The Shapes and Structures of Molecules Pt. 1 Flashcards
what is a good thing to check to ensure you are drawing tetrahedral molecules correctly
draw a flat line across the point where the two lines in the plane of the paper meet, split the molecule into quadrants, if it’s a successful tetrahedral shape, there should be one bond in each quadrant
what are two things to note generally when drawing skeletal formulae of molecules
- your structure needs to be consistent with which bonds ‘face’ which way, i.e. which direction you are viewing the molecule from
- if you write a carbon, you MUST write everything attached to the carbon as well
what do we need to remember when drawing triple bonds
they are linear, unlike double bonds
what are the common abbreviations for methyl, ethyl, propyl and butyl
Me = methyl = -CH3
Et = ethyl = -CH2CH3
nPr = normal propyl = -CH2CH2CH3
iPr = isopropyl = -CH(CH3)2
nBu = normal butyl = -CH2CH2CH2CH3
tBr = tertiary butyl = -C(CH3)3
What are the common abbreviations for acetyl, phenyl, alkyl and aromatic group (aryl)
Ac = acetyl = -CH3CO(X)
Ph = phenyl = -C6H5 (benzene group)
R = alkyl (usually)
Ar = any aromatic (aryl) group e.g. substituted benzene ring
Why do we need to be careful when using lines between molecules in inorganic chemistry
they usually don’t represent a shared pair of electrons, simply some connection between atoms
why is it the case that although O- does have a truly negative charge, the oxygen on OH- doesn’t
- we sometimes assume O in OH- is negative because we assume the electrons are shared equally between atoms through covalent bonds, this is not always the case as O is more electronegative than H
what is the name for assuming charges on certain atoms even when this might not be the true case and how do we calculate it
Formal charges, when calculating these we omit the fact that atoms may have different electronegativities
to calculate formal charge:
what is the name for assuming charges on certain atoms even when this might not be the true case and how do we calculate it
Formal charges, when calculating these we omit the fact that atoms may have different electronegativities
to calculate formal charge:
1) count number of electrons Ne by counting one for each bonded pair and two for each lone pair
2) calculate valence electrons associated with the neutral atom through its group Nv
3) the formal charge is (Nv - Ne)
what are some of the trivial names of common solvents
Propanone = acetone
Ethanoic acid = acetic acid
diethyl ether = ether
methylbenzene = toluene
tricholoromethane = chloroform
what occurs when X-rays are focused at a crystal and why
they are diffracted because the interatomic spacing of the atoms in the crystal is comparable to the wavelength of the x-rays
what can be deduced by analysing the diffraction pattern
- the positions of atoms within the crystal
- bond lengths and angles
- how molecules are arranged and pack together
what diffracts the x-rays and thus what is actually produced
the electrons in the molecules rather than the nucleons, so it actually produces an electron density map
what doesn’t show up well on x-ray diffraction and why
hydrogen atoms don’t show up on X-ray structures because they have very low electron density
what do greater contours suggest on an x-ray diffraction pattern
- greater electron density
- often implies greater electronegativities or more electrons
- contours join regions of = electron density
what are the main advantages and disadvantages of x-ray diffraction
Advs:
- ultimate method for structural information
Disadvs:
- Need good quality crystals
- Sometimes hard to locate atoms
what is the crudest/original method to ionise molecules
fire high energy electrons at the vapourised sample, they ‘knock’ electrons off of the molecules
what is the more gentle/effective way to ionise molecules
electrospray,
- a sample is introduced as charged aerosol droplets
- the solvent evaporates leaving charged molecules
- what is detected is not the M+ ion but the molecule with the ion stuck to it
what is important to remember when looking at a mass spectrum
- use the specific masses of the isotopes not the average molecular mass
how can we differentiate between molecules or fragments which have very similar/the same Mr using mass spec, what else can it be used for
- take a very high resolution mass spec
- use exact mass values and account for the electron loss/gain
- e.g. N isn’t just 14, it’s 14.00307gmol^-1
- this can also be useful to identify large molecules where there are a large range of possibilities of structure
what is fragmentation in mass spectrometry and what are the products of fragmentation
- its where the ionised molecule becomes unstable and breaks apart
- it will form a smaller ion and a radical
how can fragmentation be useful
- it can give clues to the structure of the molecule
- each molecule will have a unique fragmentation pattern, this means the patterns can be used for analysis and identifying compounds whose spectra have already been recorded
what is MS/MS
- it is possible to isolate ions formed from the initial fragmentation in a mass spectrometer
- these can then be ‘followed’ and it can be observed how these fragment and what they form on a mass spectrometer
Give the advantages and disadvantages of mass spectrometry
Advs:
- gives molecular formula
- excellent for analysis of mixtures, the components of the mixture can be identified through fragmentation patterns
- tiny sample needed, mass spectrometers are very sensitive
Disadv:
- often difficult to interpret
what features in a molecule are quantised and can be changed/analysed through certain frequencies of light
- electron energy level
- rotational energy
- vibrational energy
what is the equation linking the difference in energy levels of the quantised properties of atoms and the energy of a photon
ΔE = hf
what do photons from each region of the EM spectrum cause transitions in
Radio waves - transitions in alignment of nuclear spins
Microwave - transitions in rotational energy
Infrared - vibrational transitions
Visible/ UV/ X-rays - Electronic transitions
Gamma - Nuclear Processes
what are the two main ways to present an IR spectrum
transmission percent against wavenumber
OR
absorbance units against wavenumber
what is wavenumber and what are the 2 main equations for it
wavenumber is the number of wavelengths per unit length (usually cm)
wavenumber (v^)(cm^-1) = 1/wavelength(cm)(lambda)
wavenumber (v^)(cm^-1) = frequency(v)(Hz) / c (ms^-1)
hence wavenumber is proportional to frequency
Given wavenumber is proportional to frequency, what does this tell us about absorptions on the left of the spectrum
- they have a higher wavenumber, hence a higher frequency photon causes it, hence they require more energy
what is an important thing to remember about absorptions at particular frequencies
it is not directly caused by the vibration of one bond but can indicate a bond’s prescence
how can we model a vibration between two atoms and what is the graph that can indicate this, give the main features of a graph
- We can consider a bond (length r) as a spring with a mass attached to each end
- As the bond is stretched or compressed the energy rises and a force tries to restore it to an equilibrium position
- the graph is E against r, it starts very high asymptotic to y, drops below the x axis, the lowest point is the equilibrium position, it then rises again and is asymptotic to the x axis
what is the equation for the frequency of the oscillation of the bond
v = sqrt(Kf / m)
v is frequency
Kf is force constant of bond
m is mass
what is the equation for the frequency of the oscillation of the bond
v = sqrt(Kf / m)
v is frequency
Kf is force constant of bond
m is mass
is there a correlation between bond strength and force constant
Yes, it’s a positive correlation but remember they are not the same thing
how is the model adapted for diatomic molecules/bonds where both atoms vibrate, how do we calculate this adaption
we need to now use the reduced mass for the system (μ)
μ = m1*m2 / (m1 + m2)
how does the reduced mass calculation change where one mass is much larger than the other
μ = m1*m2 / (m1 + m2)
if m1 is much greater than m2 then
μ = m2
because m2 on the bottom is negligible so the m1’s cancel
how do we calculate the frequency of vibration (wavenumber) for a vibrating diatomic
v^ = (1 / (2 x pi x c)) (sqrt(Kf / μ))
where
v^ = wavenumber (cm^-1)
c = speed of light (cm s^-1)
Kf = force constant (N m^-1)
μ = reduced mass of system (kg per molecule)
what are the two things that might cause a high wavenumber in a bond
- a light atom attached to a heavy atom, this reduces mu, hence as v (wavenumber) is proportional to 1/sqrt(μ), v increases
- bond strength, triple > double > single in bond strength and hence wavenumber as stronger bonds will have a greater force constant Kf, thus meaning v is greater as v is proportional to sqrt(Kf)
which types of bond typically vibrate at which regions in an IR spectrum, give values
4000 - 2500 cm^-1 = X-H single bonds
2500 - 2000 cm^-1 = C,C triple bonds and C,N triple bonds
2000 - 1500 cm^-1 = C,C and C,O double bonds
1500 - 500 cm^-1 = other single bonds (not with H) and other vibrational modes e.g. bending
what is the true way that molecules vibrate when interacting with IR and what are these called
regularly it involves all of the atoms in the molecule vibrating, these change depending on the molecule but are called Normal Modes
this shows that its not true to say one absorption is the presence of one bond in a molecule BUT vibrations may occur at a particular wavenumber in molecules containing certain groups
what are some examples of Normal Modes, use ethyne as an example
C-H symmetric stretch (in antiphase)
C-H antisymmetric stretch (in phase)
C,C triple bond stretch
Trans bend
Cis bend
what feature of a bond affects the size of the absorption on an IR spectrum
the dipole moment on the bond, when oscillating
bonds with no dipoles don’t cause an absorption but may still vibrate
when might a bond not cause an absorption in an IR spectrum, what can we use instead to analyse it
if the bond is completely symmetrical/has no dipole, Ramen Spectroscopy
How can we measure the vibrational frequencies/wavenumbers for bonds which have no dipole moment, what does it measure
using Ramen spectroscopy
IR spec observes frequencies of light absorbed by a sample
Ramen spectroscopy observes frequencies of light scattered by a sample
what are the wavenumbers for the C-H groups and the specific types on an IR spectrum
C-H = 2900 - 3200 cm^-1
tetrahedral (sp3) C-H = just less than 3000 cm^-1
trigonal (sp2) C-H = just over 3000cm^-1
C sp H = sharp peak at around 3300 cm^-1
where will an N-H peak occur and why may two peaks occur (if NH2), on an IR spectrum
N-H = around 3300cm^-1
two peaks may occur due to symmetric and antisymmetric stretching
symmetric = 3300cm^-1
antisymmetric = 3400 cm^-1
what is the most common shape and location for an OH peak on an IR spectrum, why?
O-H = approx. 3000-3500cm^-1
it is a very broad peak due to hydrogen bonding in OH groups, this is because it will cause many different strengths of bonds in a certain range
when might an OH group peak have a different shape to its usual on an IR spectrum
when it doesn’t contain hydrogen bonding it may show a sharp peak
where do carbon-carbon and carbon-nitrogen triple bond peaks occur on an IR spectrum
Carbon-Carbon triple = 2100 - 2250 cm^-1 (weak because small dipole)
Carbon-Nitrogen triple = 2250cm^-1 (strong absorption because large dipole)
where does a C=C double bond peak show up/different types, on an IR spectrum
C=C = 1635-1690 cm^-1
benzene = number of peaks at 1450-1625 cm^-1
both are fairly weak intensity
what peaks could we expect from an NO2 group and why, on an IR spectrum
two peaks due to an symmetric stretch and an antisymmetric stretch
(remember to draw NO2 with one double bond, one single and some formal charges)
symmetric stretch = 1350cm^-1
antisymmetric stretch = 1530cm^-1
both are strong peaks