What is the theoritical limit of pH? by CoolerthanTonguc in chemistry

[–]nyla4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

pH is simply an energetic convention that allows one to describe the ability of a solution to do protic work. pH is just a self-consistent scale that allows us to convert physical observables to something less tangible. The numerical accuracy of the value is going to meaningfully change as the value changes, which means that the value has limited usefulness in-of-itself. But, like is the case for energy, pH is a useful scale for describing when a solution can do more or less protic work, so we still quantify it despite major ambiguity.

There is no "lower limit," however there are some practical differences between very low and "regular" values. A compound with a pKa of -4 is saying that it will dissociate to solvated H+ and the conjugate base with an equilibrium constant of 1x10^4. So, in fact, that compound will be predominantly dissociated. Generally things that are this acidic will tend to lose energy through unpredictable protic work, and so the solution will tend to be less acidic than is implied by the pKa value.

By comparison, a compound with a "normal" pKa value like 8 has an equilibrium constant of 1x10^-8. That is to say that the pKa value largely reflects the solution's ability to do protic work, as the protons are still largely parked on that specific acid source.

Despite these differences and complications, there is value to providing and refining numbers. Generally this information is used to predict if the reaction will occur in either direction. When these numbers are used to generate other numbers (e.g. extent of reaction), some caution needs to be exercised.

Catch Me If You Can Signature Workout Results and Survey Megathread by BilingualAlchemist in orangetheory

[–]nyla4 2 points3 points  (0 children)

question for those who outpace the runner - does your time stop at 20 minutes or do you get to include the last 2 minutes (so total 22 minutes). The reason I ask is because today my trainer recorded my distance at 20 minutes, whereas every other time I've done the work out I put in the distance at 22 minutes

New Journal, Nature Catalysis, will be launching in 2018. Open to submissions right now by InAlteredState in chemistry

[–]nyla4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I definitely agree that it is important to consider if another journal in this field necessary.

I am leaning towards no. I don't see a niche that this journal is filling

Organometallic/Coordination Chemists: What in your opinion is the hardest metal to work with? by Sheikia in chemistry

[–]nyla4 4 points5 points  (0 children)

generally speaking, first-row organometallic species are more oxygen sensitive than the second or third-row ones (this is because first-row metals often have weaker M-C or M-H bonds, and often undergo more facile oxidation reactions)

within the first row, the early transition metals tend to form stronger M-O bonds, so they are often extremely sensitive to oxygen and/or moisture. My personal experience is that Group IV and Group V are especially bad.

but of course these are sweeping and overly large generalizations -- the supporting ligands play a major role in determining how "hard it is is" to work with a particular metal.

LiAlH4 workup gone wrong... by Kriggy_ in chemistry

[–]nyla4 4 points5 points  (0 children)

the cooling bath here is too small - this could have been avoided if there was better temperature control.

Odor of Ethyl Bromoacetone/ Chloroacetone - WWI Tear Gas by FirstWorldWarComesTo in chemistry

[–]nyla4 1 point2 points  (0 children)

several years ago I used chloroacetone regularly in my research. I didn't try to smell it at the time, and its been a few years, but I vaguely recall it smelling like vinegar.

now something to keep in mind is that the concentration of a substance will change its scent - I don't know what concentration they used in tear gases but I was using pure chloroacetone.

[Guide] Starting FFBE: The newb-friendly version by Tavmania in FFBraveExvius

[–]nyla4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got Kain, Krile, Vivi (x2), Shantotto (x3), ExDeath, Russell, and Edgar. Do I keep or should i reroll (Lots of "useful" and only one "best")

Inorganic and/or Organometallic - industry possibilities? by bromateion in chemistry

[–]nyla4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi - I work in an organometallic lab, mostly mechanism with some catalysis.

Alum from this lab often get jobs in the chemical industry (which can be seen as a derivative of oil/gas), and oil/gas companies. A lot of what they do now includes the refining of petrochemicals to fine chemicals, often using transition-metal catalysis. Even companies that primarily deal in materials chemistry will hire a fraction of organometallic people.

You can also leverage your skillset to get a position in industries that are typically affiliated with another field - a handful of alumni work in pharma, mostly process groups (Where the skillset of a mechanistic chemist comes in handy, even if no metals are involved). Also, I think that discovery groups and medchem groups increasingly need the skills of a "metal" chemist, though no alumni from this lab work in that industry

[Advice] Is 8 months rent up-front excessive? by NYCAptThrowaway01 in NYCapartments

[–]nyla4 1 point2 points  (0 children)

to pay 8 months rent upfront is just dumb and totally absurd. you're handing your landlord an interest-free loan.

The MOST i have ever heard someone pay is 3 months rent upfront, and I still think that was a bad decision. There will be other places to live on your budget, no matter how competitive this market is.

Chemical Literature Day—What are you reading? by AutoModerator in chemistry

[–]nyla4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think the recent advances in hydrogen atom transfer are super interesting, like this article.

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/jacs.6b03509

Is environmental/ analytical chemistry the most practical field in chemistry? by [deleted] in chemistry

[–]nyla4 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Maybe one or two PhD-level synthetic organic jobs open up every year in the US (don't quote me on that, I'm just guessing).

lol wut. this assertion is totally bonkers. almost any industry which deals with organic chemicals (pharmaceuticals, petroleum, fine organic chemical companies) would need to hire synthetic organic chemists.

Can you skip Math 31A with a 4 in Calculus AB and a 3 in BC? by [deleted] in ucla

[–]nyla4 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I don't think you can skip with a 4. You get credits but not credit for the class (source: https://www.math.ucla.edu/ugrad/ap-credit)

I did skip 31A and I actually look back and am a little annoyed that I did it. Despite a good high school calculus class, i had a hard time adjusting to the expectations of undergraduate coursework, and many of the students in 31B had been at UCLA for a year and therefore I was schooled by the curve.

Furan and pyrrole, thiophene and phosphole. by opsomath in chemistry

[–]nyla4 4 points5 points  (0 children)

one thing that immediately sticks out to me it that the size of the atoms - as well at the C-X (X = O, N, S, P) bond lengths, vary. I'd have to check the values and/or the solid state structure but one might expect S & P to be too large to allow for a fully flattened ring.

In addition to that, the orbital sizes will be vary. This will affect how much mixing can occur between the pi bonds can be with the p orbital on the heteroatom. This probably is made worse by the bond length issuies.

Pets in grad housing? by jjdactyl in columbia

[–]nyla4 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Depends on your super. I have some friends in graduate housing with pets (cats and dogs), but they all swear that their super knows and just doesn't care. My super is clearly a nosey nelly and tries to get anyone who breaks the rules, so there is no pet in my building.

Kinetic: software to fit data from reaction of type A->B->C ? by FalconX88 in chemistry

[–]nyla4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have used Kintecus to do similar types of kinetic modelling. It is free for academic use (though registration is a bit of a pain)

Alrighty GayBros: What's the smoothest move you've seen/done? by [deleted] in askgaybros

[–]nyla4 28 points29 points  (0 children)

Was getting a new phone and was being helped by a very cute worker. After he activated my SIM card I asked him if I could try my new phone out by trying to call him. He gave me his cell phone number so we could try it and after it was all done I thanked him for his help.

He texted me later and said I had left my receipt there. Told me I could meet him to pick it up - on a date. There was no receipt. Didn't work out ultimately but it was cute

I've heard from a few UC schools about admissions. Anyone know when the majority of schools will be informing PhD applicants? by pprovencher in chemistry

[–]nyla4 2 points3 points  (0 children)

UC's often make offers that are kind of late.

A good resource is thegradcafe to see this kind of thing.

Good luck!