PAG 2 - Acid-base titration
- There are a series of suggested practicals for PAG 2 - Acid-base titration
- PAG 2.1: Determination of the concentration of hydrochloric acid
- This involves making a standard solution of sodium hydrogencarbonate and titrating this against a solution of hydrochloric acid in order to work out the concentration of the acid.
- PAG 2.2: Determination of the molar mass of an acid
- This involves making a solution of an unknown hydrated acid (e.g. citric acid monohydrate), then titrating this against a sodium hydroxide solution of known concentration. This allows the molar mass of the acid to be determined, and with additional information, the formula of the acid.
- PAG 2.3: Identification of an unknown carbonate
- This involves making a solution of an unknown Group 1 carbonate and then titrating this solution against hydrochloric acid of a known concentration to determine the molar mass of the carbonate and hence the identity of the metal.
- PAG 2.1: Determination of the concentration of hydrochloric acid
- All three suggested practicals use volumetric analysis, which requires making standard solutions and completing titration experiments.
- The main difference between the suggested practicals is how the titration results are processed
Volumetric Analysis
- Volumetric analysis is a process that uses the volume and concentration of one chemical reactant (a volumetric solution) to determine the concentration of another unknown solution
- The technique most commonly used is a titration
- The volumes are measured using two precise pieces of equipment, a volumetric or graduated pipette and a burette
- Before the titration can be done, the standard solution must be prepared
- Specific apparatus must be used both when preparing the standard solution and when completing the titration, to ensure that volumes are measured precisely
Some key pieces of apparatus used to prepare a volumetric solution and perform a simple titration
- Beaker
- Burette
- Volumetric Pipette
- Conical Flask
- Volumetric Flask
Making a Volumetric Solution
- Chemists routinely prepare solutions needed for analysis, whose concentrations are known precisely
- These solutions are termed volumetric solutions or standard solutions
- They are made as accurately and precisely as possible using three decimal place balances and volumetric flasks to reduce the impact of measurement uncertainties
- The steps are:
Volumes & concentrations of solutions
- The concentration of a solution is the amount of solute dissolved in a solvent to make 1 dm3 of solution
- The solute is the substance that dissolves in a solvent to form a solution
- The solvent is often water
- A concentrated solution is a solution that has a high concentration of solute
- A dilute solution is a solution with a low concentration of solute
- Concentration is usually expressed in one of three ways:
- moles per unit volume
- mass per unit volume
- parts per million
Worked example
Calculate the mass of sodium hydrogencarbonate, NaHCO3, required to prepare 250 cm3 of a 0.200 mol dm-3 solution
Answer:
Step 1: Find the number of moles of NaHCO3 needed from the concentration and volume:
-
- number of moles = concentration (mol dm-3) x volume (dm3)
- n = 0.200 mol dm-3 x 0.250 dm3
- n = 0.0500 mol
Step 2: Find the molar mass of NaHCO3
-
- Mr = 23.0 + 1.0 + 12.0 + (16.0 x 3) = 84.0 g mol-1
Step 3: Calculate the mass of NaHCO3 required
-
- mass = moles x molar mass
- mass = 0.0500 mol x 84.0 g mol-1 = 4.2 g
Performing the Titration
- The key piece of equipment used in the titration is the burette
- Burettes are usually marked to a precision of 0.10 cm3
- Since they are analogue instruments, the uncertainty is recorded to half the smallest marking, in other words to ±0.05 cm3
- The end point or equivalence point occurs when the two solutions have reacted completely and is shown with the use of an indicator
The steps in a titration
- A white tile is placed under the conical flask while the titration is performed, to make it easier to see the colour change
Titrating
- The steps in a titration are:
- Measuring a known volume (usually 20 or 25 cm3) of one of the solutions with a volumetric pipette and placing it into a conical flask
- The other solution is placed in the burette
- To start with, the burette will usually be filled to 0.00 cm3
- A few drops of the indicator are added to the solution in the conical flask
- The tap on the burette is carefully opened and the solution added, portion by portion, to the conical flask until the indicator starts to change colour
- As you start getting near to the end point, the flow of the burette should be slowed right down so that the solution is added dropwise
- You should be able to close the tap on the burette after one drop has caused the colour change
- Multiple runs are carried out until concordant results are obtained
- Concordant results are within 0.1 cm3 of each other
Recording and processing titration results
- Both the initial and final burette readings should be recorded and shown to a precision of ±0.05 cm3, the same as the uncertainty
A typical layout and set of titration results
- The volume delivered (titre) is calculated and recorded to an uncertainty of ±0.10 cm3
- The uncertainty is doubled, because two burette readings are made to obtain the titre (V final – V initial), following the rules for propagation of uncertainties
- Concordant results are then averaged, and non-concordant results are discarded
- The appropriate calculations are then done
Worked example
PAG 2.1: Determination of the concentration of hydrochloric acid
25.0 cm3 of hydrochloric acid was titrated with a 0.200 mol dm-3 solution of sodium hydrogencarbonate, NaHCO3.
NaHCO3 (aq) + HCl (aq) → NaCl (aq)+ H2O (l) + CO2 (g)
Use the following results to calculate the concentration of the acid, to 3 significant figures.
Rough | Run 1 | Run 2 | Run 3 | |
Initial burette reading / cm3 (±0.05 cm3) |
0.00 | 23.15 | 0.20 | 23.00 |
Final burette reading / cm3 (±0.05 cm3) |
23.75 | 45.95 | 23.00 | 46.10 |
Volume delivered / cm3 (±0.10 cm3) |
23.75 | 22.80 | 22.80 | 23.10 |
Answer
Step 1: Calculate the average titre from concurrent titrations only (those within 0.10 cm3 of each other)
-
- Average titre22.80 cm3
Step 2: Calculate the number of moles of sodium hydrogencarbonate
-
- Moles = x 0.200 = 4.56 x 10-3 moles
Step 3: Calculate (or deduce) the number of moles of hydrochloric acid
-
- The stoichiometry of NaHCO3 : HCl is 1 : 1
- Therefore, the number of moles of sodium hydrogencarbonate is also 4.56 x 10-3 moles
Step 4: Calculate the concentration of hydrochloric acid
-
- Concentration = 0.182 mol dm-3
Worked example
PAG 2.2: Determination of the molar mass of an acid
0.133 g of an unknown monoprotic acid is added to a 1.0 dm3 volumetric flask and made up to the mark with distilled water. This solution is titrated with 0.070 mol dm-3 sodium hydroxide solution. The average titre required for the neutralisation of the unknown monoprotic acid is 23.40 cm3.
i) Calculate the molar mass of the unknown acid.
ii) The unknown monoprotic acid is a halogenated acid. Identify the unknown monoprotic acid.
Answer
Part i)
Step 1: Calculate the number of moles of sodium hydroxide
-
- Moles of NaOH1.638 x 10-3 moles
Step 2: State the number of moles of the unknown monoprotic acid
-
- Moles of acid = 1.638 x 10-3 moles since the stoichiometric ratio is 1HX : 1NaOH
Step 3: Calculate the molar mass of the unknown monoprotic acid
-
- 81.20 g mol-1
Part ii)
Step 1: Calculate the mass of the halogen
-
- 81.20 - 1.0 = 80.2
Step 2: Use the periodic table to identify the halogen
-
- 80.2 ≈ Bromine (79.9)
Step 3: State the final answer
-
- The unknown monoprotic acid is HBr / hydrobromic acid
Examiner Tip
- You can potentially be asked to calculate the molar mass of any unknown acid including monoprotic, diprotic and even triprotic acids
- You must account for the stoichiometry of the neutralisation reaction
- To identify the unknown acid, you have to be given more information in order to deduce it's identity
Worked example
PAG 2.3: Identification of an unknown carbonate
1.19 g of an unidentified Group 1 metal carbonate, X2CO3, was dissolved in water to produce a 250.0 cm³ standard solution. 25.0 cm³ aliquots of this solution were titrated with 0.150 mol dm3 hydrochloric acid. The average titre for this experiment was found to be 14.95 cm3.
Identify the Group 1 metal in the unidentified metal carbonate X2CO3.
Answer
Step 1: Calculate the number of moles of hydrochloric acid
-
- Moles of HCl2.2425 x 10-3 moles
Step 2: Calculate the number of moles of X2CO3
-
- Moles of X2CO31.12125 x 10-3 moles (since the stoichiometric ratio is 1X2CO3 : 2HCl)
Step 3: Calculate the mass of X2CO3 in the 25.0 cm3 aliquot
-
- = 0.119 g
Step 4: Calculate the molar mass of X2CO3
-
- 106.132 g mol-1
Step 5: Calculate the mass of X in X2CO3
-
- = 23.066
Step 6: Use the periodic table to identify the Group 1 element in X2CO3
-
- 23.066 ≈ Sodium/ Na (relative mass of 23.0)
Examiner Tip
- Careful: Examiners have been known to construct this question to get the mass of X as around 86.0 - 86.5
- This then gets a mixture of answers of X = Rubidium or Francium
- This happens because students use the wrong number to identify the element
- Rubidium has a mass number of 85.5
- Francium has an atomic number of 87