One key way of doing this is to read current research articles as they are published. You can make use of the issues of Analytical Chemistry you receive to help train your students in reading and understanding research articles. These introductions are divided into five subdisciplines, making it easy to identify the papers and topics of interest. You can make a term paper assignment based on a current research article. Each student would select a different article and be expected to learn the needed background material from the text and other articles.
Some faculty members make several such assignments in the course of a semester or term.
In this case, the reports expected from students are briefer than the usual term paper might be, but of sufficient length so that you can judge whether the student has understood the article. Analytical Chemistry publishes enough articles in the main areas of the field so that the issues you receive should provide you with ample materials for unique assignments for all but the largest classes. There are several ways in which you can use issues of Analytical Chemistry to help make your exams challenging and interesting. Shorter articles could be given to students during the exam, and one or more questions could be based on them. Research articles would thus be very useful in take-home exams.