Principles

"To be educated you must understand Shakespeare and thermodynamics."

The treatment of chemistry in the course is based on the establishment and use of three principles which are fundamental to the study of chemical systems.

• The way in which energy transfers can determine the feasibility and outcome of reactions.
• The relationship between structure (both atomic and molecular) and the properties of substances.
• The use of the Periodic Table to provide a unifying pattern for the diverse properties of elements and compounds.

In Nuffield Chemistry these principles are applied to the experimental study of both organic and inorganic systems, in a way that does not involve the neglect of preparative work.