Isomers Part II
Summary
The lesson delves into the intricate world of optical isomers, their subtypes, and the principles governing their behavior and characteristics, focusing on chirality, enantiomers, diastereomers, and meso compounds.
- Optical isomers are a subtype of configurational isomers differentiated by how polarized light is rotated when passing through them, attributed to their molecular chirality.
- Enantiomers are mirror images with opposite chirality at every chiral center, affecting how they interact with polarized light and chiral catalysts like enzymes.
- Diastereomers have different stereochemistry but are not mirror images of each other, leading to varied physical properties and chemical reactivities.
- Meso compounds, despite having chiral centers, do not rotate plane-polarized light due to an internal mirror plane that cancels out optical activity.
- The number of potential optical isomers can be calculated using the Van't Hoff Rule, with adjustments for meso compounds, which are considered as a single isomer despite being a pair.
Chapters
00:10
Introduction to Optical Isomers
04:56
Understanding Enantiomers
06:08
Exploring Diastereomers
07:52
The Concept of Meso Compounds
