last updated Friday, January 20, 2006

Meeting 3 Problem Set - 30BL

1.Using PC Spartan 2002 at the Science Learning Center (4 Floor Young Hall) do the following:

a. Draw camphor if you have not done it yet (Make sure that all hydrogen atooms are still attached!). Minimize the structures by clicking the minimize icon, , then save.

b. Go to the view mode by clicking the view icon, . Once in the view mode, click the Model menu and select Tube.

c. Select Calculations from the Setup menu.

d) Do the same (steps a-c) for 2-norbornanone.

2. Referring to the below reaction,

(endo/exo huh?)

answer the following questions:

a) which isomer is expected to be the major product for this reaction? why? (include the LUMO diagrams generated in question 1 to answer this question)

b) what would change if LiAlH4 were used in this reaction?

3. Referring to the below reaction,

answer the following questions:

a) draw the products formed in this reaction

b) which product is the major and which is the minor? Explain using the LUMO generated above (include the diagram).

c) what would change if D2O were used in this reaction?

4. Referring to the reduction of camphor answer the following questions.

a. Why is diethylether a poor choice as a solvent for the reaction?

b. How many moles of of NaBH4 are required (in theory) to reduce 42.1 mmol of camphor? Show pertinent chemical equation.

c. Why should the bottle for the NaBH4 kept closed whenever possible?

d. How does one know that enough drying agent was added?

e. Why does the drying agent have to be removed before boiling off the solvent?

f. Why should the GC sample have a low concentration of the analyte?

g. A student prepares a sample to obtain the melting point of isoborneol. He fills the melting point capillary half-way up. What would he observe?