Fabricating Simple Wax Screen-Printing Paper-Based Analytical Devices to Demonstrate the Concept of Limiting Reagent in Acid- Base Reactions

In this article, a low-cost, simple, and rapid fabrication of paper-based analytical devices (PADs) using a wax screen-printing method is reported here. The acid-base reaction is implemented in the simple PADs to demonstrate to students the chemistry concept of a limiting reagent. When a fixed concentration of base reacts with a gradually increasing concentration of acid, a dramatic demonstration allows students to discover the limiting reagent by naked eyes observing the color change from phenolphthalein as an indicator. This demonstration is not only a new approach to enhancing students' learning of the chemistry concept of the limiting reagent, but also presents potential applications of PADs into all levels of chemistry from middle school through college classes.