Chapter 22: Practical guidance

Health and safety

Although great care has been taken in checking the accuracy of the information provided,
Cambridge University Press shall not be responsible for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies.

Teachers and technicians should always follow their school and departmental safety policies.
You must ensure that you consult your employer’s model risk assessments and modify them as
appropriate to meet local circumstances before starting any practical work. Risk assessments will
depend on your own skills and experience, and the facilities available to you. Everyone has a
responsibility for his or her own safety and for the safety of others.

The practicals should be carried out by teachers themselves before they are presented to students.
Additional notes relating to each activity in this chapter are given below, but should not be regarded
as risk assessments.

Practical 22.1: Finding the order of reaction with respect to the

concentration of H+(aq) ions for an acid–carbonate reaction
Safety

Eye protection must be worn.

Hydrochloric acid irritates the respiratory system.

When preparing (dilute) solutions of acids or bases, always add the (concentrated) acid or base to
water, rather than the other way around.

Notes on the procedure

The less familiar aspect of this practical is using microscale apparatus.

The reaction studied is that between hydrochloric acid, HCl(aq), and calcium carbonate, CaCO3:
CaCO3(s) + 2HCl(aq) → CaCl2(aq) + H2O(l) + CO2(g)

The apparatus used is shown in the diagram below.

• The carbon dioxide gas given off displaces the water in the conical flask.
• The volume of water displaced is measured using a measuring cylinder.
• The volume of water displaced is equal to the volume of gas produced.

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Make sure that you:
• connect the delivery tube from the shorter of the two delivery tubes in the conical flask to lid 1
• have two measuring cylinders (10 cm3 and 25 cm3) ready so that if the flow of water gets too quick
it will not overflow
• use the measuring cylinder appropriate to the volume of water displaced.

Apparatus

Combostill apparatus is available from the usual educational suppliers, including Philip Harris
(www.philipharris.co.uk), SciChem (www.scichem.com) and Edu-Lab (www.edulab.co.uk).

Possible strategies

1 Measure the volume of CO2 gas at several times, and then plot a graph of volume against time.
Give extra credit if students convert the volume of CO2 into moles of gas.
a The initial rate of the reaction is measured by drawing tangents at t = 0. Students should be
encouraged to choose scales for their graphs so that the angle of the tangent is in the range
30° to 60°; outside this range, the uncertainty in the gradient due to small errors in drawing
the tangent is large.
b The initial rates are then plotted against concentration.
2 Measure the volume of gas given off after a certain predetermined time (single measurement).
If this is the favoured strategy, students should do trial runs for their highest and lowest
concentrations to see if the rate is linear for both over the time range decided upon.
The volume of gas produced is proportional to the initial rate, and should be plotted against
concentration.
3 Measure the time taken for a measured volume of gas to be given off (single measurement).
Once again, students should do trial runs for their highest and lowest concentrations to see if
the rate is linear for both while the chosen volume of gas is being produced. The time taken is
inversely proportional to the rate, so (time)−1 should be plotted against concentration of acid.
For all three methods a value of k can be determined, but the units will differ.

Suggested procedure: microscale method

1 Using a syringe or a micropipette, measure out 2 cm3 of 2 mol dm−3 hydrochloric acid and add
this to well F1.
2 Connect up the short delivery tube from the conical flask to the narrow outlet of lid 1.
3 Replace the syringe into the remaining outlet of the lid.
4 Count out five small marble chips and add them to the acid. Immediately replace the lid and start
the stopwatch when the first drop of water leaves the delivery tube from the conical flask.
5 Measure the volume of water displaced (and hence the volume of gas produced) in 1 minute.
6 Record the result in a results table.
7 Wash out the well and repeat steps 1–6, but this time use 1 mol dm−3 hydrochloric acid.

Extension activities

As extension activities, students could be asked to investigate the effect of other factors on the
reaction rate. Suggested procedures for two such experiments are given below.

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Investigating the effect of surface area

1 Make the assumption that all small marble chips are the same size. Using this principle, two
marble chips have twice the surface area of one marble chip, three marble chips have three times
the surface area of one marble chip, etc.
2 Using a syringe or a micropipette, measure out 2 cm3 of 2 mol dm−3 hydrochloric acid and add
this to well F1.
3 Connect up the short delivery tube from the conical flask to the narrow outlet of lid 1.
4 Replace the syringe into the remaining outlet of the lid.
5 Take one small marble chip and add it to the acid. Immediately replace the lid and start the
stopwatch when the first drop of water leaves the delivery tube from the conical flask.
6 Measure the volume of water displaced (and hence the volume of gas produced) in 1 minute.
7 Wash out the well and repeat steps 2–6 but with two marble chips, three marble chips, etc.
Investigating the effect of temperature

1 Using a syringe or a micropipette, measure out 2 cm3 of 2 mol dm−3 hydrochloric acid and add
this to well F1. Measure the temperature of this acid.
2 Connect up the short delivery tube from the conical flask to the narrow outlet of lid 1.
3 Replace the syringe into the remaining outlet of the lid.
4 Count out five small marble chips (of roughly the same size) and add them to the acid.
Immediately replace the lid and start the stopwatch when the first drop of water leaves the
delivery tube from the conical flask.
5 Measure the volume of water displaced (and hence the volume of gas produced) in 1 minute.
6 Wash out the well and add another 2 cm3 of 2 mol dm−3 hydrochloric acid. Using a microburner,
heat up a glass stirring rod (or spatula) and use this to warm the acid until it is approximately
10 °C hotter than it was in the previous experiment.
7 Repeat steps 2–6 at different temperatures.

Practical 22.2: The thiosulfate–acid reaction

Safety

Eye protection must be worn.

Hydrochloric acid irritates the respiratory system.

When preparing (dilute) solutions of acids or bases, always add the (concentrated) acid or base to
water, rather than the other way around.

Sodium thiosulfate is harmful if inhaled, in contact with the skin and if swallowed. Contact with acid
liberates very toxic sulfur dioxide.

Sulfur dioxide is toxic if inhaled and causes burns. This is a choking gas with serious effects on lungs
and eyes, possibly resulting in bronchitis and conjunctivitis. Inhalation by those with known breathing
difficulties, such as asthma, may make their condition worse. The effects of exposure can be delayed
for some hours.

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Practical 22.3: The reaction between acid and magnesium
Safety

Eye protection should be worn.

Hydrochloric acid at this concentration irritates the respiratory system.

Hydrogen is extremely flammable.

When preparing (dilute) solutions of acids or bases, always add the (concentrated) acid or base to
water, rather than the other way around.

Cambridge International AS and A Level Chemistry © Cambridge University Press 2014 4