The topic is the elimination of an alcohol to form alkenes; GCMS results and why based on mechanistic, thermodynamic, and kinetic considerations.
General Instructions
The opening paragraph should introduce the experiment and a closing paragraph should summarize your main points. The body of the essay should flow and not be an agglomeration of disconnected facts. Use appropriate transitions when moving from one idea to another. Cite all references.
Use ChemDraw or other chemical drawing program to generate your chemical structures. Chemical structures do not count toward your number of pages
Outline
• Introduction (write this last):
Introduce the elimination reaction (ways that elimination can occur and how to control the elimination) and your experiment; give an overview of the general reaction and your results.
• Results:
In a sentence or two, briefly tell what you did (e.g. reacted A with B to give C…). Do not include a detailed experimental account.) Present your results (include a sample calculation, percent compositions; from your total mass determine the mass of each alkene and % yield of each alkene). Make use of tables and reaction schemes, and a chromatogram. Remember “a picture is worth a thousand words”.
• Discussion:
Discuss this elimination in terms of its mechanism, the action of the acid, the expected result and the actual result. Interpret what the results mean and give evidence for your interpretation (e.g., how does the GCMS support your interpretation). Discuss the formation of more than one product and the overall yield; identify the favored alkene and explain using mechanistic, thermodynamic, and kinetic arguments. If there is starting material remaining, discuss why and possible solutions.
• Conclusion:
Summarize your main points….relate your results back to the purpose of your experiment.
• References: generally follow the American Chemical Society style for its publications: Author, A. B.; Author, B. C., Title of the Article, J. of the Most Interesting YEAR, #, page.