Water and Chemistry
Water, water, everywhere... Visit these links to explore the wonders of water and dive into its chemistry. Put together a stream team, imagine life if you couldn’t drink water from your own tap, make a mini ocean model, and more.
Chemists Celebrate Earth Week
Start here! There’s plenty of ways to get involved with the fun of Earth Week—an illustrated poem contest, hands-on activities, and more.
- All the Water in the World
This demo packs a visual punch to show the breakdown of water in the world. More activities take the study of water further. - Acid Rain Investigations
Color changes tell the story in this small-scale exploration of acid rain concepts. - Ocean Acidification in a Cup
It’s an ocean mini-model. What will happen to the water when the air above it changes? - Shell Shifts
If seashells are in the water, how can changes in the air affect them? Learn how in this demo. - Convection Detection
It rises, then falls. And rises, then falls. And… these swirls and currents of color are hypnotizing.
- Dive into Marine Chemistry (in English)
Bucea en la Química Marina (en Español)
Dive into marine chemistry with hands-on activities related to calcium carbonate in seashells, seawater density, and oil spills. - The Wonders of Water (in English)
Las Maravillas del Agua (en Español)
You’ll be well schooled in “The Wonders of Water” after trying out these activities. - Ocean Acidification
Go in depth with this lab to study the pH of water and its effect on creatures that make their home in it. - Ocean Chemistry Hands-On Activities
Pick and choose—what will it be today? Finding out what story a satellite can tell about the ocean? How to better respond to oil spills? - Earth Day 2014
This list from the Journal of Chemical Education is packed with fantastic water demos, activities, and experiments—for free! Don’t miss the “soap boat 2.0” activity—it’s a winner. - Global Experiment of the International Year of Chemistry
Need a lab partner? How about 128,330 lab partners? That’s how many students tried water experiments during IYC. You can too! - Seawater Acid–Base Chemistry and Ocean Acidification
Teachers take note! This marine unit was designed with high school chemistry classes in mind. - Teacher Resources—Water
No need to thirst for more water resources. Take a look at this collection—click on the Water tab. - Water Diary
Did you take a short or long shower today? Did you wash your clothes? Keep track of how much water you use in a week.
- Stream Team
Put together your dream stream team to monitor the health of local waterways with this guide. - Chemists Celebrate Earth Week Community Event
Learn more about seafood and how it can help your brain with this list of ideas for CCEW 2018. - Great Pacific Garbage Patch
It’s not just trash talk—it’s really out there in the North Pacific. And it’s even bigger than they thought. - The Flint Water Crisis: What's Really Going On?
What would you do if foul smelling, odd tasting, orange colored water were all that you could get from your tap?
- Obscure Chemical Taints Water Supply
The governor just told you to stop drinking water from your tap. Learn why it happened in early 2014 in West Virginia. - Water Chemists
What does a water chemist do? Where do they spend their days? How much school do they need? Find out here. - Salt Harvesting
Seawater can make your food taste better. Learn how the water gets removed and leaves behind gourmet-style salt. - More on Dehydrated Water
For a little chemistry humor, take a look at this discussion of dehydrated water—available in pill form and in cans. Just add water…
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