Blog Posts
Monday, June 26, 2023
Additional Useful Reactions, Reduction Examples
In organic synthesis, it’s essential to know how to reduce a nitro group (NO2) to an amino group (NH2). There are two primary methods for doing this: catalytic hydrogenation and metal-acid reductions.
Monday, June 26, 2023
Thermodynamic vs Kinetic Enolates
In the world of organic chemistry, understanding how to control enolate reactions is key for successful syntheses. One way to achieve this control is by manipulating the reaction conditions to favor either thermodynamic or kinetic enolates. Let’s delve into what these terms mean and how...
Monday, June 26, 2023
The Wittig Reaction
The Wittig reaction is one of the most significant reactions in organic chemistry, invented by German chemist George Wittig. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for this work in 1979. The Wittig reaction converts a carbonyl group into a double bond using phosphonium ylides.
Monday, June 26, 2023
Reactions of LiAlH4, NaBH4 and H2/Ni (Recap)
Understanding reduction reactions is crucial in organic chemistry. Today, we’re diving into a recap of key reducing agents – lithium aluminum hydride, sodium borohydride, and catalytic hydrogenation with nickel – to solidify your knowledge. Let’s break down how each interacts with diffe...
Monday, June 26, 2023
Assigning NMR Splittings – A Story of Balconies
NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) spectroscopy is a powerful tool for identifying and characterizing molecules. But sometimes, the data can seem a little… complex. Don’t worry – it doesn’t have to be! Today, we’re going to break down a clever analogy that helpsvisualize how neighboring p...
Monday, June 26, 2023
Alpha cleavage (with Aldehydes, Ketones and Carboxylic acids)
Decoding Alpha Cleavage: Understanding Mass Spectrometry of Carbonyl Compounds
Monday, June 26, 2023
The Suzuki Reaction, Examples of the Suzuki Reaction
Organic chemistry can seem intimidating, but some reactions are so versatile and widely used, they become essential tools. Today, we’re diving into two of those: the Suzuki and the Heck reaction – both palladium-catalyzed coupling reactions that are fantastic for forming carbon-carbon b...
Monday, June 26, 2023
The Antiperiplanar Proton – A True Love Story
In order to explain the importance of the antiperiplanar proton, let’s consider a love story analogy. In this story, we have a bride who must choose between two suitors - protons A and B. The base represents the young lady’s parents, while the reaction conditions signify the circumstanc...
Monday, June 26, 2023
Stereochemistry of the Diels Alder Reaction – Part 3
Understanding Stereochemistry in the Diels-Alder Reaction
Monday, June 26, 2023
Ozonolysis Part 2
Let’s be honest, organic chemistry can sometimes feel like a dry recitation of rules. But today, we’re going to tackle a reaction – Ozonolysis – with a little bit of flair! This process is a clever way to break down alkenes, and our instructor is using a surprisingly effective analogy t...