Marble chips and hydrochloric acid lab

Introduction
All acids react with metals such as calcium, stronger acids have a higher concentration, concentration is
measurement of he number of particles of the solute in the solvent. The higher the concentration is, the faster
the chemical reaction occurs.
The variables that could affect the amount of carbon dioxide released from the chemical reaction are:
-The temperature of the reactant(hydrochloric acid)
-The volume of the reactant
-The concentration of the reactant
The chosen variable for this experiment is the concentration of the reactant(Hydrochloric acid)

Aim
To find the relationship between the concentration of the hydrochloric acid and the speed of the chemical
reaction between the hydrochloric acid and marble chips(calcium carbonate). The speed the chemical
reaction will be measured by measuring the carbon dioxide released in 1 minute.

Variables
Independent variable

Dependent variable

The concentration of the hydrochloric acid

The speed of the chemical reaction.

Controlled variables

Description

How it will be controlled

The amount of marble chips

For a fair testing, the same

2 grams of marble chips will be
amount of marble chips will be put weighed with a weighing scale
into the test tube each trial.

The volume of Hydrochloric acid

For a fair testing, the same

10 ml of hydrochloric acid will be
volume of hydrochloric acid will be measured using a measuring
poured into the test tube each
cylinder
trial.

Hypothesis
I predict the more concentrated the acid is, the more amount of carbon dioxide released in one minute. I think
happens because if the hydrochloric acid is more concentrated, the chemical reaction will occur faster which
means the carbon dioxide will be released more rapidly.

Apparatus
Materials

Quantity

Test tube rack

Test tubes

Measuring cylinder (1 of the measuring cylinder is

used for measuring the volume of hydrochloric acid)

Water bath

Rubber tube

1 bottle of Hydrochloric acid (0.1 mol)

1 bottle of Hydrochloric acid (1 mol)

1 bottle of Hydrochloric acid (1.5 mol)

1 bottle of Hydrochloric acid (2 mol)

1 bottle of Hydrochloric acid (2.5 mol)

Stop watch

Weighing scale

1 jar of Marble chips (calcium carbonate)

Safety glasses

Device for recording data (e.g. notebook and pen)

Method
Step number

Safety precautions
1 Gather equipment listed in the

N/A

2 Pour the water half way of the water

N/A

3 Set up the experiment by referring at

N/A

4 Pour 10 ml of hydrochloric acid (0.5

Be careful when pouring the

hydrochloric acid. The acid might be
harmful although the acid is not
really strong.

5 Pour the 10 ml of hydrochloric acid

Be careful when pouring the

hydrochloric acid. The acid might be
harmful although the acid is not
really strong.

6 Measure 2 grams of marble chips

N/A

7 Pour the marble chips into the test

N/A

8 After one minute, remove the tube

N/A

apparatus

bath

the diagram

mole for the first trial) into a

measuring cylinder

into one of the test tubes

(calcium carbonate) using a weighing

scale

tube filled with hydrochloric acid, put

the rubber tube (make sure the
rubber tube is tight to prevent carbon
dioxide from escaping)in the test
tube and start the timer

from the measuring cylinder and

measure the volume of carbon
dioxide released by measuring the
water level in the measuring cylinder

10 Record the measurement in your

N/A

9 Do a second trial by repeating

step 4 to 7

N/A

device (e.g. notebook)

Step number

Safety precautions
10 Repeat step 1 to 8 except pouring
a more concentration acid into
the test tube and use an other
test tube. (For example if you
used a 1 mol acid in the previous
trial, you use 1.5 mol for the
second trial)

N/A

Extra steps for your personal safety

Make sure to put the cap back on the bottle for carrying acid.
Dont smell the chemical inside the test tube, it might be harmful
Wear safety glasses while doing the experiment

Data collection
Concentration of
hydrochloric acid
(m/l)

Volume of carbon
dioxide released
during the chemical
reaction in one minute
(measured in ml)

Trial 2

Average

0.5

15

42

1.5

56

56

84

72

86

115

2.5

98

95

145.5

The table above shows the data recorded during the experiment

19

24.5
42

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Concentration of acid (mol/litre)

Graph
The graph above shows the relationship between the concentration of the acid and the carbon
dioxide released in 1 minute.

Conclusion
The aim of this experiment is to find the relationship between the concentration of hydrochloric acid and the
speed of the chemical reaction between the hydrochloric acid and marble chips (calcium carbonate) by
measuring the carbon dioxide released in 1 minute. According to my results, the more concentrated the
hydrochloric acid is, the more carbon dioxide is released from the chemical reaction in one minute. Referring
to the graph, there is a positive correlation because it shows when the hydrochloric acid is less concentrated,
the less carbon dioxide is released in one minute. Overall, my hypothesis was supported.

Evaluation
My procedure wasnt really good because in one of the trials, there were no bubbles coming out from the
rubber tube because the measuring cylinder was blocking the bubbles from coming out. In another trial, I
didnt plug the rubber tube tight enough so there werent any bubbles coming out from the rubber tube.
Looking at the graph, there seems to be an error that occurred during the second trial. The reason that the
data point is not on the trend line is because I released the tube too early, therefore it affected the amount of
carbon dioxide that is released. Also, I didnt measure the amount of carbon dioxide released precisely which
could have affected the data from being on the trend line. I think the data want reliable because there were
some mistakes during the experiment which affected one of the data point not being on the trend line. To
improve the experiment, I could measure the amount of carbon dioxide accurately and make sure I remove
the rubber tube from the measuring cylinder on time. I think this experiment is useful because we can know
how the concentration of acid could affect the amount of carbon dioxide released during the chemical
reaction of hydrochloric acid and calcium carbonate.