In fiscal 2023, we held delivery laboratory classes for the Wonders of Chemistry.
日本語
English
Social Activities
Laboratory Classes on the Wonders of Chemistry
The Laboratory Classes on the Wonders of Chemistry is one of the activities that the Mitsui Chemicals Group is promoting globally to contribute to society using chemical technology, to coexist with local communities, and to develop the next generation of human resources, in accordance with the Social Activities Policy.
Launched in 2006 with the desire to show children the fun and potential of chemistry and to spark their interest in pursuing science, we have organized various types of classes, from off-site classes, whereby members of staff from each of our sites go out to local schools, summer vacation events and festivals, to those held during tours around our works and laboratories. In fiscal 2023, we conducted 23 delivery laboratory classes, with approximately 2,400 children participating.
The experimental topics were developed primarily by the members of VISION HUB™ SODEGAURA, incorporating feedback from participants. Each of our Group locations adapts these experiments, standardizing the content and operations into manuals. The Head Office department in charge provides support for these events and facilitates the sharing of implementation statuses across all locations, both in Japan and internationally. Additionally, leaflets that encourage children who have participated in laboratory experiments to take a more in-depth look at chemicals used at home have been published, and these are being distributed to participants.
Delivery Laboratory Classes
This table is scrollable.
| Month of implementation | Target (number of participating children) | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 June | Nagoya Works: 3rd graders from nearby elementary schools (15 participants) |
|
| July | Ichihara Works: Summer school (seminar for studying summer vacation homework and Japanese language for elementary school and junior high school students from overseas) (28 participants) |
|
| Sodegaura Center: Families of employees (36 participants) |
| |
| August | Head Office and Chiba area joint event: “Dream Chemistry-21” sponsored by the Japan Chemical Industry Association (128 participants) |
|
| Mobara Branch Factory: “Dream Challenge Experience School (Science School)” sponsored by the Chiba Prefectural Education Agency (15 participants) |
| |
| Iwakuni-Ohtake Works: Event held by the Iwakuni City Science Center “Science Class” (19 participants) |
| |
| Iwakuni-Ohtake Works: “Otake Ranran College Summer School” hosted by Otake City Board of Educations (39 participants) |
| |
| September | Sodegaura Center: Students of elementary school age and older from Sodegaura City (128 participants) |
|
| October | Ichihara Works: Autumn Festival (About 150 participants) |
|
| Osaka Works: Takaishi Chamber of Commerce and Industry sponsored event “Takaishi Commerce and Industry Festival” (300 participants) |
| |
| Nagoya Works: Autumn Festival (about 200 participants) |
| |
| November | Ichihara Works: Cultural festival organized by the Anesaki Community Center (70 participants) |
|
| Mobara Branch Factory: 1st year junior high school students attending a training course organized by the Mobara Rotary Club (5 participants) |
| |
| Sodegaura Center: Families of employees and other children in the neighborhood (70 participants) |
| |
| Sodegaura Center: 6th graders from nearby elementary schools (166 participants across two events) |
| |
| Iwakuni-Ohtake Works: Autumn Festival (Pre-school age to elementary school students, about 200 participants) |
| |
| Omuta Works: MACHI-IKO! Gyan Festival 2023 (18 participants) |
| |
| December | Osaka Works: Winter Festival (104 participants) |
|
| Iwakuni-Ohtake Works: Waki Elementary School (24 participants across two events) |
| |
| 2024 February | Ichihara Works: Chigusa Aozora Kodomo-en Nursery School (54 participants) |
|
| March | Mobara Branch Factory: Laboratory classes and tour of the Plant Operation Technology Training Center Families of employees and 3rd to 6th graders from nearby elementary schools (19 participants) |
|
| Osaka Branch: Event sponsored by Amita Holdings “Have Fun while Learning About SDGs in Kobe” (15 participants) |
| |
| Held eight times a year (June, August, December, February: Once November: Four times) | Omuta Works: 3rd graders of elementary schools in Omuta (eight schools) and their parents. (706 participants annually) |
|
* Sodegaura Center was renamed to “VISION HUB™ SODEGAURA” on April 1, 2024.
Participated in “Dream Chemistry-21” Summer Vacation Children’s Chemistry Experiment Show 2023 Sponsored by the Japan Chemical Industry Association
Under infection control measures and a reservation system with limited numbers, we joined 14 other chemical manufacturers and six organizations over August 5 and 6 to provide approximately 128 children* with the chance to experience the fun and wonder of chemistry. We participated as a joint effort among four of our bases: the Head Office, Ichihara Works, Mobara Branch Factory, and Sodegaura Center. Over the two days, a total of 66 employees served as staff, helping children create air fresheners using nonwoven fabric (oil blotters) to take home as souvenirs.
* Number of visitors to our booth
Participated in the “Have Fun while Learning About SDGs in KOBE” Delivery Class
On March 26, 2024, our Osaka branch participated in “Have Fun while Learning About SDGs in KOBE,” a children’s fun-filled, experiential event focused on the SDGs, hosted by Amita Holdings. We were invited by the city of Kobe as a company engaged in SDG activities like resource recycling.
At our booth, the topic was “Sorting Plastics,” where children observed whether four types of plastic fragments would float or sink in water, salt water, and disinfectant. Ultimately, they learned through quizzes and experiments to determine what those plastic fragments were.
The event was held at Futaba Gakusha in Kobe’s Nagata Ward, where the Recycle Eco Bench—produced from mechanical recycling of plastics collected by our company in 2022—was installed*.
The day’s activities
Business site tour by Hozo Hut children - Chemistry and Wonder Laboratory Classes in China
In August 2022, Mitsui Chemicals (China) Management Company Limited (MCCN) organized a tour of MCCN's Technical Center as an out-of-school learning experience for the children of the “Hozo Hut (public service activity)*.” To help children realize that chemistry is something that exists around them, we also held a chemistry laboratory class for the Wonders of Chemistry as part of the tour.
*Hozo Hut (public service activity):
This is a CSR activity in China that donates a portion of the operating costs of facilities that provide supplementary education and out-of-school learning to children of migrant workers who live in the city but do not have the same access to education and welfare as children born and raised in the city. MCCN has supported the facility since 2020.
Activities
Laboratory Classes on the Wonders of Chemistry Experiments
The Laboratory Classes on the Wonders of Chemistry Experiments mainly cover the following experimental topics.
*Experiment titles are subject to change.
| Experiment title | Description |
|---|---|
| Slime - Making your own slime - Making jumbo slime together - Shiny slime - Slime ball | FieldPolymer properties By making "slime" (i.e. cross-linking polyvinyl alcohol with water using borax), participants learn that water can be confined and about the gels around us in our everyday lives |
| Light experiments with polarizing plate | FieldLight Participants learn about the passage of light through a kaleidoscope fitted with a polarizing plate that converts natural light into linear light, as used in mobile phones and other such devices |
| Chromatography art | FieldAdsorption and separation Participants learn that the ink in a water-based pen contains a mixture of various different colors (pigments) |
| Plastic board | FieldPolymer properties Participants learn about the properties and separation of plastics, by using the heat shrinkable properties of polystyrene to make their own original accessories |
| Let’s make Cartesian divers! | FieldBuoyancy Participants learn about buoyancy and pressure, by making a Cartesian diver from a PET bottle and a plastic soy sauce container |
| Let’s investigate the properties of aqueous solutions using red cabbage | FieldAcids and alkalis Using anthocyanin extracted from red cabbage, participants investigate the properties of everyday liquids and learn about acids and alkalis |
| Let’s make an air freshener using spongy polymers | FieldPolymer properties Related Group productsNonwoven fabrics Participants learn about the principle of water retention, by making an air freshener from a water-absorbing polymer, as used in disposable diapers, gardening supplies and other such products |
| Let’s make a rainbow tower | FieldSpecific gravity Participants learn about the specific gravity (relative density) of fluids, by pouring colored waters with varying concentrations together to make a tower |
| Let's make a freezer! | FieldHeat of solution Related Group productsUrea Participants learn about the principle of heat adsorption via the heat of solution of urea, as used in such products as fertilizer and moisturizing cream |
| Learn how bubble bath works! | FieldReaction of acid and salt Participants learn about how carbon dioxide is produced, by making bubble bath from baking soda and citric acid |
| Learn about acid rain! | FieldAcids and alkalis, Oxidation / reduction Participants learn about acid rain and what causes it, by measuring the pH using red cabbage extract and conducting a bleaching experiment using iodine |
| Let's make paper! | FieldRecycling / Making paper Related Group productsAcrylamide Using everyday implements, participants experience paper recycling from old paper and learn about papermaking and recycling |
| Let's make small objects from melted plastic! | FieldPolymer properties Related Group products General thermoplastics Participants learn about the properties of thermoplastics, which melt when heated, by using a glue gun to melt resin and make small objects |
| Experience the wonders of shrinking films! | FieldPolymer properties Related Group productsFilms, PET, etc. Participants learn about the principle of heat shrinkage, by using shrinkable film to attach labels and make their own PET bottle |
| See the power of air! | FieldHydrodynamics Participants learn about air resistance, by observing air rings emitted from an air cannon |
| Let's make snow on pine cones! | FieldCrystals Related Group productsUrea Participants learn about crystal deposition, by observing dissolved urea being sprayed onto pinecones and drying |
| Let's make light like a firefly! | FieldEnzymes Participants learn about the difference between bioluminescence and chemiluminescence by making light using each of luciferase enzymes taken from fireflies and using mineral-based chemicals |
| Let’s try and absorb oil! | FieldPolymer properties Related Group productsTAFNEL™ Oil Blotter™ Participants learn about the principles and how to use adsorbent materials, by absorbing only the oil from mixed oil and water substances |
| Expand? Shrink? Disappear?! Let’s look into the properties of mystery plastics! | FieldPolymer properties Related Group productsABSORTOMER™ Participants learn about the properties of a variety of plastic films, by taking steps to expand, shrink, and dissolve various plastics. They also learn about changes in polymers (plastics) attributable to temperatures |
| Let's classify plastics! | FieldPolymer properties Related Group productsPolyethylene (PE), Polypropylene (PP), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and (Polystyrene (PS)) |