NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ820778
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007-Sep
Pages: 2
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0021-9584
EISSN: N/A
Coupling Molecular Modeling to the Traditional "IR-ID" Exercise in the Introductory Organic Chemistry Laboratory
Stokes-Huby, Heather; Vitale, Dale E.
Journal of Chemical Education, v84 n9 p1486-1487 Sep 2007
This exercise integrates the infrared unknown identification ("IR-ID") experiment common to most organic laboratory syllabi with computer molecular modeling. In this modification students are still required to identify unknown compounds from their IR spectra, but must additionally match some of the absorptions with computed frequencies they generate from computer molecular models. They then use animation of the corresponding bonds in the model to obtain descriptions of the observed vibrations. This affords a vivid conception of the dynamic nature of covalent bonding that is not available from the traditional experiments. The computational exercises also provide students with a method for assigning IR absorptions to specific molecular vibrations when no reference is available. The animations also demonstrate the fundamental fact that all the bonds in a given molecule vibrate even if some of them do not absorb IR radiation. Suggestions are made for the types of compounds to be used and the computational software needed. Advice is also given on how to configure the experiments, computations, and networking so that time is not an issue. Emphasis is on the IR experiment, and a high level of computational chemistry expertise is not required. (Contains 1 table, 2 figures and 4 notes.)
Division of Chemical Education of the American Chemical Society. Subscription Department, P.O. Box 1267, Bellmawr, NJ 08099-1267. Tel: 800-691-9846; Tel: 856-931-5825; Fax: 856-931-4115; e-mail: jchemed@egpp.com; Web site: http://www.jce.divched.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A