Organic Chemistry III

The Organic Chemistry III course aims to explore the chemistry of important classes of organic compounds, including carbonyl compounds, carboxylic acids, carboxylic acid derivatives, amines, aromatic and heterocyclic compounds, carbohydrates, biological molecules, and natural products. It also covers organic synthesis and spectroscopic techniques for determining the structure of these compounds.

Specifically, within the context of the course, students will acquire the knowledge and skills to understand:

• The chemistry of ketones and aldehydes (structure, properties, preparations, reactions)
• The chemistry of carboxylic acids, including their structure, properties, preparations, and reactions
• The chemistry of carboxylic derivatives, their reactivity, preparations, and physical and chemical properties of acid chlorides, acid anhydrides, esters, amides, and nitriles, along with synthesis strategies and spectroscopic analysis
• The chemistry of the α carbon, reactions of enols and enolate ions, the Claisen condensation, alkylation at the α position, conjugate addition reactions, and their applications in synthetic strategies
• The chemistry of amines, including preparations, physical and chemical properties, Hofmann elimination, diazotization, and aryldiazonium ions, as well as synthesis strategies and spectroscopic analysis
• Retrosynthetic analysis, chemoselectivity, protecting groups, and asymmetric synthesis
• The chemistry and stereochemistry of carbohydrates
• The chemistry of esters, phosphoric esters, phosphoric anhydrides, and compounds with “high energy content’.
• The chemistry of Aromatic Heterocyclic Compounds, their nomenclature and structure, the basicity and acidity they exhibit.
• The organic chemistry of life, biological molecules
• The chemistry of natural products, their classification, their biological activity and their use as therapeutic agents
• Two-dimensional spectra (2D NMR), applications in biological systems and medicine
• The study and utilization of organic reactions in the chemical synthesis of natural products, drugs and polymers

More generally, upon completing the course, the student will have developed the following key abilities and skills:

• Expanding their scientific outlook and gaining a better understanding of the behaviour of organic compounds, reaction mechanisms, and synthesis strategies.
• Applying concepts, reactions, and mechanisms to both simple and complex compounds, as well as solving synthetic problems.
• Gaining theoretical training and acquiring skills to address interdisciplinary issues.
• Developing the ability to search for scientific information from international literature, understand it, and present findings.
• Practising criticism and self-criticism.
• Encouraging creative and inductive thinking.