K-12 Modules

Inspire the Next Generation of Engineers

AIChE's Bee a ChemE program sparks creativity and curiosity through STEM education, empowering educators, students, and chemical engineers to inspire the next generation of innovators.

The following modules can be used by teachers and parents to help introduce K-12 students. More modules will be added throughout the year so be sure revisit as much as possible.

A Look at the Coronavirus through Bioinformatics

The module presents a comparison between coronavirus types of different organisms using an online glycoprotein database and a bioinformatic algorithm for protein alignment.

Adsorption: cleaning water with carbon

Activated carbon filter to visually demonstrate adsorption by filtering out dye and other "contaminants" 

Air Quality Data Visualization

This module seeks to excite students about their potential as citizen scientists by encouraging the employment of their data analysis and visualization skills to interpret real-life air quality data into meaningful connections to the world around them.

Alternative Cleaner Fuels

We will create a lemon battery and the material used for it is 4-6 lemons, zinc and copper electrodes, wires, LED, alligator clamps, tape, voltmeter. In the end we will present how lemon battery is a cleaner option for alternate fuel and hence on larger scale other alternate fuel options can be used as well like hydro-power, nuclear reactors and solar energy. 

Anodizing Titanium: Creating A Colorful Coating

In this module, students will get to see a real-world application of electrochemistry (covered in the curriculum of 11th grade students). They will get to anodize titanium to make coatings with different colors when the voltage is changed.

Apple Cider Apothecary


Aqua Magic

"A river is more than an amenity; it is a treasure." – Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes
Modern technologies have allowed us to harness the world's available water for energy and industrial purposes, but these technologies have failed us in finding a solution to the ever increasing industrial water scarcity. This module has found a way to help millions of global citizens who are facing challenges due to scarcity of water and support the UN Water Program and other international agencies working on water and sanitation issues.

Bears, Beets, Paper Chromatography

This activity will introduce 9th-12th grade students to liquid chromatography and the mass transfer principles behind it. Featuring a murder mystery theme from "The Office", students will put on their detective hats to determine who left the ransom note. By performing chromatography in various ink samples from around the office, the students will try to match the correct marker to the culprit who left the ransom note and save Angela.

Bernoulli's First Buoyancy

This module uses the follow-along storybook "Bernoulli's First Buoyancy" To introduce students to the basic concepts of buoyancy, density, mass, volume, and state changes. 

Best Friends Forever Always Stay Together

The interactive portion of the module consists of two experiments, the "Can Crusher Experiment" and the "Water & Candles".