Practical NMR Spectroscopy

Description:
NMR spectroscopy is a powerful analytical tool. There is a multitude of NMR techniques that can be utilized to solve many analytical problems. Most basic users might only collect routine 1D spectra, especially 1H and 13C. But using the same instrumentation, you can obtain a ton of information valuable for your analytical needs. In this course, you will learn the fundamentals of NMR spectroscopy to help you better understand commonly used and advanced 1D and 2D NMR experiments, both in routine analytical work and in scientific research. Choosing the right experiment from hundreds of available options for your specific problem will be reviewed.

This course will focus on practical skills associated with acquiring and evaluating NMR data and spectral interpretation without hardcore theory or boring equations. You will learn the tips and tricks to obtain the best out of your spectrometer. Various acquisition and data processing techniques will be reviewed to improve the quality of data. Interpretation of 1D & 2D NMR data to assign functional groups, atom connectivity and assignment to the molecular structure in a step-by-step manner will be taught. Selective 1D NOE & 2D NOESY/ROESY experiments to obtain stereochemistry of molecules will be explained.

Several non-routine, but easy to implement NMR techniques will be introduced to help solve analytical problems. For example, diffusion NMR experiments help distinguish molecules based on their molecular size. Pureshift NMR simplifies 1H spectra by removing spin-spin coupling patterns, making 1H spectra almost like 13C spectra. NUS (Non Uniform Sampling) technique helps obtain 2D NMR spectra faster and at a higher resolution than standard data collection. Dynamic NMR spectroscopy provides a way of extracting thermodynamic parameters such as bond rotation barrier and activation energies for interconverting rotamers.

Overall, this course will prepare you to engage the NMR spectrometer and interpret NMR data with confidence.

Speaker: Damodaran Achary - University of Pittsburgh
Damodaran Achary received his B.Sc. from the University of Madras, India, and his M.Sc. in Physical Chemistry from the University of Pune, India. He received his Ph.D. in Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy from the National Chemical Laboratory, India. He then moved to the US for his post-doctoral work at Ames Laboratory, Iowa. Later he took an NMR Spectroscopist/Facility Manager position at Miami University, Oxford, OH. In 2005, he moved to the University of Pittsburgh as the Director of the NMR Facility which he currently holds. His research interests include the application of solution and solid-state NMR spectroscopy to interdisciplinary areas of science. He has extensive experience training hundreds of academic and industry users and taught many courses on NMR spectroscopy for chemists. He has co-authored over 80 peer-reviewed publications applying NMR spectroscopy to various areas of science.