Using ChemSite to Create Molecular Models for MS Word

  1. Open the application from the Science folder under Programs.
  2. Choose Display from the menu, choose Settings, and select Line.
  3. Choose Display from the menu, choose Line Settings, and select Multi-bond.
  4. Choose Build from the menu and select Sketch mode. Choose the atom type that you want and click in the open window to place the first atom.
  5. Choose a different atom type or keep the same one. Left click on the current atom and drag to where you want the new atom.
  6. Right click on the bond to make it a double bond.
  7. For those who are building an organic structure with lots of hydrogen atoms: once you finish your backbone atoms, you will want to choose Build and select Add Hydrogens.
  8. Now under the Sketch menu you want to select Optimize Structure. This will fix the molecules so that your crude drawing is corrected to give the atoms the correct bond angles.
  9. Choose Display from the menu, choose Settings, and select the other types to see what your molecule looks like. You can also rotate your molecule in 3-D by left clicking on it.
  10. You will now want to save your beautiful creation. If you want to save a copy in ChemSite’s neutral file type, select the extension “.lib” for library. This will allow you to reopen this molecule and work on it some more. For example, if I build a water molecule, I will choose File from the menu and choose Save As. I will then direct the saving to some folder in my U drive by typing “u:”. In the Save As menu, I will select ChemSite Library (*.lib) and name it “H2O” and the file will be saved as “H2O.lib”.
  11. Before you transfer your molecule to MS Word, orient it the way you want it. Make sure all the atoms are visible, etc.
  12. Choose Select from the main menu and choose Molecule. Now choose Edit from the menu and choose Copy.
  13. Open a new file in MS Word and paste your molecule into the document. It will paste the molecule in the document as a “bitmap” just as it does if you were using clip art. You can re-size the image by dragging the corners.

Notes:

·  You will only see the double bonds in the Line setting, but you can build and look at your molecule under any display setting.

·  If you want ChemSite to label the atoms with their symbol, choose Display from the menu, choose Labeling, and select what you want.

·  If you put the wrong type of atom in your structure, you can choose the correct type and then click on top of the incorrect atom and it will replace it with the new type.

·  You can select an atom by a double left-click. You can select a bond by a double right-click.

Look on the next page for an example

Acetic Acid (HC2H3O2 or CH3COOH)


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Cary Academy Chemistry II W.G. Rushin