THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA

SCHOOL OF NATURAL SCIENCES

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY
10th February, 2019

COURSE ORGANISATION, TEACHING PLAN, COURSE ADMINISTRATION AND

COURSE OUTLINE – 2019/2020

CHE2511: BASIC ORGANIC CHEMISTRY

Welcome to the basic organic chemistry course, CHE 2511. We hope that you would enjoy the
opportunities offered by the course, including the hands on practical experience and also enjoy the
associated challenges.

1. Course Organisation:
(a) Mode of Delivery:
Lectures (50 minute each) Tutorials (50 minutes each) Labs (Practical)
3 per week 1 per week 1 three-hour session per week

In addition, CHE2511 students may be asked to attend extra lectures, tutorials, and
occasionally a lab briefing session (to enable them to appreciate and enjoy the
laboratory practical better) as necessary.
(b) Attendance at lectures, tutorials, lab sessions and lab briefing sessions is compulsory.
(c) Due to large class size, the CHE 2511 class of 2018 is divided into 9 tutorial groups
(TG) and 8 lab groups (LG). Please register for 1 Lab and 1 Tutorial per week and note
your TG number and LG number, which may be different. Please ensure that you attend
the tutorials and labs strictly according to your TG/LG number.
(d) Tutorials:
(i) You will be given tutorial sheets.
(ii) Buy an exercise book for CHE 2511 tutorial work and answer all questions from
tutorial sheet for the week in advance and submit the answers to your Tutor on your
scheduled tutorial day and time.
This work may be marked without any prior notice and treated as an assignment.
(iii)Short quizzes will be given in every tutorial sessions and marked without any prior
notice.
(e) Labs:
(i) Buy CHE2511 Lab Manual for 2019/2020 from Department Store on ground floor.
(ii) Each practical done in this course is assessed through written lab reports. Students
are required to submit a pre-lab write-up and a written lab report for each
experiment for assessment. Beware that attendance at lab session on its own does
not qualify for any mark.

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 (iii) Buy an A4 size exercise book for writing pre-lab write-up, recording practical data
and writing final lab report for assessment. For each experiment, submit:
 a pre-lab write-up in the recommended format in Room 215 at least 2
days before your scheduled lab day.
 A lab report in the recommended format before the indicated dead-line.
Unless prior permission was granted, Lab reports submitted after
deadline shall NOT be marked.

2. Course Assessment: (Pass Mark: 45 %)

Assessment component Quiz + Assign. Tests Labs CA Final Theory Exam Total

Contribution 5% 20 % 15 % 40 % 60 % 100 %

ADVICE: PLEASE KEEP AWAY FROM PLAGIARISM – A PUNISHABLE OFFENCE

3. Course Administration:

(a) Course Lecturers:

Dr. S. Prakash – Course Coordinator, Room 221, second floor, E-mail: srakash@unza.zm
Dr. A. Kanyanta, Room 322, third floor
Mr. R. Ngulube, Room to be announced

(b) Teaching Schedule: Lectures

Dates Lecturer Topics
Stereochemistry, Conformational Analysis,
10-02-2020 to 01-04-2020 A. Kanyanta Alkanes and Alkyl Halides
03-04-2020 to 30-04-2020 S. Prakash Alkenes, Alkynes, Organic transformations
01-05-2020 to 22-05-2020 R. Ngulube Alcohols and ethers

(c) Lab Exemptions: Students repeating this course may apply for exemption from the
labs.

(i) Eligibility to apply for exemption:

 The student must have done CHE 2511 labs in 2018/2019 academic year; and
obtained a lab score of at least 9.0 (out of 15) in CHE 2511 labs.
 Students who were exempted in any previous academic year are not eligible to
apply for lab exemption.

(ii) Application procedure: Collect the prescribed application Form from the
Secretary, Department of Chemistry (3rd floor) & submit duly filled Form to Secretary.

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 (d) Course Assessment Dates, Time and Venues:
Mode of Assessment Dates Topics
Assignments (1-2) To be announced by lecturers To be advised by lecturers

Quizzes (6-8) Weekly, without any prior announcement Topics covered during previous
Time: Your scheduled weekly tutorial time week or weeks.
Venue: Lab 217
Tests (2)
Test 1 Date: 08 April, 202 Stereochemistry, Conformational
Time: 17:00 hrs. analysis, Alkanes and Alkyl
Venue: To be announced Halides.

Test 2 Date: 11 May, 2020

Time: 17:00 hrs. Alkenes, Alkynes, Alcohols,
Venue: To be announced Ethers & Organic Transformations.
Final Theory
Examination (3 hrs.) To be announced by the Academic Office All topics + 1st yr. org. chem.
topics

CHE2511: BASIC ORGANIC CHEMISTRY

2. COURSE OUTLINE – 2018/2019 Academic Year

Rationale:
This course aims to provide a sound foundation in organic chemistry that would cover
conformational structures, stereoisomeric relationships, properties and reactions of aliphatic
hydrocarbons, alcohols and ethers and detailed reaction mechanisms, including stereochemistry of
substitution and elimination reactions.

Course Objectives:
On completion of the course, students should be able to:

(i) identify and state isometric relationships between organic compounds using R/S
nomenclature and draw conformational structures for simple organic compounds.
(ii) distinguish different types of organic reactions and state the factors affecting reaction
rates.
(iii) describe preparative methods for and reactions of alkyl halides, alkenes, alkynes, alcohols
and ethers.
(iv) predict the products, including pertinent stereochemistry of organic reactions and provide
detailed reaction mechanisms.
(v) describe efficient synthetic transformation for simple aliphatic compounds.

Course Content:

1. Stereoisomerism
Brief review of isomerism. Stereoisomerism: Concept, definitions, general conditions and
tests for chirality, biological importance. Methods of representing stereochemical

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 structures, Projection formulae. Stereoisomeric relationships in alicyclic and cyclic
compounds: enantiomers, diastereomers, meso- structures. Optical activity, Measurement
of [α]D, Racemates and meso compounds

2. Conformational analysis
Concept and definitions of terminology, Conformational isomers (conformers) and
conformational analysis: Alicyclic compounds (butanes) - Sawhorse and Newman
projection formulae; Cyclic compounds (3-6 membered monocyclic alkanes): boat and
chair conformers, angle strain, torsional strain.

3. Alkanes
Physical properties, reactivity, reactions- radical substitution mechanism, oxidation.

4. Alkyl Halides
Brief review of nomenclature, Physical properties, Reactions, including mechanisms:

Nucleophilic aliphatic substitution (SN) reactions: Definitions of terminology. SN1 and SN2
reactions: Reaction mechanisms, including stereochemistry, liberal examples. Role of
solvent, factors affecting reaction rates, SN1 vs SN2, . Carbocationic rearrangements &
racemization, SN1 vs SN2
Elimination reactions: Definitions of terminology, types and strengths of bases.
Dehydrohalogenation (Saytzeff rule) and other elimination reactions, Reaction mechanisms
(E1 and E2), including stereochemistry, role of solvent, Factors affecting rates of
elimination reactions (E1 and E2), E1 vs. E2-. Elimination vs substitution.
Reactions with metals: Grignard reagents- structure, generation. Applications.
Methods of Preparation: from alkanes, alkenes and alcohols. Introduction to organic
transformations.

5. Alkenes
Brief review of nomenclature, Physical properties, relative stabilities.
Methods of Preparation: from alkyl halides, alcohols, alkyl sulfonates and alkynes
Reactions, detailed mechanisms and applications: Addition reactions: symmetrical
reagents- hydrogen, halogens, stereochemistry, where relevant, unsymmetrical reagents:
Markovnikov’s rule, regioselectivity, stereochemistry, carbocation rearrangements,
halohydrin formation, hydrogen halides, peroxide effect; Hydration- sulfuric acid and
water, hydroboration-oxidation, oximercuration-demercuration. Hydroxylation- formation
of 1, 2-diols and other addition products; Dimerisation, polymerization in brief. Oxidations:
peroxyacid and permanganate oxidations, ozonolysis. Applications of alkenes, lab. Tests.

6. Alkynes
Brief review of nomenclature; General properties, relative stabilities, acidity.
Methods of Preparation: from dihalides, ketones; Reactions and mechanisms: Electrophilic
additions; Oxidations: permanganate oxidation, ozonolysis; Reduction: to cis- and trans-
alkenes and to alkanes. Lab. tests and applications in organic synthesis.

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 7. Alcohols
Structure, classification, brief review of nomenclature; Physical properties, acidity.
Synthesis: from alkenes: hydration, hydroboration-oxidation, oxymercuration-reduction,
alkyl halides, industrial sources of methanol and ethanol.
Reactions, including mechanisms: reaction with PX3, POCl3 and SOCl2, dehydration of
alcohols, esterification, formation of sulfonate esters, mesylates, tosylates. Oxidation: PCC
and Jones reagents, Manganate oxidations, limitations, Periodic acid oxidation of diols.
Protection &deprotection of alcohol group: THP, TMS ethers; laboratory tests,
applications.

8. Ethers
Review of structure and nomenclature, classification, Physical properties,
Synthesis: from alkyl halides-Williamson ether synthesis, from alkenes: epoxidation and
via halohydrins. Reactions and mechanisms: Cleavage of: open chain ethers by HI and
epoxides by acids, bases and Grignard reagents, Applications.

9. Simple organic transformations

Introduction to synthetic transformations, multistep conversions and synthesis.

Recommended Textbook:
1. Organic Chemistry, 12th Edition, T. W. Graham Solomons, Craig B. Fryhle, Scott A. Snyder,
John Wiley & Sons, NY, 2016. ISBN: 978-1-119-23364-0

Supplementary Readings:
1. Organic Chemistry, 9th Edition, John E. McMurry, 2016, ISBN-10: 1305080483
2. Organic Chemistry, R.T. Morrison and R.N. Boyd, 6th Edition, Allyn and Bacon, Inc.,
London, 2005.

CAUTION:
1. Attendance at lectures, tutorials and lab sessions is mandatory.
2. Assignments and lab reports submitted after the stipulated due dates and time shall not be
marked.
3. Laboratory practical are assessed through lab reports. Mere attendance at a lab session and doing
practical does not entitle the student for any mark.
4. Eligibility to sit for CHE2511 Examination:
(i) Eligibility to sit for CHE2511 Examination is subject to UNZA Senate regulations.
(ii) Be reminded that in addition to attendance at lectures, tutorials and labs, a student must have
completed at least 80% of CHE2511course work, including quizzes, tests and lab reports,
failing which he/she shall not be allowed to sit for CHE2511examination.
5. Please keep away from plagiarism, it is a punishable offence.

Dr. S. Prakash
CHE2511 Course Coordinator