The course aims to give to the students the basic chemical background needed to understand the chemical aspects of biological systems.
Course Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of mathematics provided in upper secondary school.
Teaching Methods
Interactive lectures carried out through presentations (PowerPoint, available on KIRO) projected on the screen and in-depth analysis on the blackboard. The course includes numerical exercises in the classroom carried out by the teacher in the morning and by a tutor in the afternoon. The topics presented in the lectures are also verified with practical exercises in laboratory which require attendance, with students being divided into shifts and taking place in December/January.
Assessment Methods
Written examination including open-ended theory questions, tables to be completed, structural formulas, exercises with reactions to balance and numerical calculations, as well as the compilation of a laboratory sheet relating to one of the practical experiences carried out during the didactic laboratory (the drafting of laboratory reports is not required). There is no oral interview.
Texts
The teaching material (the slides projected in class and the exercises carried out in the classroom) is available on the KIRO platform. Some supporting texts: · Whitten, Davis, Peck, Stanley. CHIMICA (Piccin) · Petrucci, Herring, Madura, Bissonette. CHIMICA GENERALE (Piccin) · Kotz, Treichel, Townsend. CHIMICA (EdiSES) · Atkins, Jones, Laverman. FONDAMENTI DI CHIMICA GENERALE (Zanichelli) · Robinson, McMurry, Fay. CHIMICA GENERALE (Pearson)
Contents
Atoms: atomic and mass numbers, isotopes, radioactivity, atomic and molecular weights, molar mass. Atomic structure, atomic orbitals, quantum numbers, energy and filling of the orbitals. Electronic configuration. Periodic table and periodic properties. Nomenclature. Ionic, covalent and metallic chemical bonds. Covalent bond: diatomic molecules, sigma and pi-greek bonds, geometry of polyatomic molecules, resonance, formal charges, structural formulas, exceptions to the octet rule, hybrid orbitals. Polarity in covalent bonds and dipole moment. Intermolecular forces, hydrogen bonding. Chemical reactions: classes of reactions, stoichiometric coefficients, balance, yield. States of aggregation. Mixtures: suspensions, colloids and solutions. Liquid solutions: concentration, density, dilution, titration, electrolyte solutions, colligative properties. Chemical kinetics. Chemical equilibrium: equilibrium constant, reaction quotient, Le Chatelier's principle. Acids and bases: Bronsted-Lowry theory, acids and conjugate bases, pH, Ka, hydrolysis, buffer solutions, polyprotic acids, Lewis acids and bases, acid-base titrations, indicators. Solubility equilibria. Thermodynamics. Electrochemistry. Laboratory exercises: redox titration, acid-base titration, potentiometric determination of the pH of buffer solutions.
Course Language
Italian
More information
Up to 2 hours of reception per week (also online) with flexibility according to needs, support through tutoring/supplementary teaching, and video recordings of specific lessons including exam simulations will be guaranteed for students who cannot follow the teaching activities face-to-face because they are in one of the following (certified) conditions: working student, student engaged in the care of his family members, student with civil or specific learning disabilities, parent student, athlete student, student in prison, student in temporary hospitalization or suffering from certified pathologies.
In order to access the didactic laboratory it is mandatory to participate in the safety training courses available in KIRO: - Formazione GENERALE - Formazione SPECIFICA – Rischio BASSO - Formazione SPECIFICA – Rischio MEDIO ”Chi ben comincia.- Sicurezza nei laboratori chimici e biologici”