Undergraduate organic chemistry students must understand the effect steric hindrance has on nucleophilic substitution and elimination reactions as a foundational step in mastering organic chemistry. However, visualizing the effects of steric interactions in space can be difficult for novice organic chemists. 3D printing can help address this difficulty by providing high-quality models that allow students to physically observe the effect steric bulk has on reactivity and confirmation. In this presentation we will provide detailed instructions on how to use Gaussian, in combination with other computational chemistry software, to build and print 3D representations of molecules. Several sample models will be on display during this presentation.

Using 3D printing to model steric interactions

249th National Meeting (2015)

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