Students learning organic chemistry remotely rarely have access to a full suite of laboratory apparatuses. However, certain learning objectives in the organic laboratory curriculum can be effectively taught using online resources. Indeed, even the experience of collecting and interpreting data to form meaningful observations can be replicated in an online environment. We made use of the user-friendly web-based interface hosted at chemcompute.org to access the GAMESS molecular modeling software package. We integrated these no-cost, accessible resources with pre-existing written materials developed to hone student understanding of infrared spectroscopy and its application to organic structure determination. Specifically, students explored simulations to characterize how the wavenumber of molecular vibrations changed with changing relative mass of substituents, with changing bond order, and with changing hybridization of carbon. They then related these patterns of observations to key spectroscopic features associated with organic functional groups. At the end of three-laboratory module, approximately 85% of students reported that they understood molecular motion much better than they had before the modeling. Approximately 95% of students reported that they would be able to relate significant features of IR spectra to organic functional groups. Approximately 95% of students reported that they would be able to make use of ChemCompute again to visualize molecules.

Physical simulations in the service of organic laboratory

ACS Fall 2021

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