20456 Organic Chemistry 1

Credits: 6 intermediate credits in Chemistry

Prerequisites: none

Required: General Chemistry2 (or General Chemistry I + General Chemistry II, for Biology Students; or General Chemistry I + General Chemistry II), and the ability to read scientific texts in English.

The course is based on Organic Chemistry (6th ed.), by P.Y. Bruice (Pearson Education, 2011). Materials include an appendix on chemical data, a kit of molecular samples, computer software for the study of nuclear magnetic resonance, and the ChemTV: Core Organic Chemistry CD-Rom consisting of animations. The course includes two mandatory laboratory sessions.

Objectives: Acquaintance with organic nomenclature; Understanding the relationship between the physical properties and molecular structure and constituents; Acquaintance and understanding of reaction mechanisms from reactivity and stereochemical perspectives; Exposing students to the basic principles of spectroscopy and spectrometry for characterization of organic molecules; Practice on structure elucidation by spectral data.

Topics: Introduction to organic chemistry; Hydrocarbons: alkanes, cycloalkanes, alkenes and alkynes; Stereochemistry: the arrangement of atoms in space; Nucleophilic substitution and elimination reactions; Aromatic compounds and reactions of substituted benzenes; Various functional groups: alcohols, ethers, epoxides, thiols, aldehydes and ketones, amines, and carboxylic acids and derivatives; Compressibility of various carbonyl compounds; Electrophilic substitution reactions; Spectroscopic methods: MS, UV-vis, IR, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR; Oxidation-reduction reactions; Organometallic compounds.

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1There is some overlap in the content of this and other courses. For details, see Overlapping Courses.

2or General Chemistry (20477 or 20487), which is no longer offered.