Department of Chemistry, Unit Catalogue 2008/09 |
CH30129 Topics in physical chemistry |
| Credits: 6 |
| Level: Honours |
| Semester: 1 |
| Assessment: EX 100% |
| Requisites: |
| Before taking this unit you must take CH20151 or take CH20152 |
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In taking this unit you may not take polymer chemistry as a component of CH30061, CH30074 or CH30067.
Aims: This core unit will introduce the basic concepts needed to describe the synthesis and characterisation of a range of polymers in order to understand how their properties can be controlled. The basic principles of photochemistry taught in previous units will be reinforced and techniques for the study of and applications of photochemistry will be introduced.
Learning Outcomes: After studying this unit students should be able to : * Demonstrate an understanding of how polymer structures can be influenced by the methods of synthesis by step- and chain growth polymerisation. * Account for the formation and decay of electronically excited states in molecules. * Describe modern instrumental methods for photochemical investigation. * Solve a range of quantitative problems in these topics. Skills: Problem solving (T, F, A), Scientific Writing (F, A), Independent working (F), Group working (F). Content: Classification and types of polymers. Synthesis of polymers with examples taken from several different classes (addition, step-growth, ring opening, organometallic) with the emphasis on how physicochemical considerations influence the polymer structure. Characterisation of polymers (molecular weight and chain length, spectroscopy, thermal methods). Structure and morphology of polymers and how this influences properties. Polymer solutions and thermodynamics of polymer mixtures. A survey of recent applications taken from current research and industrial topics.Absorption and emission of light. Jablonskii scheme. Excited state kinetics and quenching. Experimental methods. Properties and reactions of excited states. Examples of photochemical processes including photosynthesis, photography, solar energy conversion and atmospheric photochemistry. |