29.4 Isomerism: optical · Find chiral centres, turn a model to test whether a mirror image can be superimposed, and predict what a polarimeter shows for pure and racemic samples.
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About this lab
Find chiral centres, turn a model to test whether a mirror image can be superimposed, and predict what a polarimeter shows for pure and racemic samples.
You will be able to
Identify the chiral centres in a molecule of given structural formula.
Explain why the two enantiomers of a chiral molecule cannot be superimposed.
Describe the effect of each enantiomer, and of a racemic mixture, on plane-polarised light.
Explain why a planar C=O group attacked from either face gives a racemic mixture, and why a chiral catalyst is used to make a single enantiomer.
