CALCIUM HYDROXIDE SOLUTION FACTORS: TEMPERATURE AND

TYPE OF SOLVENT

P. F. P. FLORES
National Institute of Physics, College of Science
University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City 1101, Philippines
Date Submitted: 15 March 2019
Date Performed: 6 Match 2019

Abstract

This paper discussed how solubility experiment was used to determine the effects of
temperature and using different solvents in dissolving slightly soluble solids to its solubility. 50mL
of 3 set-ups of distilled water (at room, high, and low temp.), 0.1M CaCl2, 0.5M KCl, and 95% ethanol
solution, were all used to make a saturated solution of Ca(OH)2. These solutions were filtered and
titrated for two trials with 0.1M HCl as titrant and 1% phenolphthalein as indicator. The results
showed that the temperature is inversely proportional with Ksp with the value of 2.8 x 10-5 at room
temperature. The values ΔH and ΔS which were also obtained at -27.6 kJ/mol and 0.179 kJ/mol K. It
also showed that common ions favored to produce more Ca2+ ions than diverse ions, which resulted
to lower Ksp for the former. The effect of solvent polarity was also observed, in which case, the
solution had a lower Ksp. The experiment was considered a success in terms of determining the
different factors affecting solubility. However, it also committed large percent errors when it comes
to quantitative data. The cause of this huge error might be the filtration set-up, in which some
solutions were not completely filtered with just one try.

Introduction in a solvent. It determines to what extent does

the dissolution reaction occurs. Slightly
Not all compounds completely dissolve in a soluble compounds dissociate partially in
solvent. Some are soluble, slightly soluble, or water until equilibrium is achieved between
even not soluble at all water. Some dissolve the compound and the ions.[1] This is
well in water, and some dissolve more in a represented by the chemical equation:
specific solvent, etc. Examples of these are the
different solubilities of NaCl and AgCl2. NaCl 𝐴𝑥 𝐵𝑦 (𝑠) ↔ 𝑥𝐴 𝑦+ (𝑎𝑞) + 𝑦𝐵 𝑥− (𝑎𝑞) (1)
completely dissolves in water while AgCl2 does
not precipitate in NH4OH. In real life, this The molar solubility (s) of a compound is the
concept can be applied. An example for this is amount of concentration of a solid that a
the case of Gypsum (CaSO4 • 2H2O) found in solvent can dissolve or dissociate. It is
caves, which is slightly soluble in water. The expressed as:
water found in caves cannot be used for
cooling systems because it contains CaSO4 that [𝐴 𝑦+ ] = 𝑥𝑠; [𝐵 𝑋− ] = 𝑦𝑠 (2)
may cause to block water pipes.[1]
To determine the solubility product constant
Determining the solubility product constant of (Ksp) of a compound, the following expression
a compound is significantly helpful to must be used:
determine the behavior of a compound (solid) 𝐾𝑠𝑝 = [𝐴 𝑦+ ]𝑥 [𝐵 𝑋− ]𝑦 (3)
 and proceeded to filtration after. It is
Ca(OH)2, also known as lime, is a slightly important to take note that the temperature
soluble compound in water. This means that assigned to a set-up must be consistent
when these kinds of compounds are placed in throughout the experiment.
water, they will form suspensions instead of
solutions due to some undissociated These aliquots were titrated with 0.1M HCl as
molecules that will settle eventually after titrant in two trials using 1% phenolphthalein
allowing it to stand for an amount of time. in ethanol as indicator. In each trial, 25mL of
aliquot was used for titration.
As Ca(OH)2 dissolves in water, the solution,
after filtering the solid particles, became basic The volume of the titrant used was considered
as the presence of OH- ions are found. for the computation of molar solubility using
Consequently, the concentration of OH- was equation (2) and will also be used to obtain the
determined using acid-base titration. The solubility product constant (Ksp) for the set-
concentration of OH- can be obtained through ups with varying temperatures to obtain the
the volume of the titrant used, for this case, a enthalpy and entropy of the solution Ca(OH)2
strong acid HCl. This concentration is used for with distilled water.
determining the Ksp.

Like other equilibrium constants such as Ka Results and Discussion

and Kb, Ksp also has a relationship with
temperature. It is shown in equation (4), also Varying volumes of the titrant were observed
known as the van’t Hoff equation, that the in different set-ups. These volumes were used
natural logarithm of Ksp has a linear to determine [OH-] for computing the molarity
relationship with the reciprocal of solubility (refer to Table 1). These data were
temperature in Kelvin: obtained using equation (5).

∆𝐻
ln 𝐾𝑠𝑝 = − 𝑅𝑇 + 𝑅
∆𝑆
(4) [𝐶𝑎2+ ] = 𝑠; [𝑂𝐻 − ] = 2𝑠 (5)
wherein:
In terms of stoichiometry, the moles of Ca2+ is
∆𝐻 = enthalpy of change of the reaction
the same with the compound Ca(OH)2 given in
∆𝑆 = entropy of change of the reaction
the chemical equation (6). This is the reason
R = 8.314 J/mol K; the gas constant.
that the molar solubility of Ca2+ is the same for
Ca(OH)2.
In this paper, a solubility experiment of
Ca(OH)2 will be discussed. Throughout, the
effect of temperature and different solvents to 𝐶𝑎(𝑂𝐻)2 ↔ 𝐶𝑎2+ + 2𝑂𝐻 − (6)
solubility will be determined.
Table 1 Values of Molar Solubility from the
Methodology[2] volume of the titrant 0.1 M HCl
Vtit (mL) Molar
Medium solubility
The following set-ups were prepared: 3 50mL Trial 1 Trial 2
distilled water (room temperature, heated to A 10.8 8.3 0.0212
60OC, and cooled down to 5OC respectively), B 5.9 2.7 0.0119
50mL 0.1M CaCl2, 50mL 0.5M KCl, and 45mL of
C 12.7 8.7 0.0236
water added with 5mL 95% ethanol.
D 6.8 6.7 0.0169
In each set-up, amounts of Ca(OH)2 were E 10 10.6 0.0258
added until each solution was saturated. The F 5.6 5.2 0.0135
solutions were left to stand for at least 10 mins
In Table 2, Ksp is determined using the The equation generated in the graph is: y =
expression: 3314.5x – 21.583 and the R2 is relatively low
with an approximate value of 0.94. It means
−
𝐾𝑠𝑝 = [𝐶𝑎2+ (𝑎𝑞) ][𝑂𝐻(𝑎𝑞) ]2 (7) that the graph does not show a high linearity
and may be a consequence of an execution of
It is shown in Table 2 that the relationship of error in the experiment. Another consequence
Ksp and temperature is inversely proportional of this error is the value computed for Ksp at
with each other. It was also observed in the 25OC or 298.15 K is very far from the
experiment that set-up C (solution in cold theoretical value. The computed value for Ksp
water bath) received the most amount of HCl at 298.15 K is 2.8 x 10-5 while the theoretical
among all the set-ups. This means that more value is 5.5 x 10-6.[1] Unfortunately, the
OH- ions are found in the solution when the computed value committed a 418% error from
temperature is lowered. the theoretical value.

In terms of Le Châtelier’s Principle, the The values for ΔH and ΔS can also be obtained
reaction is in favor of the forward reaction using the generated equation when compared
(formation of Ca2+ and OH- ions are favored to equation (4). The values generated for
than Ca(OH)2) as the temperature of the these are -27.6 kJ/mol and 0.179 kJ/mol K
solution decreases. It is indicated that the respectively. However, the theoretical values
solution is exothermic. for these are -986.1 kJ/mol and 0.08339
kJ/mol K, which yielded percent errors of 97%
Table 2 Values of Ksp in relation with the and 114% respectively. [1]
temperature of the solution
Molar Since temperature is also related to entropy
Temperature
Medium Solubility Ksp and enthalpy like Ksp given by the derivation of
(K)
(M) equation (8) to create equation (4), it can also
A 298.15 0.0212 3.80 x 10-5 be inferred at what temperature a solution is
B 333.15 0.0119 7.88 x 10-6 spontaneous in the direction of decreasing
C 278.15 0.0236 5.34 x 10-5 free energy (ΔG).[3]

The relationship of Ksp and temperature is 𝛥𝐺° = – 𝑅𝑇𝑙𝑛 𝐾 = 𝛥𝐻°– 𝑇𝛥𝑆° (8)
further seen as the values of Ksp and
temperature are substituted in equation (4) to The other set-ups, on the other hand,
form a linear equation through the process of presented the effect of different solvents in the
linear regression, as seen in Figure 1. solubility of Ca(OH)2. The values of Ksp for
these is shown on Table 3.
-8.0
-8.5 Table 3 Values of Ksp in relation with the
-9.0 y = 3314.5x - 21.583 different solvents used
-9.5 R² = 0.9392
Medium Solvent Ksp
ln Ksp

-10.0
Distilled
-10.5 A 3.80 x 10-5
-11.0 water
-11.5 D 0.1M CaCl2 1.92 x 10-5
-12.0 E 0.5M KCl 6.85 x 10-5
0.003 0.003 0.003 0.003
1/T
0.004 0.004 95% ethanol
F + distilled 9.88 x 10-6
Figure 1 Graph of ln Ksp vs. 1/T
water
In set-up D and E, 0.1M of CaCl2 and 0.5M KCl Conclusions and Recommendations
was used in making a saturated solution for
Ca(OH)2 respectively. Referring to Table 1, the The experiment was successful in terms of
volume of titrant in set-up D is less than determining the effects of temperature and
compared to set-up E which means that more the use of different solvents on the solubility of
ions of OH- and Ca2+ were found in the solution Ca(OH)2. It was shown that temperature is
from D than in E. inversely proportional to Ksp, which means
that the chemical reaction is exothermic.

The effects of different solvents were also

determined and explained through the
experiment. It showed how common and
diverse ions, and solvent polarity affect the
solubility of a solid compound. The
experiment showed that solutions with
common ions are more soluble than solutions
with different ions present. It also proved that
the polarity of a solvent is significant to the
solubility of a compound whereas, the more
polar a solvent is, the less solid will dissolve.
Figure 2 Polar and Non-polar components of
ethanol However, the values for Ksp, ΔH and ΔS, were
Image source: https://dc.edu.au/hsc-chemistry-production-of-
materials/
not closely achieved. The experimental value
for Ksp at 298.15 K was 2.8 x 10-5 which
This effect is due to two phenomena namely, obtained a 418% error from the actual value of
the common ion effect and the diverse ion 5.5 x 10-6. The same goes with the obtained
effect respectively. In D, the solution showed a values ΔH and ΔS which are -27.6 kJ/mol and
common ion of Ca2+, thus increasing its 0.179 kJ/mol K which yielded percent errors
concentration in the reaction. On the other of 97% and 114% respectively.
hand, the solution in E had K+ and Cl- ions
interacting with Ca2+ and OH- ions. Because of It is highly recommended to thoroughly filter
this, Ca2+ and OH- had lower concentrations. In the solution before titration. This is due to
Table 3, it is shown that the value of Ksp for D some solids might have went through the filter
is lower at 1.92 x 10-5 than of E at 6.85 x 10-5. paper, and this affects the computed solubility
of the solution. It is also recommended to use
Lastly, the effect of ethanol as a solvent was another titration indicator other than 1%
also investigated in this experiment. In Table phenolphthalein because the equivalence
3, the value for Ksp for set-up F is relatively the point of this indicator does not indicate that
lowest among all the set-ups at a value of 9.88 the solution is neutral, instead it shows that
x 10-6. the solution is basic. Lastly, some of the
solutions produced were oversaturated and it
As seen in Figure 2, the structure of ethanol is highly recommended not to oversaturate
has both polar of OH and non-polar end of H. the solution to achieve a more accurate and
Consequently, Ca2+ and OH- ions will just repel precise data.
these ends thus making the solution less
dissociated.
References Electrolyte Solutions: Application To Calcium
Hydroxide Solubility Equilibrium. Journal of
[1] Petrucci, Ralph H. General chemistry: Chemical Education 2013, 91, 91-95.
principles and modern applications. Toronto,
Ont.: Pearson Canada, 2011.

[2] Euler, W., Kirschenbaum, L., Ruckenberg, B.

J. Chem Educ., 2000, 77, 8, 1039

[3]http://faculty.sites.uci.edu/chem1l/files/2
015/04/Enthalpy-and-Entropy-of-Borax-
Dissolution.pdf (accessed Mar 11, 2019).

[4] Menéndez, M.; Borge, J. Ion Association

Versus Ion Interaction Models In Examining