Functional Group Chemistry

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 1

The aim of the module is to describe and introduce the chemistry of the carbonyl functional moiety, which is found in an extremely diverse range of molecules that are important in the chemical industry. The module examines in detail the chemistry of the carbonyl functional group, allowing the chemical behavior of more complex molecules to be understood and predicted. The module will also study the synthesis, chemical reactivity and electronic structure of alkenes and aromatic compounds.

Introduction to Materials

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 1

One of the main justifications for investment in chemistry over the last century has been the development of new materials. The very rapid growth in polymers, glasses, ceramics and alloys has fuelled growth in every area of technology, and materials science has emerged as a separate discipline over the last 50 years. 

The aim of this module is to provide an introduction to materials in terms of their atomic, molecular and electronic structures and how these influence bulk properties.

About half of the module will focus on solid materials in general. This will concentrate on the three principal types of bonding for perfect solids and their effect on mechanical and electrical properties. The effects of imperfections will be discussed with special reference to defects and alloys.

The other half of the module will focus specifically on organic materials, particularly polymers, which are by far the largest volume products of the chemical industry. The usefulness of the science will be emphasised by reference to contemporary materials, including nanoscience.

Introduction to Organic Chemistry

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 1

The aim of the module is to introduce you to organic chemistry and develop the ground-work needed for further study, which will include the structures of organic molecules, bonding and an introduction to chemical transformations.

Maths and Data Analysis for Chemists

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 1

This module aims to ensure that your mathematical knowledge is brought to a standard whereby you will be able to apply it, with confidence, to scientific problems encountered in subsequent modules. The module will also introduce you to the concepts of accuracy and precision. Problem-solving abilities will be obtained, and the art of translating a scientific problem into a well-structured mathematical one. Youwill be confident with the maths, and be able to see its relevance in the context of the chemistry, and develop an appreciation for the sources of and propagation of experimental errors.

Reaction Energetics and Kinetics

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 1

This module will give an overview understanding of the energetic drive of phase transition and chemical reactions. You will gain valuable insight into why the transformation is energetically favourable and what is the equilibrium point of reactions.

Quantitative analysis of correlation between elementary reaction and reaction order, as well as the correlation between the activation energy and rate constant, will be established. An aim is to enable you to predict the reaction direction and reaction rate.

Reactivity of the Elements

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 1

This module looks at the interaction of electricity and chemical reactions. It will provide you with an understanding of how electrons are transferred from one chemical species to another, ie oxidation and reduction. This knowledge will be used to develop a strategy by which chemical reactions may be used to generate electricity.  You will also study how electrochemical measurements can be employed to construct a scale of the oxidising and reducing power of chemical species. As well as lectures and seminars, this module is supported by practical classes.

Structure, Bonding and the Periodic Table

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 1

This module looks at origins of the elements and introduces you to a series of models used to describe bonding in simple molecules. You will use basic mathematical equations and experimental techniques to develop their understanding of the structure and bonding that occurs at a molecular level and will be introduced to a range of basic spectroscopic techniques and the theory that underpins them. The module will then go on to discuss the periodic trends in the physical and chemical properties of elements, and the structures of the extended inorganic solids formed from them.

Symmetry and Simulation

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 1

The aim of this module is to provide a firm physical foundation for future applications of the more mathematical aspects of chemistry and the important role that visualisation and computer simulation play in understanding, interpreting and predicting experimental observation. The module will provide an in-depth exploration of molecular symmetry and its quantitative application to bonding and spectroscopy. The module will also introduce you to the role of molecular computer graphics in structural biology and biochemistry.

Applications of Organic and Bioinorganic Chemistry

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 2

The aim of the module is to provide an overview of medicinal chemistry and metal ions in biochemistry. With regards to the former, you will learn about the basic principles of medicinal chemistry, from the shape of biomolecules and target complexes, to the development of new drugs. Two case studies will be presented. The second aim is to give you an overview of the importance of metal ions in biological systems, the transport of metals and the biosynthesis of metal binding sites. A few metal-containing proteins and enzymes will be described in detail.

Atmospheres and Interfaces

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 2

This module aims to introduce concepts and principles in atmospheric chemistry and surface science. Many properties of atmospheres are governed by mass transport and chemical cycles which are readily understood by application of fundamental physical and chemical principles. As well as key physical laws governing atmospheric behaviour, homogeneous reactions that give rise to important atmospheric constituents as well as the role of aerosols in heterogenous reactions will be explored. The second part of the module will focus on a more detailed view of the structures and properties of surfaces, and provide a fundamental understanding of heterogeneous catalysis and modern nanochemistry.

Bonding and Spectroscopy

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 2

The aim of this module is to provide an understanding of the relationship between molecular structure and state energies, how these energies and molecular constants are determined by spectroscopic studies and through quantum mechanical calculations. The module includes a practical component, which draws on and reinforces the lectures. The first part of the module focuses on the information rich content of spectra and how molecular constants can be obtained from spectra. The second part of the module introduces the postulates of quantum mechanics and lays out the principles underlying quantum mechanical calculations.

Co-ordination Chemistry

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 2

Ligand environment and steric effects, dn numbers, oxidation states, the electroneutrality principle. Isomerism, nomenclature. NMR, symmetry in inorganic chemistry. Applications of group theory to vibrational spectroscopy. Crystal field and MO treatments of coordination compounds. Magnetism, metal-metal bonding. Laboratory work is integral to the module.

Organic Reaction Mechanisms

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 2

The module aims to show the importance of organic reaction mechanisms as a foundation in understanding organic chemistry. The most important types of mechanisms are being discussed including relevant name reactions. In addition, methods to determine organic reaction mechanisms are introduced.

Organometallic Chemistry 1

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 2

This module will focus on the chemistry of organometallic compounds of the elements, that is molecular complexes containing metal-carbon bonds and/or metal-hydrogen bonds. The module will encompass the principles which govern the synthesis, structure, bonding, and industrially important catalytic chemistry of this class of compounds, and the reaction mechanisms associated with the latter.

Phases, Change and Rates

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 2

The aim of the module is to describe more advanced applications of equilibrium thermodynamics, describing evens such as phase transitions, thermodynamics of mixing and properties of other forms of matter such as quasi-crystals and liquid crystal phases. Combined with this is more detailed chemical kinetics in which reactions are explained in terms of simple collision theory. These ideas are then extended to more detailed collision theory models, transition state theory and the temperature dependence of rates of reactions. Basic statistical mechanics will be used to explain the link between populations of states and their thermodynamic properties.

Strategy in Organic Synthesis

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 2

This module focuses on strategy in organic synthesis and the disconnection approach. It requires you to take a different approach to their entire knowledge of synthetic chemistry accumulated hitherto, learn novel reactions, understand the relevance of solvents and reagents, but also to modify their way of thinking about transformations so as to predict shortfalls and be able to come up with more efficient tactics. The aim of the module is to describe the unifying principles which underlay the diverse structures of natural product synthesis and the design of a total synthesis through a disconnective strategy. This will include the introduction of the concept of retrosynthetic analysis, the synthesis of complex cycles and heterocycles, alkenes and alkynes, the formation of carbon-carbon bonds and carbon-heteroatom bonds, pericyclic reactions, radicalar reactions, aromatic chemistry.

Chemical Principles

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 3

In the first two years of study, Chemistry is conventionally taught in three streams, organic, inorganic and physical chemistry, with relatively few requirements on you to cross the boundaries between the sub-disciplines. This module is a broadly based, capstone module, designed for all chemistry majors, whatever their area of interest. It will demonstrate and explore the connections and synergies between various areas of core material, drawing on topics from all three years of the degree course.

Chemistry Project (Year 3)

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 3

The chemistry project will consist of two original four-week investigations, normally in the general area of chemical analysis. You will be expected to design your projects in consultation with an appropriate member of faculty. In special circumstances, you will be permitted to do a single eight-week investigation, although greater depth will be expected in this case.

Instrumental Analysis

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 3

This module gives an overview of a variety of different analytical techniques used by chemists. You will gain valuable insight into analytical techniques used in industry as well as the necessary practical skills to be able to perform accurate chemical analyses. You will also be able to differentiate between the techniques and be able to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the various techniques in a range of different circumstances.

Bio-organic Chemistry

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 3

The aim of the module is to describe the unifying biosynthetic principles which underlay the diverse structures of natural products and to show the relevance for the primary structures of proteins to their shape and to the catalytic properties of enzymes. To introduce a basic set of chemical transformations applied in the chemical synthesis of the major classes of biomolecules such as nucleic acides, peptides and glycans.

Chemistry of the Non-Transition Elements

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 3

The aim of this module is to explore selected areas of main group chemistry and introduce the chemistry of the lathanide and actinide elements, in both cases highlighting differences with the chemistry of elements from the transistion series. Topics covered include: aspects of bonding in the p-block elements; NMR spectroscopy of the p-block elements; main group cluster species; introduction to lanthanides and their chemistry; coordination chemistry and applications of lanthanide complexes; actinide chemistry.

Computational Chemistry

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 3

The aim of the module is to provide a guide to the various levels of theory (with their associated acronyms) appearing in the rapidly expanding field of computational chemistry, with a particular emphasis on quantum chemical methods. The module will start with the concept of a potential energy surface (stationary points, the Born-Oppenheimer approximation, etc), the types of computation normally performed, and the basic quantum mechanics of electrons and nuclei in molecules. The solution of the Schrodinger equation under different approximations will then be explored.

Organometallic Chemistry 2

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 3

This module builds substantially on areas and concepts which are introduced in the second year Organometallic module. The emphasis will be mainly descriptive rather than deeply theoretical, but some of the fundamental aspects of bonding and electronic structure will also be discussed.

Specific topics covered in the module include: organometallic compounds of the transition metals and f-elements containing -bound 5-, 6-, 7-, and 8-membered aromatic rings, the application of organometallic compounds of main group and transition metals in the polymerisation of alpha-olefins, and the activation of H-H, C-H, and N-N bonds by organometallic complexes.

Protein Form and Function

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 3

Protein Form and Function provides a sense of how protein structures are related to each other and of how these structures relate to protein function. On this module you will be equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to learn about and appreciate this class of molecule. This module covers aspects of protein structure in detail and introduces computational and experimental techniques that are essential for studying proteins, and provides the basis for the in depth discussion of more topical issues such as protein engineering and design, protein folding, chaperones and protein folding diseases.

Surface Analysis Techniques

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 3

Synthesis and Reactions of Polymers

15 credits
Autumn teaching, Year 3

This module is a broad review of the different ways in which chemists seek to join together small molecules to make long-chain polymers. The approach is a mixture of organic chemistry - defining the kinds of reactions which can be used to synthesise polymers, and physical chemistry - discussing how those reactions can be controlled to give polymers of the desired structure. The module will illustrate both the underlying science of polymerisation reactions and the technological importance of the polymers.

Synthetic Methods in Organic Chemistry

15 credits
Spring teaching, Year 3

This module will familiarise you with the important modern methods used in industry and academia for the synthesis of carbon-­carbon bonds in organic compounds. A description of the mechanisms of the underlying chemistry will be provided for each method. Each case will be complemented with examples taken from methods reported in scientific literature. By the end of the module you should be able to design a synthetic route to novel chemical structures. This will be assessed by four problem-sheets and an unseen examination.

Chemistry Advanced Project (MChem)

60 credits
Autumn & spring teaching, Year 4

The advanced project is a piece of original research undertaken by students in an area at the forefront of chemistry. After consultation with a member of faculty, you will undertake research on a topic of their choice. An individual project will usually involve the use of experimental/computational procedures to investigate a specific chemical/biological problem. Experimental strategies will be designed and executed followed by data collection and analysis. The data may be generated using a combination of computation and/or laboratory experiments.

Advanced Inorganic Chemistry

30 credits
Autumn & spring teaching, Year 4

Advanced Inorganic Chemistry is a module which explores the latest advances in inorganic chemistry. It combines lectures with research talks, directed- and independent-reading, class discussion and critical review of the literature. Split into four discrete sections, each part of the module commences by introducing fundamentals of the area, including advanced physical and spectroscopic techniques, and relevant conceptual models. Later lectures in each unit then discuss advanced recent developments, where controversy still exists, and encourage students to debate and critically assess the key points. In parallel with these lectures, a series of departmental research talks ensure that you are exposed to topics at the forefront of modern inorganic chemistry.

Advanced Organic Chemistry

30 credits
Autumn & spring teaching, Year 4

Advanced Organic Chemistry is a module which explores the latest advances in Organic Chemistry. It is based on recent advances in the subject, combining lectures with research talks, directed and independent reading and student presentations. After an introduction to the module the initial lectures will deal with strategy in advanced organic synthesis and the use of new organometallic reagents and catalysts for the formation of carbon-carbon bonds. A discussion will follow on the mechanisms involved in key chemical transformations and workshops will provide a discussion forum for the analysis of the key transformations and their application to new areas of asymmetric synthesis. In the final section, advanced topics in areas of Organic Chemistry, where controversy still exists, will be presented. In parallel with these lectures a series of research talks ensure that you are exposed to topics at the forefront of modern Organic Chemistry

Advanced Physical Chemistry

30 credits
Autumn & spring teaching, Year 4

Advanced Physical Chemistry is a module which explores the latest advances in physical chemistry. It is based on recent advances in the subject, combining lectures with research talks, directed and independent reading and student presentations. The module will commence with a series of introductory material, covering the structure of the module, and expectations, together with a summary of the sources of information and their use. The module will also take specific topics that are the subject of present day research, and examine these from various angles to highlight the controversies that still remain, and the rationale behind the directions for further research. In parallel with these lectures a series of research talks ensure that you are exposed to topics at the forefront of advanced physical chemistry.