IChO Syllabus 2027: Check Topics, Levels and PDF

The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) syllabus was developed to give competing students information about the level of chemistry knowledge expected in the competition. Differences in chemistry education across countries made a common syllabus useful for student preparation. The syllabus also considers the differences in chemical experiments taught at secondary schools.

Preparatory tasks were introduced to support students in their preparation. However, these tasks were considered important but not sufficient. The international jury later decided to prepare a syllabus covering the theoretical and practical parts of the competition. The syllabus for the theoretical part was prepared first and was later accompanied by the practical syllabus.

IChO Syllabus 2027 Level-Wise Classification

The syllabus divides topics into three levels. These levels indicate how commonly the topics are included in secondary school chemistry programmes and how they may be used in preparatory problems.

This classification helps you understand the expected level of different chemistry topics in the competition.

International Chemistry Olympiad Syllabus Topics

The International Chemistry Olympiad syllabus covers major areas of chemistry. The theoretical syllabus has 12 main sections. These sections include fundamental chemistry concepts as well as physical, organic, inorganic, analytical and biological chemistry.

These sections form the main structure of the theoretical syllabus. The topics within each section are assigned different levels according to their presence in secondary school chemistry programmes.

IChO Chemistry Syllabus for Inorganic and Physical Chemistry

Inorganic Chemistry covers the properties and reactions of different groups of elements. It includes:

• Main Group Elements: Properties, reactions, oxidation states and compounds of the main group elements.

• Transition Elements: Common oxidation states, properties and reactions of transition metals.

• Lanthanides and Actinides: Topics related to these elements.

• Coordination Chemistry: Coordination numbers, complex ions, ligand field theory and stereochemistry.

• Industrial Processes: Selected processes for the preparation of H₂SO₄, NH₃, Na₂CO₃, Cl₂, NaOH and HNO₃.

Physical Chemistry includes gases, thermodynamics, equilibrium and electrochemistry. The major topics are:

• Gases: Ideal gas law, van der Waals’ gas law, partial pressure and Dalton’s Law.

• Thermodynamics: Energy, heat, work, enthalpy, entropy and Gibbs energy.

• Equilibrium: Acid-base equilibrium, gas-phase equilibrium, solubility, complexometric equilibrium and phase equilibrium.

• Electrochemistry: Electromotive force, electrode potential and the Nernst equation.

IChO Syllabus Topics in Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry

Organic Chemistry covers the naming, properties and reactions of organic compounds. The syllabus includes:

• Hydrocarbons: Alkanes, cycloalkanes, alkenes and alkynes.

• Benzene: Structure, resonance and electrophilic substitution.

• Halogen Compounds: Nomenclature, substitution and elimination reactions.

• Alcohols: Nomenclature, acidity, dehydration and oxidation reactions.

• Aldehydes and Ketones: Nomenclature, oxidation, reduction and nucleophilic addition reactions.

• Carboxylic Acids and Derivatives: Nomenclature, acidity, hydrolysis, esterification and related reactions.

• Amines: Nomenclature, basicity, preparation and diazotization.

• Isomerism: Cis-trans and E/Z isomerism, enantiomers, optical activity and R/S nomenclature.

Biochemistry covers chemical compounds of biological importance. The syllabus includes:

• Carbohydrates: Glucose, fructose, Fischer projections, Haworth formulae, starch and cellulose.

• Fats: Structure of fats and glycerol.

• Amino Acids: Ionic structure, isoelectric point, classification and separation by electrophoresis.

• Proteins: Primary, secondary and tertiary structures, S-S bridges, sequence analysis and denaturation.

• Nucleic Acids: Pyrimidines, purines, nucleosides, nucleotides, DNA and RNA.

• Protein Synthesis: Differences between mRNA and tRNA.

• Enzymes: General properties, active centres, nomenclature, kinetics, coenzymes and the function of ATP.

The syllabus also includes polymers:

• Addition Polymers: Polystyrene and polyethene.

• Condensation Polymers: Polyesters and polyamides.

• Other Polymer Topics: Silicones, cross-linking and its effect on properties.

• Natural Polymers: Silicates and rubber.

International Chemistry Olympiad Important Topics in Spectroscopy and Analytical Chemistry

Spectroscopy includes several methods used to study chemical structures and properties. The syllabus covers:

• UV/Visible Spectroscopy: Identification of aromatic compounds, chromophores, dyes and Beer’s Law.

• Infrared Spectroscopy: Interpretation using a table of frequencies and recognition of hydrogen bonds.

• X-Ray: Bragg’s Law, coordination number, unit cell and solid structures such as NaCl, CsCl and metals.

• NMR: Chemical shift, spin-spin coupling, coupling constants, integration and interpretation of simple spectra.

• Mass Spectrometry: Recognition of molecular ions, fragments using a table and typical isotope distribution.

Analytical chemistry covers the following areas:

• Titrations: Acid-base titration, titration curves, pH, choice of indicators and redox titration.

• Qualitative Analysis: Identification of inorganic ions, anions, cations and organic functional groups.

• Chromatographic Methods: Methods of separation using chromatography.

IChO Syllabus PDF

The syllabus material contains separate syllabuses for the theoretical and practical parts of the IChO competition. The theoretical syllabus was prepared first, followed by the practical syllabus. The material states that both parts were included to provide students with information about the expected level of preparation for the competition.

IChO Theoretical Syllabus PDF

IChO Practical Syllabus PDF

The IChO syllabus covers 12 major areas of chemistry. These include the atom, chemical bonding, chemical calculations, periodic trends, inorganic chemistry, physical chemistry, chemical kinetics, spectroscopy, organic chemistry, polymers, biochemistry and analytical chemistry.

The syllabus also divides topics into three levels based on their presence in secondary school chemistry programmes. You can use this structure to understand the scope and level of chemistry covered in the competition.

Preparation Resources

• IChO Online Batches

• IChO Test Series

PW provides Olympiad exam content, including Olympiad Exam Updates, sample papers, mock tests, guidance sessions, and more. Also, enroll today in the Olympiad Online Batches for preparation.