Unraveling Wöhler’s Synthesis (third week)

Add 30 grams of urea to 500 mL of water, ration into each of 3 vials a dyad which includes 200ul of carbon black nanoparticles and 40ml urea solution. Sonicate vials to ensure a well dispersed solution, set up distillation system, allocate an arbitrary amount of nanoparticles-infused urea solution into the top flask to be illuminated.

60.06 grams/mol is the molar mass of urea, to dissolve 1 M (mol/L) of urea would require an approximation of 60 grams in 1 L or 1, 000 mL of water. Consequently, to preserve 1 M with 500 mL of water would see a medial decrease in the molar mass of urea required.

Illuminate flask and collect distillates in the receiving flask at the end of the distillation system. In our case the distillate was small and did not reach the receiving flask, so we collected aliquots after 3 minutes, 6 minutes, 12 minutes, and the 18 minutes. And voila!

10 watts of laser light is what was used to illuminate the nanoparticles, 10 watts equal 10 joules/sec, and for 18 minutes, which is 1080 secs we had 10, 800 joules/sec. Not enough to boil the entire medium, approximately more energy efficient than the traditional processes.

Nanoparticles-infuse urea solution

Above is the oversimplified compendium of the empirical process undertaken over the third week. Although the process was a lot more painstaking, thought-provoking, the compendious is enough for a recipe. Thus, the process was set in motion.

There is a certain drear that sets into all work, Friedrich Wöhler referred to it as “a primeval forest full of the most remarkable things, a monstrous and boundless thicket, with no way of escape” (a form of madness, rather attractive). To avoid this drear, we sought to indulge our epicurean proclivities.

Here’s an edible truth.

We gathered under the auspices of researchers seeking the distraction of glee, in the hopes of not becoming inert. We wined (figuratively) and dined (literally), laughed and sang, whistled and ran, shared and played, and eventually departed; but not before we imbued the pervasive drear with the mirth of fellowship. We defined fun and enacted indelible moments etched away from the hold of dust, ghosts, and time.

My name is Ifeoluwa Adebiyi, my faculty host is Dr. Naomi Halas, and my mentor is Dr. Oara Neumann; and if there’s anything the third week has taught, it is that in the direst spells it’s worth remembering you have comrades that may not understand the entirety of your research or a third, but they’ll always be ready to grab a chip and dip it in guac with you. Here’s to a summer of relationships!!