Chemistry and Biochemistry

Facilities and Instruments

Instrumentation

Optical Spectroscopy

  • 2 Agilent 8453 Diode-array UV-Vis Spectrophotometers
  • Hitachi F-4500 Fluorimeter
  • 2 ThermoElectron Nicolet FT-IR spectrometers
  • Bruker X-Ray Fluoresence Spectrophotometer
  • ThermoElectron Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

  • Bruker 400 MHz NMR (installed June 2015)
  • Varian Mercury VX-300 NMR
  • Anasazi Instruments Eft-60 NMR

Chromatography

  • ThermoFisher Trace 1300 GC-FID/MS
  • HP 6890 GC-FID/MS
  • HP 6890 GC/MS
  • 3 SRI 310 GC
  • Pharmacia Biotech FPLC
  • 4 Bio-Rad BioLogic low pressure FPLC 
  • Agilent 1100 HPLC with UV-Vis diode-array detector and Polymer Laboratories PL-ELS 2100 Evaporative Light Scattering detector
  • Waters HPLC including UV-Vis and Conductivity Detectors and Gradient Controller

Mass Spectrometry

  • ThermoFinnegan LCQ Advantage Ion Trap LC-MS
  • See GC/MS above

Gel Electrophoresis

  • Biorad PTC 1148 MJ Minicycler for PCR
  • 3 Biorad Protean 3 Minigel Electrophoresis
  • Invitrogen Zoom IPGRunner (isoelectric focusing)
  • Stratagene Joule Box DNA gel electrophoresis
  • Invitrogen E-Gel ibase
  • Biorad Gel Doc EZ gel documentation system
  • Invitrogen Safe Imager

Electrochemistry

  • EG&G Instruments Model 362 Potentiostat

Thermal Analysis

  • TA Instruments TGA-2050 Thermogravimetric Analyzer
  • TA Instruments DSC-2010 Differential Scanning Calorimeter
  • Parr Bomb calorimeter

Inert Environment

  • Vacuum Atmospherics Co. Glove Box
  • Schlenk Line

Specialized Solvent systems

  • Dionex Accelerated Solvent Extractor
  • Gilson Model 215 Liquid Handler (robot)
  • MBraun Solvent Purifier

Miscellaneous

  • CEM Discover SP microwave
  • Misonix 20020 Programmable Sonicator
  • Bench Top Autoclave
  • French Pressure Cell
  • Klett Colorimeter
  • New Brunswick bench top shaker
  • New Brunswick bench top shaking water bath
  • Sorvall RC2-B refrigerated centrifuge
  • 5 L Fermentor

Facilities

CHEM has moved into the new Science Building! The Science Building is not only the most state-of-the-art facility on campus but also one of the most visionary buildings within the 23-campus California State University system. It boasts numerous advanced features:

Bioswales

The bioswales are an integral part of the building, designed to handle stormwater runoff and to prevent generating new runoff to the creek. Disconnected downspouts divert rooftop water to two bioswales (also referred to as rain gardens) and four flow-through planters along its perimeter. In addition, runoff from the building surroundings will enter various pervious landscape areas. Bioswales and flow-through planters restore natural watershed processes. By allowing storm runoff to infiltrate into soil, it uses soils and native plants to filter and degrade metals and organic contaminants.

Studio Classrooms

The chemistry studio laboratory classroom is set up to accommodate the newly designed “General Chemistry I” course that completely integrates lecture and laboratory. Four-person benches facilitate group learning and relevant experiments; eight projection systems display different media simultaneously, helping students to draw connections between topics; and new tablets with laboratory probeware give students access to modern experimental equipment. Students will be learning through the laboratory experiments and activities instead of absorbing a lecture. Over the past two years, faculty in physics and chemistry have been redesigning their teaching to make best use of studio classrooms in the new building.

Ultracold Laboratory

The new building includes a climate-controlled laboratory space and low-noise-level research environment built with ultracold atom experiments in mind. Undergraduates at Chico State will have research opportunities not even available to graduate students at most institutions. The ultracold laboratory—one of many innovative research opportunities in the new complex—features ample workspace for a magneto-optical trap, lasers, and vacuum technology, as well as prototyping, and complements open spaces elsewhere in the building where students can collaborate to nurture creativity in research. Faculty and students will use the lab to cool atoms to near absolute zero, nearly freezing them in space so they display their true quantum nature, behaving more like waves than particles.

Student Spaces

Designed with student success in mind, the new building includes multiple areas that will serve as collaborative workspaces for students to gather to brainstorm, work in groups, study, and advance cross-disciplinary projects. There are also dedicated spaces for individual clubs that give students space for tutoring, mentoring, and other projects.