Chemistry
Eric A. Maatta, Head
University Distinguished Professors Klabunde and Ortiz; Professors Bossman, Hua, Jankowiak, and Maatta; Associate Professors Aakeröy, Higgins, Hollingsworth, and Smith; Assistant Professors Chikan, Culbertson, Kraft, Ito, Levy, and Rayat; Assistant Teaching Scholars Patell and Wojcinski; Instructors Paukstelis and E. Dikeman; Emeriti: University Distinguished Professors Fateley, Setser, and Sherwood; Professors Copeland, Hammaker, Hawley, Kruh, McDonald, Meloan, and Moser; Assistant Professor Lenhert; Instructor Weyerts.
785-532-6665
Fax: 785-532-6666
E-mail: chemdept@k-state.edu
The Department of Chemistry occupies modern research and teaching facilities in three adjacent buildings: the Chemistry/ Biochemistry Building, the H. H. King Chemical Laboratory, and part of Willard Hall. The chemistry faculty possess a wide range of expertise in both traditional and cross-disciplinary areas of the chemical sciences, and are committed to excellence in their teaching. The department offers programs leading to the BS and BA degrees in chemistry. In addition to the undergraduate program, the department offers MS and PhD degrees: the graduate program includes approximately 70 students.
Chemistry is a vibrant discipline whose broad impact extends from fundamental inquiry about molecular structure and interaction, to the design and syntheses of new pharmaceuticals, to the creation of new materials for energy conversion, to the detection and remediation of environmental threats. An education in chemistry provides both a satisfying conceptual framework with which to understand the workings of the material world and the practical skills with which to explore it. A degree in chemistry provides many different career possibilities. For example, a research chemist might synthesize and explore new compounds and materials, or develop new analytical instrumentation and techniques. Other chemists work in federal- or state-sponsored activities broadly concerned with health, the environment, forensic science, energy, and safety. Students often use chemistry degrees as preparation for advanced study in medicine, pharmacy, and related areas. Students who plan to become high school science teachers may choose to earn dual degrees in chemistry and education.
High school preparation
High school students who plan to major in chemistry must have a good background in mathematics and science. Trigonometry and two years of algebra are essential, as are courses in chemistry and physics.
Transfer students
Community college students are encouraged to take a year of general chemistry and a course in quantitative analysis, two to three semesters of calculus, English composition, and speech classes for transfer credit.
Independent study and research
Many chemistry students are engaged in independent study and research, some as early as their first year. Two credit hours of research experience, under the supervision of a faculty member of the student's choice, are required for the BS degree in the chemistry program. A formal, written report and an oral presentation describing the research are also required.
General requirements for undergraduate major
Students majoring in chemistry must earn grades of C or better in all courses prescribed for this curriculum, as outlined below. A total of 124 credit hours are required for graduation. The BA program is obtained by following the curriculum for the BS degrees with the additional foreign language requirement of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Chemistry curriculum for the BS degree
The BS degree in chemistry consists of two programs: the chemistry program and the chemical science program.
The chemistry program is the preferred program for students who are preparing for graduate study in chemistry or who plan for employment as chemists. This program leads to the professional degree in chemistry as approved by the American Chemical Society.
The chemical science program serves students who want a strong background in chemistry but who do not require as much specialization as provided by the chemistry program.
Chemistry program
| Chemistry (39-41 hours)* | ||
| CHM 220 | Chemical Principles I | 5 |
| and | ||
| CHM 250 | Chemical Principles I | 5 |
| or | ||
| CHM 210 | Chemistry I | 4 |
| and | ||
| CHM 230 | Chemistry II | 4 |
| and | ||
| CHM 371 | Chemical Analysis | 4 |
| CHM 531 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHM 532 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory | 2 |
| CHM 550 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHM 585 | Physical Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHM 595 | Physical Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHM 566 | Instrumental Methods of Analysis | 3 |
| CHM 596 | Physical Methods Laboratory | 2 |
| CHM 657 | Inorganic Techniques | 2 |
| CHM 711 | Inorganic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHM 712 | Inorganic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHM 599 | Senior Thesis Research | 2 |
| Mathematics (12 hours) | ||
| MATH 220 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I | 4 |
| MATH 221 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus II | 4 |
| MATH 222 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus III | 4 |
| Biochemistry (3 hours) | ||
| BIOCH 521 | General Biochemistry | 3 |
| or | ||
| BIOCH 755 | Biochemistry I | 3 |
| Physics (10 hours) | ||
| PHYS 213 | Engineering Physics I | 5 |
| PHYS 214 | Engineering Physics II | 5 |
| *Either CHM 711 or 712 may be replaced with CHM 752 (Advanced Organic Chemistry, 3 credits). Alternatively, CHM 711 or 712 may be replaced with BIOCH 755, 756, and 765 (Biochemistry I, Biochemistry I Lab, and Biochemistry II, 8 credits), in which case CHM 657 may be taken for 1 or 2 hours. | ||
Chemical science curriculum
| Chemistry (25-27 hours) | ||
| CHM 220 | Chemical Principles I | 5 |
| and | ||
| CHM 250 | Chemical Principles II | 5 |
| or | ||
| CHM 210 | Chemistry I | 4 |
| and | ||
| CHM 230 | Chemistry II | 4 |
| and | ||
| CHM 371 | Chemical Analysis | 4 |
| CHM 531 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHM 532 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory | 2 |
| CHM 550 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHM 500 | General Physical Chemistry | 3 |
| or | ||
| CHM 585 | Physical Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHM 566 | Instrumental Methods of Analysis | 3 |
| CHM 596 | Physical Methods Laboraory | 1 |
| Biochemistry (5 hours) | ||
| BIOCH 521 | General Biochemistry | 3 |
| BIOCH 522 | General Biochemistry Laboratory | 2 |
| Mathematics (8 hours) | ||
| MATH 220 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I | 4 |
| MATH 221 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus II | 4 |
| Physics (8 hours) | ||
| PHYS 113 | General Physics I | 4 |
| PHYS 114 | General Physics II | 4 |
Chemistry minor
| Chemistry (18 or 20 hours) | ||
| CHM 220 | Chemical Principles I | 5 |
| and | ||
| CHM 250 | Chemical Principles II | 5 |
| or | ||
| CHM 210 | Chemistry I | 4 |
| and | ||
| CHM 250 | Chemistry II | 4 |
| and | ||
| CHM 371 | Chemical Analysis | 4 |
| CHM 350 | General Organic Chemistry* | 3 |
| CHM 351 | General Organic Chemistry Lab** | 2 |
| CHM 500 | General Physical Chemistry*** | 3 |
| 18 or 20 | ||
| *CHM 531 (Organic Chemistry I, 3 credits) may be substituted for CHM 350. | ||
| **CHM 532 (Organic Chemistry Lab, 2 credits) may be substituted for CHM 351. | ||
| ***CHM 585 (Physical Chemistry I, 3 credits) may be substituted for CHM 500. | ||
Introductory and general chemistry courses
CHM 110. General Chemistry. (3) I, II, S. Principles, laws, and theories of chemistry; important metallic and nonmetallic substances. (An optional laboratory course, CHM 111, is available for an additional hour of credit). Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: MATH 010 or at least one year of high school algebra.
CHM 111. General Chemistry Laboratory. (1) I, II, S. A laboratory course to supplement the material of CHM 110. Three hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 110 or conc. enrollment.
CHM 200. Undergraduate Seminar in Chemistry. (0,1) I, II. Programs and activities of interest to students in chemistry, including lectures given by chemistry majors.
CHM 210. Chemistry I. ** (4) I, II, S. First course of a two-semester study of the principles of chemistry and the properties of the elements and their compounds. Conc. enrollment in CHM 210 lab is required. Three hours lec. and three hours lab a week. Pr.: One year of high school chemistry and MATH 100 (or two years of high school algebra).
CHM 211. Chemistry I Recitation. (1) I, II. An optional recitation class that requires conc. enrollment in CHM 210 Chemistry I. The objective is the development of skills for solving chemical problems. Instruction will be via a small class format. For credit/no credit only. Credit independent of grade for Chemistry I.
CHM 220. Chemical Principles I. (5) I. First course of a two-semester study of chemical principles. Intended for chemistry majors. Conc. enrollment in CHM 220 lab is required. Four hours lec. and three hours lab a week. Pr.: One year of high school chemistry and MATH 100 (or two years of high school algebra).
CHM 230. Chemistry II.**. (4) I, II, S. Second course of a two-semester study of the principles of chemistry and the properties of the elements and their compounds. Three hours lec. and three hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 210.
CHM 231. Chemistry II Recitation. (1) I, II. An optional recitation class that requires conc. enrollment in CHM 230 Chemistry II. The objective is the development of skills for solving chemical problems. Instruction will be via a small class format. For credit/no credit only. Credit independent of grade for Chemistry II.
| **Students entering the university with Advanced Placement chemistry examination credit may earn the following grades: | |
| Score | Grade |
| 5 | A in Chemistry I and A in Chemistry II |
| 4 | A in Chemistry I and B in Chemistry II |
| 3 | B in Chemistry I |
CHM 250. Chemical Principles II. (5) II. Continuation of CHM 220, covering the principles of chemistry. Intended for chemistry majors. Conc. enrollment in CHM 250 lab is required. Laboratory has emphasis on quantitative chemical analysis. Three hours lec. and five hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 220.
CHM 315. Environmental Science: A Chemistry Perspective. (3) I. An analysis of important technological developments and their impact on society and on the earth's environment; ethical issues raised by technological advances. History, matter and energy, ecosystems, population issues, air pollution, water pollution, hazardous substances, environmental policies, and decision making are discussed. Pr.: CHM 230 or 250.
CHM 399. Honors Seminar. (3) Open to students in the arts and sciences honors program.
CHM 497. Research in Undergraduate Chemistry. (1-3) I, II, S. Undergraduate research in the chemical sciences. Pr.: Consent of instructor.
CHM 498. Senior Honors Thesis. (2) I, II, S. Open only to seniors in the arts and sciences honors program.
CHM 499. Problems in Undergraduate Chemistry. (Var.) I, II, S. Problems may include classroom and/or lab work. Pr.: Consent of instructor. May be repeated.
CHM 599. Senior Thesis Research. (1-3) I, II, S. A final written report and oral presentation are required. Pr.: Consent of instructor.
CHM 600. Scientific Glassblowing. (1) II. The basic techniques of bending, sealing, and blowing glass used to fabricate scientific glassware. Three hours of lab including one lec. demonstration a week. Pr.: Senior or graduate standing in physical sciences.
CHM 601. Safe Chemical Laboratory Practices. (1) I. A general safety course for persons working or teaching in a chemical laboratory. One hour of lec. per week. Pr.: Consent of instructor.
CHM 700. Practicum in Teaching Chemistry. (1) I. Principles and methods of instruction in laboratories and recitation classes in chemistry, including one semester of supervised experience as an instructor in a chemical laboratory. This is a required course of all graduate teaching assistants in the Department of Chemistry. May be taken only once for credit. Pr.: Senior standing in chemistry or by consent of instructor.
| CHM777. Practical NMR Spectroscopy. (1) II. Fundamental aspects of 1D and 2D nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, as applied to the chemistry department's Varian 200- and 400-MHz spectrometers. Pr.: Senior or graduate standing in the physical sciences. |
CHM 799. Problems in Chemistry. (Var.) I, II, S. Problems may include classroom or laboratory work. Not for thesis research. Pr.: Consent of instructor.
Analytical chemistry courses
CHM 371. Chemical Analysis. (4) I. Principles of chemical equilibria and quantitative analysis: gravimetric, titrimetric, spectrophotometric, electroanalytical, and separations methods. Two hours lec. and five hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 230.
CHM 545. Chemical Separations. (2) II. Principles of modern separation techniques. One hour lec. and three hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 250 or 371; 532 and 550.
CHM 566. Instrumental Methods of Analysis. (3) I. Introduction to theory and practice of electrochemical methods, molecular and atomic spectroscopy, surface science, mass spectrometry, separation methods, and electronics in analytical chemistry. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 250 or 371, 531, and CHM 500 or 585.
Inorganic chemistry courses
CHM 650. History of Chemistry. (2) II, in even years. Traces the beginnings of chemistry from 3500 B.C. to 1920 A.D. Early metallurgy, Greek thought about atoms, alchemy, atomic theory, discovery of gases, definition of elements, chemical bonds, organic, inorganic, and physical chemistry. Pr.: CHM 585.
CHM 657. Inorganic Techniques. (1-2) I. The preparation, characterization, and study of transition metal, main group, and organometallic compounds using techniques commonly encountered in industrial and academic research. Three to six hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 585.
CHM 711. Inorganic Chemistry I. (3) I. Atomic and molecular structure, bonding concepts used in the practice of inorganic chemistry. Applications of symmetry and group theory to structure, bonding, and spectra. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 550 and 595.
CHM 712. Inorganic Chemistry II. (3) II. Structure, reactivity, and mechanistic aspects of main group and transition metal complexes. Organometallic reactions, catalysis, and bioinorganic chemistry. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 550 and 595.
Organic chemistry courses
CHM 350. General Organic Chemistry. (3) I, II, S. A survey of types of organic reactions important to biological science, including pre-veterinary and certain agriculture and human ecology programs. Conc. enrollment in CHM 351 is urged. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 230 or 250.
CHM 351. General Organic Chemistry Laboratory. (2) I, II, S. One five-hour lab and one hour of lec. a week. Pr. or conc. enrollment: CHM 350.
CHM 531. Organic Chemistry I. (3) I, II. Topics to be covered include fundamental concepts in organic chemistry such as hybridization of molecular orbitals, structure and bonding, acids and bases, kinetics and thermodynamics, stereochemistry and chirality, and conformational analysis. The basic knowledge will be used to study the syntheses, reactions, and mechanisms of functional groups such as alkanes, haloalkanes, and alkenes. Structural determination using infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance will also be included. Three hours of lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 230 or 250.
CHM 532. Organic Chemistry Laboratory. (2) I, II. One five-hour lab and one hour of lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 550 or conc. enrollment.
CHM 550. Organic Chemistry II. (3) I, II. A continuation of Organic Chemistry I (CHM 531). CHM 550 represents the second semester of a two-semester survey of organic chemistry. Topics to be discussed include syntheses, reactions, and mechanisms of alkynes, aldehydes and ketones, carboxylic acids and their derivatives, amines, benzene and its derivatives, organometallic chemistry, conjugated unsaturated systems and pericyclic reactions, polymers, carbohydrates, lipids, amino acids, proteins, and nucleic acids. Structural identification will be studied using various current spectroscopic methods. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 531.
CHM 551. Advanced Organic Laboratory. (2) I, II. One five-hour lab and one hour of lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 550 and 532.
CHM 752. Advanced Organic Chemistry. (3) I. Advanced study of organic compounds and fundamental types of reactions. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 532, 550, and 595.
Physical chemistry courses
CHM 500. General Physical Chemistry. (3) II. Elementary principles of physical chemistry. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 350 or 531; MATH 211 or 221; and PHYS 114 or equiv.
CHM 585. Physical Chemistry I. (3) I. Elementary chemical thermodynamics and kinetic theory of gases. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 350 or 531; MATH 222; and PHYS 214.
CHM 595. Physical Chemistry II. (3) II. Elementary quantum chemistry, spectroscopy, statistical thermodynamics, and chemical kinetics. Three hours lec. a week. Pr.: CHM 350 or 531; MATH 222; and PHYS 214.
CHM 596. Physical Methods Laboratory. (1-2) II. Experiments that relate to physical and instrumental methods. Three to six hours lab a week. Pr.: CHM 566, MATH 221, and PHYS 114 or 214.