Lecture Synopsis


Lecture 1 Review of course content and requirements. General comments on the atomic and chemical properties of non-metals elements; feasibility of cation and anion formation; trends in bond energies and their relevance to non-metal chemistry. 
Lecture 2 Boron structures of elemental boron and some borides; boron-nitrogen compounds; boron halides, boron oxides and borates; boron hydrides; - an introduction. 
Lecture 3 Carbon catenation; comparison with silicon; chemistry of the elements; carbon monoxide as a ligand, p-acidity; the halides - the importance of thermodynamic versus kinetic stability. 
Lecture 4 Nitrogen general comments - the importance of lone pair repulsion in N-X single bonds; thermodynamic instability of many nitrogen compounds; dinitrogen complexes; nitrogen hydrides; the nitrogen halides; nitrogen oxides. Comparison with phosphorus. 
Lecture 5 Oxygen dioxygen and ozone; the hydrides - hydrogen bonding; structural and acid/base classification of oxides of the elements. Comparison with sulphur. 
Lecture 6 The Halogens the haloacids, oxides, oxoacids, oxoanions and their redox properties; the interhalogens. 
 
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©Dr. D. O'Hare 1996