2.8 instrumental analysis Flashcards
what can mass spectroscopy be used to identify?
different elements and find the relative isotopic masses of elements
(it can also be used to identify the molecular mass of a molecule and fragment ions from the molecule)
what are the three ways that can be used together to determine the molecular formula of an unknown molecule?
- mass spectroscopy
- infrared spectroscopy
- NMR spectra
how does a mass spectra work? what are the 5 stages?
- vapourisation - sample turned into a gas
- ionisation - the atom (or molecule) is ionised by knocking one or more electrons off to give a positively charged ion. for a molecule, the removal of electrons will cause bonds to break and the molecule to fragment
- acceleration - the positive ions are accelerated between a set of charged plates. the ions are repelled by the first plate and attracted to the second. a hole in the second plate allows the ions to exit into the next chamber, all with the same kinetic energy
- deflection - the ions are then deflected by a magnetic field according to their mass to charge ratio (m/z). the smaller the m/z ratio, the more they are deflected
- detection - the beam of positive ions passing through the machine is detected electrically
how do you calculate the relative atomic mass from a mass spectrum?
(% abundance x m/z) + (% abundance x m/z) + …. / total abundance
on a mass spectra, what does the last peak tell us?
the Mr
what are absorptions measured in?
wavenumber (cm^-1)
when is % transmittance found on the y-axis of an IR spectrum?
when the detector is set to calculate how much energy passed through the molecule at each frequency
100% at the top and 0% at the bottom
what is an example of a practical application of an infrared spectroscopy?
modern breathalysers in police stations are attached to an infrared spectrometer
what are some tips when reading an IR spectrum?
- ignore peaks below 1500 (fingerprint region)
- peaks travel downwards, not upwards
- match up the peaks to the corresponding number on the data sheet
- (look at peaks below 50% transmittance first, then if need more info, look at all peaks)
what is the last peak on the mass spectrum called?
the molecular ion peak
(it tells us the molecular mass (Mr) of the species)
(all the other peaks before this peak are fragments of the sample molecule)
why do mass spectrums have lots of tiny peaks?
the sample is never 100% pure
avoid trying to assign every single peak - look at the bigger ones
what species is responsible for the molecular ion peak? e.g
[compound]^+
what does NMR stand for?
nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy
. H H H
I I I
H - C - C - C - H
I I I
H H H
how many hydrogen environments does it have?
2
left 3 and right 3, middle 2
left 3 identical to each other as bonded to same carbon
left 3 and right 3 in the same environment as symmetrical
. H H H H H
I I I I I
H - C - C - C - C - C - Cl
I I I I I
H H H H H
how many hydrogen environments?
5 environments
left 3, next 2, next 2, next 2, next 2
they are not identical as different distances from Cl