Specific Optical Rotation and its Applications
This module is to understand the basics of Specific Optical Rotation (SOR) and principle of polarimetry. It gives and an overview of the components and operation of a polarimeter.
Introduction to optical rotation, chirality, enantiomers and plane polarized light
Properties of chiral molecules and optical isomerism
Rotation of plane polarized light and its measurement
Polarimeter and its components including light source, polarizer, sample tube and analyzer
Optical activity and specific optical rotation
Factors impacting optical rotation
Sources of error in measurement of SOR
Calibration of polarimeter and temperature probe
Racemization and its impact on measurement
Operation of polarimeter and best practices while taking a measurement
Why it matters
Many pharmaceutical substances are optically active because of the presence of one or more asymmetric centers, usually a carbon atom with four different substituents, resulting in many isomers. Polarimetry is perhaps the only convenient means for distinguishing optically active isomers from each other. As such, it is an important identification and purity measurement for QC analysts.
Who is it for
Personnel in production, analytical quality, including quality control and quality assurance who use this technique should complete this module.
