Allowing many chemical reactions to be completed within minutes, microwave heating has revolutionized preparative chemistry. As a result, this technology has been widely adopted in both academic and industrial laboratories. Integrating microwave-assisted chemistry into undergraduate laboratory courses enables students to perform a broader range of reactions in the allotted lab period. As a result, they can be introduced to chemistry that would otherwise have been inaccessible due to time constraints (for example, the need for an overnight reflux).  A number of the chemical transformations use water as a solvent in lieu of classical organic solvents. This contributes to greener, more sustainable teaching strategies for faculty and students, while maintaining high reaction yields.  In this poster, four syntheses using microwave heating will be described.

Microwave synthesis in undergraduate organic labs

247th National Meeting (2014)

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