racemic 4-methyl-1-cyclohexene (Aldrich, Acros 591-47-9). Two of the alkene positional isomers contain an asymmetric carbon. The obvious place to start is by studying how the alcohol structure affects the product distribution of alkenes. There are 5 positional isomers of methylcyclohexanol: I. cyclohexanemethanol (Aldrich 100-49-2); II. 1-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 590-67-0); III. racemic cistrans 2-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 583-59-5) IV. racemic cistrans 3-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 591-23-1) V. cistrans 4-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 589-91-3). Three of the alcohols are present in cis and trans diastereomer pairs: cis 2-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 7445-70-1) trans 2-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 7445-52-9) cis 3-methylcyclohexanol (5454-79-5) trans 3-methylcyclohexanol (7443-55-2) cis 4-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 7731-28-4) trans 4-methylcyclohexanol (Aldrich 7731-28-4). In addition there are 4 entaniomer pairs among the alcohol starting materials. Most of them are commercially available, for a price. [pic] Besides the structure of the alcohol, what other variables may be explored? 1) One variable for this reaction that could be investigated is the nature of the catalytic acid. Aqueous acids, such as the 85% H3PO4 typically used for this experiment, contain some water which is also product of the reaction. I may also add that, the amount of acid is not always in catalytic proportion to the substrate. In my current protocol 0.075 moles of acid is used to dehydrate 0.2 moles of alcohol. Non-aqueous acids may give different results. Acidic resins are an interesting substitute for aqueous acids. For example, John Ludeman and Kurt Field of Bradley University presented a poster at the 2006 ACS Great Lakes Regional Meeting on the use of Dowex 50WX2-100, Amberlite IRC-50S, and Amberlyst 15, for the dehydration of alcohols. 2) Another variable would be the reaction conditions. In the current paradigm, the alkene is distilled away from the reaction mixture. Presumably, it is being distilled away as it is formed. An ad-hoc observation is that students seem to get somewhat different product ratios if they distill is carefully or if they â€Å"crank up the heat† and distill it quicker. What if the reaction mixture was refluxed to equilibrium before distillation? Would we see more thermodynamic products? 3) Reaction conditions could be changed in other ways too. Microwave irradiation is currently being explored as an alternative to heating reactions. Possibly, sonication could also be performed on the alcohol. 4) Another avenue to explore may be different strategies to push the reaction towards the products other than distilling off the alkene. For example, removing water with molecular sieves may be tried. The last installment of this series will explore the logistics of â€Å"dehydration of methylcycohexanols† as a collaborative experiments. The most straightforward collaboration would be to perform the â€Å"dehydration of methylcycohexanols† experiment in the same way and compare the relative yield of alkenes as measured by GC from different starting alcohols. Comparisons could be made with past data or concurrently collected data from different institutions. This may be seem fairly straightforward, but there will most likely be discrepancies that could will need to be explored. One aspect to make note of would be the source and composition of the methylcyclohexanols used a starting materials. Sigma-Aldrich has †¢ 1-methylcyclohexanol #M38214; †¢ 2-methylcyclohexanol #66320, #215295, #178829, #24113, #153087, †¢ 3-methylcyclohexanol #139734; †¢ 4-methylcyclohexanol #66360, #104183, #104191, #153095; †¢ as well as just plain methylcyclohexanol #66370. An experimental variable that is hard to control is rate of heating. Students who crank up the hot plate to get done quickly (even though they were told not to) may get different results than those students who go slowly and maintain an even temperature. Different GC columns and methods may also give results that need to be corroborated.