Many of the applets shown below involve the complex interaction between electromagnetic waves and molecules. This has direct application to the science of greenhouse gases.
Collisional Heating by CO2 in the Atmosphere:
| This applet illustrates the absorption of infrared radiation by CO2 in the troposphere and the collisional loss of this absorbed energy to surrounding N2 and O2 molecules. In this applet the user can sweep through a region of the IR-spectrum and excite some of the vibratory modes of CO2. A simple (purely qualitative) thermometer illustrates the rise in temperature of the gas as collisional de-excitation occurs. Run Applet |
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CFC's in the Atmosphere
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The behaviour of CFC's is dependent on both the wavelength of radiation as well as position of the molecule in the atmosphere. In this applet the user can investigate the various interaction modes of a CFC molecule with electromagnetic radiation across the entire spectrum. The molecule can be rotated in 3D to better view the vibration induced by interaction with light. Run Applet |
Structure of the Atmosphere
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Understanding the structure of the atmosphere is critical to being able to understand where and how global warming of the atmosphere occurs. This applet illustrates the major layers in the atmosphere and identifies a number of key characteristics and defining attributes of each layer. Run Applet |
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Functional Groups, IR spectra, and Molecular Vibrations -New Version!
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Many organic molecules exhibit characteristic vibrational modes that produce spectral features in the infrared region. These provide the experimental basis for identifying functional groups. This digital learning object introduces the major functional groups, and interprets their infrared spectra with animated molecular models showing some of the more important vibrational modes used to identify them. Please be patient - this is a very large applet and will take a few seconds to download. Run Applet |
Infrared Spectral Windows
| Greenhouse gases produce spectral features in the infrared portion of the spectrum. One area of concern is the rapidly closing "IR-window" - a phenomenon which occurs because different greenhouse gases absorb in different parts of the IR window. This has potentially serious consequences for global warming. The applet on the right shows how the IR signatures of a number of greenhouse gases collectively "close" the window. Run Applet |
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Isotopic Ratio Analysis
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The science behind isotopic ratios and NMR is explored in this series of four interactive lessons. Please be patient - this is a large applet and download will take a few moments. Run Applet |
Stereo Chemistry
Seeing molecules in 3D greatly enhances the student's ability to understand chirality and how conformation influences chemical behaviour.
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| The Stereo Molecule Viewer Project, Molecules are drawn in a 3d environment, can be projected in 3d using a geowall. The applet can also rotate, zoom, translate, and measure many parts of the molecule. It can import pdb, mol and mol2 files, exportable from many chemistry programs, and found on the web. Run Applet |
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