Course contents
The course is divided into four parts. The first part is focused on the electronic structure of atoms and molecules (Bohr’s atom model, the Schroedinger equation, the atomic orbitals, the Hartree-Fock approximations for non-hydrogen atoms, periodicity, and the periodic table of the elements). The second part is focused on atomic models and properties of the solid, liquid, and gas states, and on the solutions. Chemical thermodynamics is the focus of the third part; the definition of system, the three principles of thermodynamics, and three state functions – enthalpy, entropy, and Gibbs free energy – are described first, and then the chemical equilibrium is defined and examined in acid-base systems – definitions of acids and bases, strong and weak acids and bases, polyprotic acids and bases, definition of pH, computations, and measurements of pH, buffers – and in redox systems – reduction potentials, Nernst equation, batteries, and electrolytic processes - phase diagrams with one and two components are then described and an introduction to chemical kinetics concludes the third part of the course. The fourth and last part is dedicated to an introduction of inorganic chemistry – aluminum, iron, alkali, and alkaline earth metals, copper, silver, and gold – to a brief description of coordination compounds – ligands, chelation, coordination number, coordination geometry – to an introduction to organic chemistry – alkanes, alkenes and alkynes, functional groups, fossil fuels -, and to a short introduction to nuclear chemistry – nucleus stability, alpha, beta and gamma decays, radiometric dating of minerals and artifacts. During the course, several aspects of stoichiometry are introduced, when necessary, including the concept of mole, the computation of solute concentrations in solutions, pH computations, chemical equation balancing and chemical nomenclature.
Teaching methods
The course is organized in daily two-hours lectures and in several sessions of stoichiometry exercises. The lecturer, who speaks English and French, is available for further explanations to foreign students not yet familiar with the Italian language. It is moreover possible to study also on text-book written in languages different from Italian.
Reccomended or required readings
Autore: Nivaldo J. Tro
Titolo: Introduzione alla Chimica
Casa editrice: Pearson (Ed. 2018)
Autori: L. Palmisano, M. Schiavello
Titolo: Elementi di Chimica
Casa editrice: EdiSES
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