Chem 121 General Chemistry – 2nd Semester – Fall 2014
Dr. F. T. Quinlan -- fquinlan@napavalley.edu -- (707) 256-7264
Lecture: T/R
Discussion: T/R
Lab: T
Office hours:
1:30 – 2:50 pm
3:00 – 3:50 pm
8:30 – 12:20 pm
Room 835
Room 835
Room 1830
MW 1:30-3:00, R 10:00-12:00, and by appointment, Room 1843
Course Description: A continuation of CHEM 120. Topics include solutions, acid-base and redox
equilibria, thermodynamics, kinetics, pH, buffers, solubility product, complex ions, thermodynamics,
electrochemistry, biochemistry and nuclear chemistry.
Text: Nivaldo J. Tro; Chemistry: A Molecular Approach, 2nd Edition; Pearson Prentice Hall, 2009;
and our in-house lab manual available at the bookstore for purchase. Goggles are also required for
lab and can be purchased at the bookstore.
Course Content:
1. Chemical Kinetics
Rate Laws
Activation Energy
Mechanisms
Catalysis
2. Radioactivity
Nuclear Stability
Half Life
Nuclear Transformations
3. Chemical Equilibrium
LeChatlier's Principle
Homogenous Systems
Heterogeneous Systems
4. Acids & Bases
Strong and Weak acids
pH
Buffers
Titration Curves
5. Applications of Aqueous Equilibria
Solubility
pH controlled Solubility
Complex Ions
Amphoterism
6. Spontaneity, Entropy and Free Energy
Effect of Temperature
Work and Efficiency
7. Electrochemistry
Nernst Equation
Standard State Potentials
ReDox Reactions
8. Organic Chemistry
Nomenclature
Functional Groups
Free-Radical Halogenation
Substitution and Elimination Reactions
Exams: The following are tentative dates for your exams and the material each exam will cover.
Exam #1 - Thursday, September 25th - Kinetics
Exam #2 - Thursday, November 6th - Equilibrium
Exam #3 - Thursday, December 11th - Thermodynamics
Final Exam - Comprehensive – Tuesday, December 16th, 1:00-3:00
Quizzes: There will be weekly quizzes on Thursdays covering recent material.
Attendance Policy: (taken from the Napa Valley College Catalog): Regular attendance in all classes
is important for satisfactory academic progress. The Napa Valley College attendance regulations
make provisions for a limited number of unavoidable absences. However, a student who is absent for
as many times as a class meets each week (for this class, this means twice) will have exhausted this
provision. An instructor may request verification of those absences. Further absences may cause
the instructor to drop the student from the class. Students who do not attend the first class meeting
may be dropped or lose priority on the waiting list.
Make-up Lectures, Assignments, and Exams: As a rule, there are NO make-up sessions,
assignments, or evaluations. You must complete all labs or you may fail the course regardless of your
total point accumulation. If you can anticipate an absence, please make arrangements well in
advance with the instructor to potentially avoid such penalties. Missed exams and quizzes will
receive a score of zero points. Also, the instructor reserves the right to have additional quizzes as
necessary.
Grading: There will be 3 exams, 12 labs, approximately 10 quizzes, and 1 final, which will comprise
your final score in the class. Below is a rough outline of the points in this course.
3 Exams = 300pts (100pts each)
1 Final= 200pts
Quizzes = 100pts (10 @ 10pts each) Labs = 120 pts (12 @ 10 pts each)
90-100% = A
80-89% = B
70-79% = C
60-69% = D
<60% = F
Homework: Homework assignments are posted on the website and are worth 5 points each. Every
prompt will be written out and all work will be shown in order to receive credit. Homework is an all-ornothing affair. Partial completion receives zero points. It is in your best interest to do the homework
fully, and with great fervor, as it will directly aid you in succeeding in this course.
Electronic Devices: Cell phones and pagers are to be turned OFF before lecture and/or lab begins.
Electronic means of recording the lectures are not permitted (this includes both audio and video
recording) unless otherwise cleared with the professor. Additionally, laptop computers should be
stored during lectures; take notes the old-fashioned way (with paper and pen). Cell phones are NOT
to be used as calculators during exams. Additionally, ipods, and the like, are also banned from
lectures and labs.
Laboratory Requirements: You are expected to be prepared for lab BEFORE starting the experiment.
This includes attending the lab lecture at the beginning of the week and familiarizing yourself with the
requirements of the lab days before doing it. It is unwise to assume that you might be able to walk
into lab unprepared and be able to finish the lab. Be Prepared!
Proper lab safety attire will be strictly enforced. This includes: having shoes that fully and completely
cover your foot, safety goggles that fully seal around your face (glasses are inappropriate), long hair
must be tied back and in a bun, and clothing that covers from shoulders to knees. Failure to have this
proper attire will result in ejection from lab and the inability to do the lab (i.e. zero points for lab).
All labs must be performed in order to complete the class. Failure to do so will result in a failing grade
for that lab and will seriously hamper your ability in the course. The lab is integral to the course, and
it part of the requirements for credit. All lab reports will be turned in one week after the lab is
completed. Failure to turn in a lab report, regardless of whether or not you did the lab, will count as
an incomplete assignment.. Late labs will not be accepted for points.
Letters of Accommodation: Any student who feels that he or she may need an accommodation
based on the impact of a learning disability should contact Learning Services in the Library and
Learning Resource Center (LLRC), room 1766, phone (707) 256-7442. A Learning Disability
Specialist will review your needs and determine appropriate accommodations.
If you need accommodations for physical or other types of disabilities, schedule an appointment with
the Disabled Students Programs and Services (DSPS) Counselor, Sheryl Fernandez, in the
Counseling Department located in the 1300 building, phone (707) 256-7220 for an appointment.
All information and documentation is confidential.
Please feel encouraged to make an appointment with me privately to discuss your specific learning
needs in my class. I am here to help you succeed.
Obligatory Statement of Academic Fraud (aka Cheating): All work must be of your own original
composition. Plagiarism from any source (books, papers, fellow classmates, Internet, etc.) or
unethical behavior during exams (notes, a neighboring exam, communication in any form, etc.) will
not be tolerated. The fabrication or use of data other than your own in the laboratory reports is
considered fraud. A failing grade will be assigned for that assignment. In addition, the matter will be
turned over to the Vice President of Student Services for further judiciary and disciplinary actions.
Consult your student handbook for additional information on this and other Honor Code stipulations.
Consider this statement as your first, last, and only warning regarding this matter.
Instructor: The best way to get in touch with the instructor is by email (fquinlan@napavalley.edu).
Because the office is shared, email is the only way that is guaranteed to get your message delivered.
The office is located in room 1843.
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Communicate chemical and physical processes at the molecular level and how they relate to the
macroscopic environment.
Solve both qualitative and quantitative chemistry problems while demonstrating the reasoning
clearly and completely.
Implement laboratory techniques correctly using appropriate safety procedures and express them
clearly in written laboratory reports.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
Explain the development of chemical principles and concepts based on experiments.
Analyze and solve complex or extended problems involving mathematical skills as well as an
ability to place these problems in an environment, biological, economic or social context.
Design a laboratory experiment by defining the problem, collecting data, obtaining results,
deriving conclusions, and preparing a report to communicate the information to others in writing.
Explain the concepts related to rates of reaction, activation energies, mechanisms of reactions,
as applied to the kinetic molecular theory.
Relate equilibrium information from chemical systems to the free energy, enthalpy and entropy.
Determine the equilibrium constants and show how the spontaneity of the system is related to the
driving force of the reaction.
Apply the equilibrium system concepts to acid/base, solubility, redox, and complex ion formation
reaction systems.
Indicate how an electrochemical cell can be used to establish the standard free energy of a
chemical reaction, and measure the pH of a system.
LABORATORY SAFETY RULES
Your participation in this laboratory requires that you follow safe laboratory practices. You are required to
adhere to the safety guidelines listed below, as well as any other safety procedures given by your instructor(s)
in charge of the course. You will be asked to sign this form certifying that you were informed of the safety
guidelines and emergency procedures for this laboratory. Violations of these rules are grounds for expulsion
from the laboratory.
Note: You have the right to ask questions regarding your safety in this laboratory, either directly or
anonymously, without fear of reprisal.

Goggles must be worn at all times while in lab. You must purchase a pair of goggle for yourself and
you may store them in your locker. You will be advised of the appropriate goggles to be purchased.

Locate the emergency evacuation plan posted by the door. Know your exit routes!

Locate emergency shower, eyewash station, fire extinguisher, fire alarm, and fire blanket.

Dispose of all broken glassware in the proper receptacle. Never put broken glass in the trashcan.

Notify you instructor immediately if you are injured in the laboratory; no matter how slight.

Never pipette fluids by mouth. Check odors cautiously (i.e. wafting). Never taste a chemical.

Shoes must be worn in the laboratory. These shoes must fully enclose your foot.

Long hair must be tied up in a bun during lab work. Loose long sleeves should be avoided in the lab.

Children and pets are not allowed in the laboratory.

Eating or drinking in the lab is prohibited. Do not drink from the laboratory taps.

Wash your hands before and after working in the lab.

Turn off the Bunsen burner when you are not using it.

If any reagents are spilled, notify your instructor at once.

Follow the instructor’s directions for disposal of chemicals.

Only perform the assigned experiment. No unauthorized experiments are allowed.

Every chemical in a laboratory must be properly labeled. If a label is unclear, notify your instructor.

Use the proper instrument (eye-dropper, scoopula, etc.) to remove reagents from bottles. Never
return unused chemicals to the original container. Do not cross contaminate reagents by using the
same instrument for 2 different reagents. (e.g. don’t use the mustard knife in the mayonnaise jar)

Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) are available for your reference. These contain all known health
hazards of the chemicals used in this course. In addition, there is information concerning protocols for
accidental exposure to the chemical. You are advised to inspect this binder.