CHEM100 to CHEM507

CHEM100 Fundamentals of Chemistry                                                                                                  10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation 6 contact hours per week for 12 weeks.

This unit is designed to introduce students to the study of chemistry and its influence on change in society and the environment. It provides a foundation for the further study of chemistry of relevance to environmental science. In addition, it is aimed at developing within students’ personal initiative, professional responsibility and an interest in, and enthusiasm for, the learning of chemistry.

CHEM102 Physical Chemistry                                                                                                               10 cp

Prerequisites CHEM100 Fundamentals of Chemistry

Teaching Organisation 6 hours per week for 12 weeks or equivalent.

This unit will make students aware of some chemical principles underlying many technological processes which have an effect on society and the environment. It will allow students to apply chemical principles to the behaviour of laboratory systems and the wider environment.

CHEM201 Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry                                                                                   10 cp

Prerequisites CHEM100 Fundamentals of Chemistry

Teaching Organisation 6 hours per week for 12 weeks or equivalent.

This unit develops awareness of the importance of organic chemicals in the natural and built environment. Atomic structure and bonding are developed further and the structure, physical properties, uses and nomenclature of the major classes of organic compounds (including some pesticides, detergents and polymers) are studied. Stereoisomerism, reactivity, and the mechanisms of some significant chemical reactions are examined as well as the classification of hazardous chemicals and regulations for safe practice.

CHEM203 Environmental Chemistry                                                                                                     10 cp

Prerequisites CHEM100 Fundamentals of Chemistry

Teaching Organisation 6 contact hours per week for 12 weeks.

This unit will consolidate students’ learning in preceding units. They will build upon acquired knowledge and apply this to developing their understanding of the environment and to interpreting environmental issues and concerns in terms of the associated chemistry.

CHEM504 Chemicals on Earth                                                                                                              10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation 3 hours per week for 10 weeks or equivalent

This unit reviews the occurrence, characteristics, classification and uses of elements, particularly metals. The differences between the properties of a compound and its component elements are considered. The atomic structure of elements is related to the periodic table, with particular emphasis on periodic trends in properties. The structure and bonding of elements and compounds are related to their properties. Chemical reactions are reviewed, with reference to the extraction of economically useful substances from natural resources. The mole concept is developed.

CHEM505 Energy and Materials                                                                                                           10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation 3 hours per week for 10 weeks or equivalent

This unit develops an understanding of the relationship between chemical reactions and the production of energy. The formation of fossil fuels, their extraction from natural resources and the properties of carbon compounds used as fuels are described. The production of energy through combustion reactions and the factors affecting these reactions are investigated. The role played by water in the storage of energy is examined. The use of fossil fuels in the production of raw materials is described. Methods of reducing society’s dependence on fossil fuels are investigated. The production of energy and raw materials by electrochemical methods is examined, as well as the production of some useful materials through nuclear chemistry.

CHEM506 Monitoring the Environment                                                                                                 10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation 3 hours per week for 10 weeks or equivalent

This unit develops an understanding of the importance of chemical processes in the natural and built environments. The chemical concepts of acids and bases and equilibrium processes are developed in these contexts. The roles of chemists and the nature of various chemical processes used in some industrial production processes are examined. Chemical concepts are applied in relation to the management and quality control of industrial chemical production and to chemical analyses used for the monitoring of impacts of human activities on the environment.

CHEM507 Applications of Chemistry                                                                                                     10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation 3 hours per week for 10 weeks or equivalent

This unit extends the principles and concepts developed in the previous units, applying them to a range of technological and environmental processes. A deeper understanding of equilibrium principles and electron transfer reactions is developed through the study of industrial processes such as the production of sulfuric acid, the electrolysis of brine to produce sodium hydroxide, the production of soap and the production of sodium carbonate by the Solvay process. The study of oxidation-reduction reactions is extended to corrosion and methods of minimising this process in natural environments, with a particular emphasis on marine environments.