Organic Chemistry – Some Basic Principles and Techniques

Topics in this chapter

1. 1Organic Chemistry: Chapter IntroductionParacetamol, plastic, cotton and DNA share one element: carbon. Why carbon forms millions of compounds, and what this chapter teaches. Watch
2. 2Wöhler's Urea and the End of Vital ForceChemists once believed only living things could make organic compounds. In 1828 Friedrich Wöhler heated an inorganic salt and made urea. Watch
3. 3Why Carbon Forms Millions of CompoundsOver 100 elements, yet most known compounds contain carbon. Four reasons, and why silicon can't do the same. Watch
4. 4Catenation and tetravalencyComing soon
5. 5Shapes of Carbon Compounds: sp³, sp², spMethane, ethene and ethyne all contain carbon but have different shapes. Hybridisation, and a quick way to find it. Watch
6. 6Drawing Organic Molecules: Four WaysOne butane molecule, four ways to write it: complete, condensed, bond-line and 3D. How to read each, and how to count what a zigzag hides. Watch
7. 7Classifying Organic CompoundsMillions of organic compounds, one first question: is the carbon chain open, or a ring? How to sort compounds into acyclic, alicyclic, aromatic and heterocyclic. Watch
8. 8Open-chain versus cyclic compoundsComing soon
9. 9Functional GroupsTwo molecules can share the same carbon chain and still behave differently. How one small group of atoms gives a compound its chemical identity: –OH, –CHO, C=O, –COOH and –NH₂. Watch
10. 10Homologous SeriesMethane, ethane, propane, butane: four different compounds, one family. How each member differs from the next by one CH₂ unit, and what that means for their properties. Watch
11. 11IUPAC Naming: Root, Suffix and PrefixHow a chemical name is built from a molecule: the root counts the parent chain's carbons, the suffix gives its bonds and principal group, and the prefix names what is attached. Watch
12. 12Structural isomerismComing soon
13. 13Chain, position and functional isomerismComing soon
14. 14Inductive effectComing soon
15. 15Resonance effectComing soon
16. 16Electromeric effectComing soon
17. 17Hyperconjugation (introductory)Coming soon
18. 18Homolytic versus heterolytic bond fissionComing soon
19. 19Free radicals, carbocations and carbanionsComing soon
20. 20Electrophiles and nucleophilesComing soon
21. 21Substitution, addition, elimination and rearrangementComing soon
22. 22Purification by crystallisationComing soon
23. 23Distillation and fractional distillationComing soon
24. 24Steam distillationComing soon
25. 25Differential extractionComing soon
26. 26ChromatographyComing soon
27. 27Qualitative detection of nitrogen, sulphur and halogens (overview)Coming soon
28. 28Quantitative elemental analysis (overview)Coming soon
29. 29Why reaction mechanisms use curved arrowsComing soon