AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to provide the student with knowledge on some specific and advanced aspects of inorganic chemistry, concerning coordination chemistry, metallorganic chemistry, clusters chemistry and bioinorganic chemistry.

The knowledge acquired in the lectures is applied to the laboratory activity, during which the student will become familiar with the synthesis and characterization of selected compounds belonging to the aforementioned classes.

At the end of the teaching and individual study, the student will have acquired theoretical knowledge on the structure, bonding and reactivity of inorganic compounds and will improve the practical handling skills (in compliance with current safety standards) of some of these compounds by means of their preparation and characterization with instrumental techniques.

TEACHING METHODS

The course includes both lectures and practical activity, carried out in the laboratory and followed by the preparation of written individual reports. Attendance is mandatory both in the laboratory sessions and in the corresponding lessons

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Symmetry and group theory (symmetry elements and operations, point groups and molecular symmetry). Applications of group theory: vibrational analysis, molecular orbitals of simple and complex molecules. Advanced coordination chemistry: bonding, electronic spectra and reactions. Metallorganic chemistry: carbonyl complexes and with CO-related ligands, metal-olefin complexes, allyl derivatives, metallocenes, alkyl, carbene and carbine complexes. Stoichiometric reactions of organometallic complexes and catalysis. Clusters. Boranes, heteroboranes, metalloboranes. Carbonyl clusters. High valence clusters. Multiple metal-metal bonds. Some aspects of bioinorganic chemistry: biochemistry of iron, biochemistry of other metals such as Zn, Cu, Co.

Laboratory experiences:

Preparation of cis and trans [Mo(CO)4(PPh3)2] coordination compounds;

Preparation of Fe (η5-C5H5)2. Purification and characterization. Ferrocene acetylation

Preparation and thermochromic luminescence of copper (I) -pyridine-iodide clusters

Preparation and characterization of the carbonyl cluster Fe3(CO)12

Preparation of a model compound of vitamin B12 and its methylation

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Material distributed by the teacher, available on the AulaWeb site
• Chimica Inorganica, G.L.Miessler, D.A.Tarr, Edizioni Piccin
• Chimica Inorganica, Principi, Strutture, Reattività J.E.Huheey, E.A.Keiter, R.L.Keiter, Edizioni Piccin
• Chimica Inorganica, D.F.Shriver, P.W.Atkins, C.H.Langford, Edizioni Zanichelli
• The Organometallic Chemistry of the Transition Metals, R.H.Crabtree, John Wiley & Sons.
• Group Theory for Chemists: Fundamental Theory and Applications, Kieran C Molloy, Woodhead Publishing, 2nd edition
• Bioinorganic Chemistry: Inorganic Elements in the Chemistry of Life, W. Kaim, B. Schwederski, A. Klein, John Wiley & Sons