Course Description: This foundational course for 2nd-year students covers the properties and trends of molecules derived from across the periodic table. In addition to main-group elements, a deeper understanding of transition metal ions will be developed. Topics covered include periodicity, bonding, symmetry, and reactivity.
This course focuses on the concepts of inorganic chemistry with emphasis on atomic structure, periodicity, group and bonding theories, symmetry, solid-state structures of metals, ionic compounds and semiconductors, as well as transition metal coordination chemistry.
The course is currently designed for a student population impacted by COVID and College policies that the department offer this course every third semester. This semester I have a diverse student population in terms of developmental levels including cohort year (freshman, junior, senior), prior foundational course work (biochemistry, analytical, physical), and research experience. I have altered the assessment part of the course substantively from prior iterations and reduced topic coverage to provide flexibility.
Students are asked to provide correct, distinct, and relevant statements about a prompt which includes a coordination complex formula and a Tanabe Sugano diagram. If assigned as an in-class activity, 10 statements meeting the above criteria receive full credit.
Descriptive chemistry of the main group elements with some emphasis on the non-metals. Transition metal compounds: aspects of bonding, spectra, and reactivity; complexes of n-acceptor ligands; organometallic compounds and their role in catalysis; metals in biological systems; preparative, analytical, and instrumental techniques.
In searching for a way to review topics before exams, I was informed about this powerpoint template which is macro'd to be operated as a realistic Jeopardy game. The site for the original author of the macro is:
https://sites.google.com/site/dufmedical/jeopardy
(Jeopardy for PowerPoint by Kevin R. Dufendach is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.)
This is an in class activity to provide students the opportunity to practice:
This assignment is based on JSSC 2019, 269, 553-557. A link to this paper is included in the web resources.
A systematic study of both the fundamental principles and the descriptive chemistry needed to understand the properties of the main group elements and their compounds. (Three lecture, one recitation, and three laboratory hours per week) Prerequisites: CHEM 1200.