Ask A Scientist Chemistry Archive

(Created prior to 1993)

Question: We are seeking a simple chemical reaction which will use metallic 
zinc as a catalyst.  This is for a Junior High School science project.  We 
live in Northwest Alaska near the Red Dog Mine, a world class lead-zinc-silver 
mine.  Our library resources are limited.
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There are a number of fairly simple organic reactions you could 
probably do:  Clemmensen reduction:  carbonyls (C=O) to methylenes (CH2)
Reformatsky reaction:  aldehydes or ketones with alpha-bromo esters to make 
beta-hydroxy esters.  Try a general organic chemistry text for others.  The 
two named are fairly straightforward and do not require a whole lot of 
synthetic knowledge.  The ACS (American Chemical Society) has a 1-800 number 
that may be able to help with chem demonstrations too.  There is one demo 
where you use a penny in some solution and it then gets the appearance of gold 
or silver (not sure which).  (The last two suggestions came from a colleague 
so please do not grill me!).  Good luck...
Joe Schultz
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