1. DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY
TRENT UNIVERSITY
CHEM 2200H: Transition Metal Chemistry
Winter
Peterborough
Instructor: Email:
Office Location: Office Hours: Telephone: 705-748-1011
Please note: To ensure email communication is not filtered as spam, all students are asked to use their
official “trentu.ca” email address for communication with the instructor.
Secretary: Ms. Laurie LaPlante Email: llaplante@trentu.ca
Office Location: CSB D105 Telephone: 705-748-1011 ext. 7505
Course Description:
This first course in inorganic chemistry is intended to introduce students to general chemistry topics
beyond the simplest chemical systems. Analysis of the transition metals allows further chemical
understanding, by investigating systems which, at first, seem to violate rules derived through basic
general chemistry. The prime focus resides in investigating stable systems which disobey the octet
rule, with specific target toward coordination systems involving d-block elements. These
investigations provide deeper understanding into the nature of the chemical bond, factors governing
the stability of molecules, and the overall chemistry beyond the well-quoted octet rule. Focus leans
toward using molecular orbital descriptions of basic coordination chemistry systems to aid in the
prediction of physical and chemical behaviour, as well as understanding factors affecting bonding in
polyatomic molecules. Thus, students gain an appreciation of the application of molecular orbital
theory to help understand chemical systems intuitively, with interpretations that span into all
chemistry subdisciplines.
Course Pre-requisites: Completion of Chemistry 2500H – Elements of Physical Chemistry I, or CHEM-
200. Exclusions: Chemistry 321H.
MyLearningSystem Course Site: Chemistry 2200H makes heavy usage of the MyLearningSystem
(MLS) site. All relevant information pertaining to the course will be posted for the benefit of all
students in the MLS environment. Announcements made on MLS are considered the same as
announcements made in class-periods. Please FREQUENTLY check in with the MLS site, as this is the
area where lecture notes, assignments, laboratory files, relevant dates within the course, and any
discussions regarding aspects of the course will be presented. Any information posted to MLS is
considered ‘known’ 24 hours following posting. For additional information regarding MLS, please see
the instructor.

2. 2
Course Format:
Type Day Time Location
Lecture Wednesday 9:00 – 10:50 GCS 108
Lecture Thursday 15:00 – 15:50 ESC B319
Laboratory Per student Per student CSB D113
Laboratory:
The initial laboratory runs on a sign-up basis, with a rotating schedule similar to the system in
Chemistry 2500. During the laboratory time-slot, most groups are doing a different lab. While the lab
material is complementary to the course content, you will not necessarily do the labs in the same
order as the material is presented in class. Details of lab report submission will be given by your
laboratory teaching assistant. Information for each of the Laboratory experiments is available
through the MyLearning System (WebCT), under the laboratory folder.
Course Evaluation:
Course Component Weighting Due Date
Assignments 20% Through term
Formal Laboratory Reports (3) 20% Through term
Laboratory Book – Remaining Reports 10%
Midterm Test 20%
Final Examination 30% TBA
Total 100%
Please note that the last date to withdraw from Winter term half courses without academic penalty
is March 9, 2012.
Course Evaluation components
Assignments: As many as 4 assignments will be distributed through the term. Each assignment is
equally weighted, and will focus on the course content delivered up to that point. Assignments must
be handed in by the posted due date. Late assignments are not accepted and will be given a grade of
zero unless otherwise arranged with the instructor.
Formal Laboratory Reports: Detailed specifics about laboratory report submission are available on
MLS (webCT). Students submit their reports according to their laboratory schedule. Late reports are
not accepted, unless otherwise arranged.
Laboratory Book: Students record laboratory information in a hard-bound laboratory notebook,
which must be used in all laboratory experiments. A list of guidelines is given to facilitate labbook
preparation. All labs are written up within the lab-book, including those that are formally submitted.
Experiments not submitted as formal reports will be marked, in detail, in the laboratory book.

3. 3
Midterm Test: The midterm test will cover all material covered up to the week before the test. It will
take place in the 2-hour lecture slot, and students will be allowed the entire 1 hour and 50 minute
period for the test. The format of the test will be short-answer style. Material assigned from the
textbook, and material in the lecture notes will make up the core material. Laboratory material will
not be expressly examined except where it overlaps with lecture content. Specific details will be
posted to MyLearning System as the test date approaches.
Final Exam: The final exam will be cumulative, covering all material in the course. Students will be
allowed 3 hours to write the final exam. Material assigned from the textbook, and material in the
lecture notes will make up the core material. Laboratory material will not be expressly examined
except where it overlaps with lecture content. The final examination will be short-answer style.
Specific details will be posted to MyLearningSystem as the date of the exam approaches.
Required Texts: Atkins, Overton, Rourke, Weller, Armstrong, and Hagerman: Shriver and Atkins’
Inorganic Chemistry (softcover), 5rd
edition, Freeman publishers.
Supplementary Texts – some available in Bata Library (also see Reserve Desk at Circulation):
Cotton F.A. and Wilkinson, G. Advanced Inorganic Chemistry, 5th
Edition (or any other edition), Wiley
Interscience, 1988.
Huheey, J.E. Inorganic Chemistry: Principles of Structure and Reactivity 4th
Edition, Harper Collins,
1993.
Moeller, T. Inorganic Chemistry, A Modern Introduction Wiley, 1982.
Douglas, B.; McDaniel, D.H.; Alexander, J.J. Concepts and Models of Inorganic Chemistry 2nd
Edition,
Wiley, 1983.
Harris, D.C. and Bertolucci, M.D., Symmetry and Spectroscopy: An Introduction to Vibrational and
Electronic Spectroscopy, Dover, 1978.

4. 4
Chemistry 2200H Tentative Course Schedule:
Aspects of the following topics shall be covered through this course. Please note that the schedule is
tentative and subject to minor modification as the course progresses. The intention is to give a broad
overview of the chemistry of transition metal systems, with a focus on bonding and coordination
chemistry.
Week 1: Introduction to transition metals – history and development of the periodic table (Ch. 1)
Week 2: The chemistry of the transition metals – the electron (Ch. 1, and other selected sections)
Week 3: Orbitals, atoms, molecules and ions – electronic structure and bonding (Ch. 2)
Week 4: Transition metals and periodicity, Molecular orbital theory in transition metal chemistry (Ch. 2)
Week 5: Characteristics of Transition Metal Compounds (Ch. 2, and related sections)
Week 6: Symmetry and consequences of symmetry in transition metal systems (Ch. 6)
Reading Break
Week 7: Basic nomenclature and characteristics of transition metal complexes (Ch. 7)
Week 8: Stereochemistry in transition metal chemistry (Ch. 7)
Week 9: Crystal field and Ligand field theory (Ch. 20, 21)
Week 10: Coordination compounds and Organometallics, Stability of transition metal complexes (Ch. 21, 22)
Week 11: Chemical reactions in transition metal chemistry (Ch. 22)
Week 12: Modern applications of transition metals in research context
University, Course and Departmental Policies
Academic Integrity:
Academic dishonesty, which includes plagiarism and cheating, is an extremely serious academic
offence and carries penalties varying from a 0 grade on an assignment to expulsion from the
University. Definitions, penalties, and procedures for dealing with plagiarism and cheating are set out
in Trent University’s Academic Integrity Policy. You have a responsibility to educate yourself –
unfamiliarity with the policy is not an excuse. You are strongly encouraged to visit Trent’s Academic
Integrity website to learn more: www.trentu.ca/academicintegrity.
Access to Instruction:
It is Trent University's intent to create an inclusive learning environment. If a student has a disability
and/or health consideration and feels that he/she may need accommodations to succeed in this
course, the student should contact the Disability Services Office (Blackburn Hall, Room 132, 748-1281,
disabilityservices@trentu.ca) as soon as possible. Complete text can be found under Access to
Instruction in the Academic Calendar.
Please see the Trent University academic calendar for University Diary dates, Academic Information
and Regulations, and University and departmental degree requirements.

5. 5
Policy on Late Assignments and Laboratory Components: Course components submitted after the
posted due date will not be accepted, and will be graded with a mark of zero. Exceptional cases
which require special consideration should be dealt with by contacting the instructor, and making any
necessary accommodation arrangements.
Chemistry Department Policy on Completion of Course Work:
The Department of Chemistry considers that completion of all components of a course is necessary
for a student to be given credit in that course. Therefore, it is the policy of the Department that a
student must complete, and hand in if applicable, all material associated with each component of the
course. This applies equally to work that is handed in or completed too late to earn any marks in the
course, in conjunction with the policy of the course instructor on lateness.
Students who fail to meet this requirement for reasons that would make it reasonable to assign an
”incomplete” mark for the course should consult the instructor well before on which final marks are
due for the course in question. In the absence of an incomplete standing being assigned, the student
will receive a mark of “0” and an “F” grade in the course.