The purpose of this experiment is to introduce the basic concepts important to the study of infrared absorption spectroscopy, specifically the operation of a Nicolet Avatar 320 FTIR Spectrometer and the meaning of absorption as related to stretching and bending of chemical bonds.Your lab book introduction should therefore, include:
- the theory behind infrared absorption spectroscopy, especially as it relates to FTIR.
- information about the operation of an infrared absorption spectrometer, with diagrams of its internal schematics, and a short description of how each of the following parts works:
*light source
* interferometer
* detector
* recorder/analyzer
- briefly compare Nujol mulls, KBr pellets and "neat" samples.
Procedure:
Run a scan on the polystyrene test film. Label the peaks, etc. Identify what type of group, C-H, O-H, C=C, etc is represented by each peak.
Results & Discussion:
Summarize the types of bonds present in polystyrene. Draw the structural formula for a monomer of polystyrene and relate the different groups in the molecule to the different peaks seen.