Chem 291

General information

Instructor:

Dr. Jonathan Withey

Office:

5-138K (office hours)

Lecture time:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 12:00noon-1:00pm

Lecture room:

5-204 (CCC)

Course hours:

Lecture - 3, Laboratory - 3, Seminar - 0

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Important dates

January 2nd 2013

First CHEM 291 class

January 7th-11th 2013

First week of CHEM 291 laboratories

January 9th 2013

Last day for program changes, course additions, deletions, etc.

February 11th or 15th 2013

Midterm examination (to be written during your lab session)

February 18th-22nd 2013

Reading week - all classes cancelled

March 4th 2013

Spectroscopy assignment handed out

March 13th 2013

Spectroscopy assignment due

March 15th 2013

Last day to withdraw without academic penalty

March 29th 2013

Good Friday - University closed

April 1st 2013

Easter Monday - University closed

April 8th 2013

Last CHEM 291 class

April 10th 2013

Final examination period begins

April 17th 2013

Final examination: 1:00pm-4:00pm

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Course description

This course focuses on the practical aspects of preparing samples for analysis, collecting and analyzing data, and characterizing organic, inorganic and biological compounds. Methods are explored from a theoretical and practical perspective and include ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance.

Course objectives:

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • Apply concepts learned in the lecture to laboratory situations and vice versa.
  • Choose an appropriate sample preparation technique.
  • Collect, analyze and critically evaluate a variety of spectroscopic data.
  • Describe the origin and explain the fundamental concepts underlying a variety of spectroscopic techniques.
  • Characterize and indentify compounds based on spectroscopic data.

Course prerequisite:

A minimum grade of C– in CHEM 231 or in CHEM 261.

The Faculty of Arts and Science strictly adheres to the notion of prerequisites, and University staff conduct prerequisite checks throughout the term. If it is discovered that you do not have the appropriate prerequisite for this course, you will be withdrawn by the Registrar's Office. Deciding to remain in the course without the prerequisite may result in a significant financial penalty because you will be responsible for any tuition costs associated with the course up to the date of the withdrawal. Courses transferred to MacEwan from another post-secondary institution will not be applied to your student record until a transfer credit assessment has been completed. If you believe you have the proper external prerequisite please consult with an advisor in the program office (6-211).

Required resources :

Organic Structures from Spectra, L. D. Field, S. Sternhell and J. R. Kalman, 4th edition, Wiley International.
Chem 291 Laboratory Manual, 2013 edition.

Optional resources:

There is no formal textbook required for this course, with the exception of Organic Structures from Spectra (largely a collection of spectroscopy problems). All material should be self-contained within the lecture notes and assigned/supplied problems. Wider reading around each spectroscopic technique is, however, strongly recommended. Some excellent introductory texts on spectroscopy include the following:

Spectrometric Identification of Organic Compounds, R. M. Silverstein, F. X. Webster and D. J. Kiemle, 7th edition, Wiley.
Introduction to Spectroscopy, D. L. Pavia, G. M. Lampman, G. S. Kriz and J. R. Vyvyan, 4 th edition, Brooks/Cole.
Organic Structure Analysis
, P. Crews, J. Rodriguez and M. Jaspars, 1 st edition, Oxford University Press.
Foundations of Spectroscopy
, S. Duckett and B. Gilbert, Oxford Chemistry Primers, 2000, Oxford University Press.
Inorganic Spectroscopic Methods
, A. Brisdon, Oxford Chemistry Primers, 2001, Oxford University Press.

The organic aspects of this course are represented, to some extent, in most general organic chemistry texts, which many of you will have purchased for CHEM 261/263.

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Laboratory component

Laboratory sessions begin during the second week of term (week beginning January 7th 2013). The laboratory component is compulsory for credit in CHEM 291. Attendance is mandatory. If a laboratory experiment is missed for a valid reason it may not be counted towards the final laboratory grade. For inexcusable absences a mark of zero will be assigned for the particular experiment. If you know well in advance that you will be unable to attend a scheduled laboratory session, it is your responsibility to inform your laboratory instructor at least one week prior so that arrangements can be made for you to complete the experiment. Failure to do so will result in a mark of zero being assigned for the missed experiment.

The laboratory component of CHEM 291 constitutes 30% of the overall mark for the course. There is no formal laboratory examination for CHEM 291. Students cannot carry forward their laboratory grades from previous attempts of this course. To obtain a minimum grade of at least C in CHEM 291, a score of 50% or higher must be obtained for the laboratory component, and at least 70% of the experiments must be completed.

During all laboratory sessions including the first one you are required to wear a laboratory coat and safety glasses at all times and have your laboratory manual with you. A certain amount of pre-laboratory preparation is also expected.

The department of physical sciences at MacEwan has state of the art instrumentation, housed both within the teaching laboratories and in the dedicated instrument laboratory. The department has the following key capabilities, of particular importance to CHEM 291:

Polarimetry

Infrared

Raman

NMR (400 MHz)

GC-MS

LC-MS (ion trap)

HPLC

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Evaluation and grading

Evaluation

Midterm examination

20%

Monday, February 11th or Friday, February 15th 2013, 1:00pm-5:00pm

Spectroscopy assignment

10%

Due on Wednesday, March 13th 2013

Laboratory component

30%

There is no formal laboratory examination

Final examination*

40%

Wednesday, April 17th 2013, 9:00am-12:00noon*

*Students are responsible for verifying the date of the final examination (see here)

Grading

Grant MacEwan University adheres to the Alberta Common Grading Scheme, which is a 12 point letter grade system. While instructors may use percentages to aid in their grade development, only the letter grade will appear on transcripts. Official grades will be provided by the Registrar's office through myStudentSystem. A minimum grade of C is required to receive transfer credit or to satisfy a prerequisite for a higher level course.

A+

95% and above

C+

65 - 69%

A

90 - 94%

C

60 - 64%

A-

85 - 89%

C-

55 - 59%

B+

80 - 84%

D+

50 - 54%

B

75 - 79%

D

45 - 49%

B-

70 - 74%

F

below 45%

Examination papers are usually marked within one week of the date of the examination.

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Student responsibilities

Students are expected to be aware of their academic responsibilities as outlined in Grant MacEwan University Policy E3101: Student Rights and Responsibilities (found here).

Academic Integrity: All forms of student dishonesty are considered unacceptable. Grant MacEwan University Policy C1000: Academic Integrity (found here) promotes honesty, fairness, respect, trust, and responsibility in all academic work. According to the policy, Academic dishonesty involves participating in acts by which a person fraudulently gains or intentionally attempts to gain an unfair academic advantage thereby compromising the integrity of the academic process. All incidents of academic dishonesty are reported and recorded by the Academic-Integrity-Office. The penalties and sanctions for academic dishonesty can include the following: a mark reduction up to zero on a piece of academic work, a grade reduction up to an F in the course, and suspension or expulsion (with transcript notation) from the University. Please see the academic integrity policy for more details. You are responsible for understanding what constitutes academic dishonesty.

Registration Status: You are responsible for your registration status at the University. Program Advisors (Rm 6-211) may assist you with the process of registration, including adding or dropping of courses, but it is your responsibility to verify that these changes have been officially completed. This veri­fication can be done at any time using myStudentSystem. You should check your official registration status before the last date to officially withdraw from the course.

Withdrawing From The Course: If you stop attending class you must complete a Course Drop Form, have it signed by a Program Advisor (Rm 6-211), and submit it to the Registrar's Office by the last day to withdraw as provided in the Academic Schedule in the Academic Calendar. Fail­ure to officially withdraw will result in a grade being assigned based on course work completed. Late withdrawals are only allowed in exceptional circumstances.

Exams: Your student photo I.D. is required at exams. It is at the discretion of the instructor whether you will be allowed to write the exam if you arrive over 15 minutes after the exam has begun. You must remain in the exam room for at least 20 minutes from the time it commenced. Only non-programmable scientific calculators can be used for written exams, which include any laboratory and lecture quizzes. Any devices capable of external communication, such as cell phones, iPods and blue tooth enabled devices, cannot be used for exams of any type. Permission to use the washroom during exams is at the discretion of the instructor and may require accompaniment.

Missed Term Exams: If you miss a term examination you must provide the instructor with an explanation within 24 hours or a mark of zero may be given. Notification may be provided through email, voice mail, or direct contact with the instructor. Official documentation as to why the examination was missed will be needed to assess whether your absence will be excused or not. If your absence is excused the weight of this examination will be added to the weight of the final examination in the course. Medical excuses must include the date you were examined, the specific dates for the period of the illness, a clear statement indicating that the severity of the illness prevented you from attending school or work, and the signature of the examining physician (a signature by office staff on behalf of the physician is not acceptable). Medical notes obtained subsequent to the date of the examination are generally not accepted. A mark of zero will be given if the instructor considers the excuse inappropriate or inadequately substantiated.

Deferred Final Exam: A deferred examination will be granted if a student misses the final lecture examination for reasons considered by the Bachelor of Science Program to be unavoidable (deferred examinations do not apply to term or laboratory examinations). An application for a deferred examination must be provided to the Bachelor of Science Program no later than two business days after the date of the missed final examination. Application forms are available from the individual departments within the Bachelor of Science Program (see Dorothy Skepple, Rm 5-132 for chemistry courses), and must be submitted with appropriate documentation. Students should advise the instructor prior to the examination if they know beforehand that they will be unable to attend the scheduled examination time. Deferred examinations are granted by the Chair, Bachelor of Science Program, not by the course instructor. If you have any questions about the process please contact Program Services (780 497 4520 or science@macewan.ca) or Dorothy Skepple (780 497 4490 or skeppled2@macewan.ca). For further information please refer to Grant MacEwan University Policy C2005: Final Assessment (here) and Policy C2020: Grading (here). Note that C2005 states: only a compelling situation such as serious illness, hospitalization, domestic affliction or religious observance will be considered a valid reason for a student to receive approval for deferral of a final assessment activity and personal vacations are not a sufficient reason.

Late Assignments (including laboratory assignments): As due dates for assignments are known well in advance, medical and other excuses are generally not accepted as a reason for submitting late assignments.

Cell Phones: All cell phones are to be turned off during class and exam periods.

Students With Disabilities: Students with disabilities who may have special requirements in this course are advised to discuss their needs with Services to Students with Disabilities located in the Student Resource Centre. You should advise the course instructor of special needs that are identified. See Policy E3400 Students with Disabilities (here).

Student Appeals: The University has a policy regarding Student Appeals (E3103, found here). You should access this policy to become aware of the deadlines and guidelines that need to be followed if you are appealing a grade or other University assessment.

MyMail.MacEwan.ca Email: All students are given a <name>@mymail.macewan.ca email address. This email address is available to the course instructor who may distribute relevant course information or announcements via email. The Bachelor of Science Program regularly communicates with students via email. Check your mymail.macewan.ca email regularly or forward it to an email address you check regularly. If you use email to communicate with your instructor, you must use your mymail.macewan.ca account. This is to protect your privacy; if a non- mymail.macewan.ca account is used, there is no way for an instructor to verify the identity of the sender.

Disclaimer: The information in this course outline is subject to change.Any changes will be announced in class or, if applicable, in the laboratory

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Lecture topics

1. General concepts of spectroscopy

Electromagnetic spectrum, interaction with matter, spectroscopy and spectrometry, overview of methods, molecular formulas, index of hydrogen deficiency.

2. IR spectroscopy

Fundamental vibrations, IR interpretation, limitations of IR, characteristic bands.

3. Introduction to NMR spectroscopy: proton NMR; NMR of other nuclei

Nucleus as a magnet, appearance of an NMR spectrum, number of signals, chemical shift, integration, spin-spin splitting, coupling constants, first order approximation, vicinal/geminal coupling and bond angles, long-range coupling.

4. Carbon NMR

Coupled and decoupled spectra, DEPT, chemical shifts.

5. 2D NMR

COSY, HMQC, HMBC.

6. Advanced topics in NMR

Failure of the first order approximation, Pople notation, chemical and magnetic equivalence, free rotation and fluxional systems, spin-dilute systems, nOe, determining ratios.

7. Mass spectrometry

Ionization methods, detectors, mass spectra, rule of 13, nitrogen rule, fragmentation, high resolution mass spectrometry.

8. UV-Vis spectroscopy

Selection rules, band structure, practical applications, chromophores, substituent effects, structure determination, colour, solvatochromism, charge transfer.

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Office hours

Time

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

8:00

 

 

 

 

 

8:30

 

 

 

 

 

9:00

 

 

 

 

MEETING

9:30

 

 

 

 

7-321

10:00

 

 

 

 

 

10:30

 

 

 

 

 

11:00

CHEM 261 (AS40)

 

CHEM 261 (AS40)

 

CHEM 261 (AS40)

11:30

6-348

 

6-348

 

6-348

12:00

CHEM 291 (AS40)

 

CHEM 291 (AS40)

 

CHEM 291 (AS40)

12:30

5-204

 

5-204

 

5-204

1:00

MEETING

 

OFFICE HOURS

 

OFFICE HOURS

1:30

 

 

 

 

 

2:00

 

 

 

 

 

2:30

6-213A

 

5-138K

 

5-138K

3:00

 

 

 

 

 

3:30

 

 

 

 

 

4:00

 

 

 

 

 

4:30

 

 

 

 

 

5:00

 

 

 

 

 

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