Overview

You will write a short (two-page) report about a topic from the ChemMatters article about NASCAR. The paper itself is merely the evidence that you took the time to educate yourself further about something you find interesting. The point of this project is to spend some time learning something you never knew and never thought you would learn. In other words, read and then read some more. Once you know something, write it down.

Topic Ideas

Pick something you are interested in and read all about it. Do not use the classtime you are spending in the library for talking with your friends and surfing the Internet. Use it to find interesting things to read and then read them! You must use at least three sources and one of them must be in print (not on the WWW). By reading information from several sources on the same topic you can become educated about that topic. When educated people write about what they know it is interesting to read. Be prepared to write something your teacher will be interested in reading.

• The article you read about NASCAR mentioned several different chemical topics, including polymers. Choose a polymer mentioned in the article and research how it is made, what else it is used for, and how it comes to have the properties that it has. Concentrate on the chemistry behind the substance you are researching. See some great info at http://www.pslc.ws/mactest/maindir.htm.

• Do a report about polymers in general. What are they? Where are they found in everyday life? What makes them so useful? Why are there so many different kinds? What makes it possible for them all to have such different chemical and physical properties? Your report can address any one of these questions or several at once. See some great info at http://www.pslc.ws/mactest/maindir.htm.
• NASCAR vehicles use leaded fuel. The fuel additive tetraethyl lead—(CH₃CH₂)₄Pb or C₈H₂₀Pb—increases the octane of gasoline above 100. Write about how tetraethyl lead makes these super-high octanes possible and what that means for engine performance.
• Write an opinion paper about whether NASCAR should eliminate leaded fuels. Look into the reasons why it is used and investigate the environmental effects of leaded gasoline. Do the benefits of using leaded fuel outweigh the damage done to the environment? Be prepared to justify your answer.
• Write about the fuel used in ordinary cars. What is octane? What is iso-octane? Why are branched isomers better fuels than straight-chain isomers? What is engine knock and how can it be prevented?
• Write a report about how a NASCAR engine works and how it is different from how the engine of street-legal cars works. You could write about one or more of the following:
  • For example, NASCAR engines do not have mufflers. How does that increase their performance?
  • Also, NASCAR vehicles do not use catalytic converters. What do catalytic converters do in regular cars and why are they not installed in NASCAR vehicles?

Requirements

• For the Report
  • It must be two pages long, typed
  • It must have margins of 1 inch on all sides
  • It must be written in 12 pt Times New Roman
  • You may double space
• For the Bibliography
  • Use at least three sources; one of those sources must be something other than a web page
  • Format it the same way you would for an English or History paper
  • Use the NoodleTools site to help you format it correctly