Chemistry: Optical Isomerism
This flashcard set explores the two main types of isomerism studied in A-Level Chemistry: structural and stereoisomerism. It explains how isomers differ in structure or spatial arrangement, and introduces E/Z and optical isomerism, with E/Z arising from restricted rotation around a carbon-carbon double bond.
what 2 types of isomerism are studied during a level chem
structural and stereoisomerism
Key Terms
what 2 types of isomerism are studied during a level chem
structural and stereoisomerism
structural isomers
compounds with the same molecular formula but different structural formula
stereoisomers
same structural formula but different arrangement of atoms in space
two types of stereoisomerism
e/z
- optical
what does e/z isomerism occur as a result of
retricted rotation about the planar c-c double bond
do all alkenes have e/z isomerism
no
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| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
what 2 types of isomerism are studied during a level chem | structural and stereoisomerism |
structural isomers | compounds with the same molecular formula but different structural formula |
stereoisomers | same structural formula but different arrangement of atoms in space |
two types of stereoisomerism |
- optical |
what does e/z isomerism occur as a result of | retricted rotation about the planar c-c double bond |
do all alkenes have e/z isomerism | no |
what must an alkene have to exhibit e/z isomerism | each carbon of the c=c bond must be bonded to different groups |
how to determine whether an alkene is the e or z isomer |
|
how do the cip rules allow the highest priority to be determined easily |
- if 2 atoms have same atomic number, the next atom along the chain should be compared |
optical isomers | non superimposable mirror images |
what must a compound contain to exhibit optical isomerism | carbon has to be bonded to 4 different groups |
what is the asymmetric c atom in an optical isomer called | chiral carbon |
what are optical isomers called | enantiomers |
what do optical isomers differ in their effect on | plane polarised light |
how do enantiomers rotate plane polarised light | by an equal amount but in opposite directions |
racemic mixture | a mixture of equal amounts of the two enantiomers |
forming enantiomers in the reaction of but-2-ene and hbr: how does the shape of the intermediate lead to a mixture with equal amounts of two enantiomers being formed |
|
why does a racemic mixture not rotate plane polarised light | the equal proportions of 2 enantiomers cancel eachother out |
what do optical isomers have the same | chemical properties |