Chem 106 Identification of an Acid Lab Report

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Washington State University *

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106

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Chemistry

Date

Dec 6, 2023

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pdf

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4

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Identification of an Acid The objective of this laboratory experiment was to use the data we collected via pH probe and spectrophotometer to identify an unknown weak acid. Acid-base equilibrium occurs when weak acids and bases react. Weak acids only partially ionize, and equilibrium is reached once there is a balance of ionized and unionized acid. This is depicted using this symbol: A pH titration is a method of obtaining data required to create a weak acid titration curve. You add a solution of a base to a solution of a weak acid in increments, and record how much the pH increases each time as well as how much of the base solution caused the increase. This allows you to plot a line and observe where the big jumps occurred. Usually, the curve ends up being an ‘S’ shape, where there are two obvious large increases in pH before it flattens out again. The purpose of this is to determine the titration’s equivalence point and half- equivalence point. These values allow you to determine the acid’s pKa and Ka values, which in turn allows you to determine the identity of the unknown acid. Methods and Analytical Plan The data I needed to record was how the acid solution was made (which unknown, mass of unknown used, & volume of the volumetric flask I made it in), how I did the titrations (initial and final burette readings recorded for each solution) as well as what I titrated it with, and finally, the pH reading for each solution that was made. This data was then used to determine pKa values for the acid [by identifying the half-equivalence point], calculate the molar mass of the acid, and use this information to (finally) identify the acid itself.
Data and Calculations I made the acid solution using 0.805 grams of a solid unknown acid ( unknown #1 ). I dissolved the solid acid in DI water in a beaker, and then poured it into a 250 mL volumetric flask that was then filled to the line with more DI water. I transferred 10 mL of the acid solution to a 150 mL beaker via a pipette before adding an additional 50 mL of DI water, measured using a graduated cylinder. I titrated this acid solution with a 0.4219M NaOH solution. Volume NaOH added (mL) pH reading 0 2.17 0.2 2.32 0.19 2.5 0.96 3.46 1.7 5.16 0.43 5.59 0.39 5.98 0.94 6.92 3.85 10.77 0.47 11.24 0.25 11.49 0.23 11.72 0.19 11.91 0.2 12.11 0.2 12.31 0.2 12.51
My acid is diprotic, so therefore has two inflection points and an equivalence point that corresponds to each. The first one occurs at 4.8 mL, and the second one occurs at 8.5 mL. This means that the half-equivalence points are at 2.4 mL and 4.25 mL. The pKa values for each point are 2.4 and 4.1. 10 !".$ = 0.00398 = ࠵? % 10 !$.& = ࠵? % = 7.9433 Results and Discussion The unknown I used is Unknown #1, which I identify as oxalic acid. I determined this using pKa and Ka values. My results are higher than the true value which is pKa1=1.27 and pKa2=4.27. I got this information from the paper that was posted in the laboratory room. 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 pH values Volume NaOH added to weak acid (mL) Titration Curve Volume NaOH added vs pH
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The factors that could have contributed to the difference in values are not using enough significant figures in my calculations and/or estimating too much on the values depicted in my graph. An error would contribute to a high or low value by not being accurate enough. The titration curve of a strong acid would be different than the one I got from this experiment because the ions would fully disassociate instead only partially. It would not have equivalence points. The titration curve of a triprotic weak acid would differ from the one I got from this experiment because it would have three equivalence points instead of two. My acid was diprotic. Conclusion I used titrations and titration curves to study the activity of diprotic weak acids reacting. I observed that my acid had two equivalence points and discovered that my acid was oxalic acid. ** I almost word-for-word copied my original analytical plan into the “analytical methods” section of this report. My attempts to photograph the carbon copy of my written analytical plan failed miserably and none of the writing was visible in the photograph.