What is a report in chemistry?

2 different kind of report:

- Quantitative report (Messuring mass, volume, time or other quantities)

- Qualitative report (observering colours, oders or other observations)

Most reports follows this structure:

Purpose: Introduction to the investigation and is its purpose. Short and precise.

Theory/ Existing knowledge - theoretical knowledge and topics relevant to the investigation.

Hypothesis (optional) - based on the existing knowledge, what do you expect to see and measure
during the experiment. It is not all experiments where it is possible to make a good hypothesis.

Lab equipment and chemicals - short list.

Step-by-step practical procedure - what methods are used to harvest your data?

Data Collection - relevant observations and measured data presented in an ordered way (with
uncertainties, +/-).

Data processing - process the data from the data collection to fulfill the purpose of the
investigation. This part does not just contain calculation, but also arguments and logical
explanations. Your data processing should be easy to read/follow for everyone.

Conclusion and evaluation do your results confirm the hypothesis, can you trust your data and
processed result (whats the uncertainty?), and how can you improve the experiment to get better
results.

In the beginning, I will give you journals where I already made most of the purpose, Theory, hypothesis,
lab equipment and Practical procedure. This is because I want you to focus on the rest of the report
(written in red).
Data- collection is about showing/presenting all observations/data.
If the experiment is Quantitative, the data collection will mostly be values from messurements.

If the experiment is qualitative, the data collection will mostly be observations (colours, smells, smoke)

Data processing (this is the core of the report)

What to do:

In this part you should argue how you can use your data to draw additional conclusion using your theory.

- You should always introduce ALL your calculations. Explain all the steps and show all formulas
before using them.
- Make a reader-friendly report. Make headlines if needed. And guide the reader through your
thoughts.
- When you are done writing, then TAKE YOUR TIME TO POLISH the report.

What not to do:

- The most commen mistake is to show the calculations with no explanation. This is not a math test.
- Another commen mistake is to show calculations with: Wrong symbols, no unit, no formulas.
- Do not structure your data processing in a thoughtless 1), 2), 3) ,4) ,5) style. Make headlines
instead.
- Do not write to me. Write to your guardian.

Discussion:
Evaluate the results from your data processing.

- Discuss sources of error that you faces in the practical procedure. Discuss the influence of these
mistakes.

Conclusion:
This is basicly just a summery of your report. (3-4 lines to summarize purpose, method, results, discussion)