Titrate over the Internet: An Open-Source Remote-Control Titration Unit for All Students

ABSTRACT

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing restrictions are in place in most public settings, and the undergraduate laboratory is no exception. In order to accommodate social distancing requirements, many laboratory exercises are being redeployed in an online format, which deprives students of experiential learning opportunities in a real laboratory setting. To bridge this experiential learning gap for online laboratory exercises, an open-source remote titration unit was created. This remote titration unit is based on a simple Raspberry Pi architecture equipped with a webcam and a servo (a small motor allowing fine control of angular position), allowing students to control the titration unit over the Internet with visual feedback of approximately a 0.5 s delay. Understanding that titrations are taught across all levels of chemistry, from high school to the postsecondary level, they are considered fundamental laboratory methods in analytical chemistry. In fact, titrations are the first analytical chemistry technique introduced to students, and the method holds a significant place in the chemistry curriculum. In response to the recent emphasis on virtual lab platforms due to COVID-19, the chemistry laboratory will need to evolve accordingly. The remote-control titration unit described here is an exemplar, showing that elements of experiential learning can be retained for online laboratory activities, and allows for the possibility of distanced learning that includes a meaningful laboratory component. © 2020 American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.