PHYSICAL ORGANIC CHEMISTRY

Undergraduate

This course examines the qualitative and quantitative relationships between the rates and mechanisms of organic reactions, and the electronic and physical structures of reactants. Among the topics considered are: theory and applications of inductive and resonance effects, linear free energy relationships, kinetic isotope effects, solvent effects, steric effects in substitution and elimination reactions, acids and bases and pericyclic reactions, applications of semi-empirical and ab initio molecular orbital calculations. PREREQUISITE: Chemistry 3420 with a minimum of 60% Three lecture hours a week