CM4228 - CATALYSIS FOR SUSTAINABLE CHEMICAL SYNTHESIS

Academic Year 23/24 - Semester 1

Assessments:

• Midterm: 30%

• Group Project/Presentation: 10%

• Final Exam: 60%

Lecturer: A/P Koh Ming Joo

​

Course Overview:

• Acid/base catalysis (e.g Sakurai allylation), Organometallic catalysis (e.g Sonogashira coupling), Catalytic reactions involving alkenes and alkynes, Heterogenous catalysis, Photoredox catalysis, Biocatalysis

​

Difficulty of the course: Average

Pace of the course: Just Right

Duration provided to prepare for tutorials: >7 Days

Workload of Course (Average number of actual hours spent per week)

To learn the content: 4 hours

To complete assignments: 4 hours

​

REVIEW

What advice would you give to someone considering to take this course?

Anonymous: Overloading may or may not be a good idea since the lectures are typically recorded (although the occasional technical issue may lead to one or two empty recordings) and end on time or earlier than the timetable shows. However, if you do not have good intuition for organic chemistry, it may take a while to understand and apply the catalytic mechanisms taught in the module, as there are relatively few questions given for you to attempt. You would probably have to find other resources to get enough practice.

What did you enjoy or find most useful from this course?

Anonymous: The extensive amount of catalytic mechanisms and reactions taught are surely very useful in giving a relatively decent theoretical background for anyone looking to do organic synthesis.

What aspects of the course did you find most challenging, and why?

Anonymous: The application of the concepts taught onto the questions in the tests and finals were quite difficult for someone with relatively bad organic chemistry intuition.