Experiment - H2SO4 Titration With NaOH
Experiment - H2SO4 Titration With NaOH
Experiment - H2SO4 Titration With NaOH
Derived from?
The word "titration" descends from the Latin word titulus, which means inscription or
title.
Titration is simply defined as the procedure wherein an acid reacts with a base,
whose volumes are known and concentrations are unknown. Using the known values,
the concentration of the compound (analyte or titer) can be calculated by reacting or
neutralizing it with another chemical compound called titrant. An indicator solution is
used to determine the endpoint of the reaction between both these solutions. In this
experiment involving a reaction between sodium hydroxide (titrant) and sulfuric acid
(titer), an indicator called phenolphthalein is used. It is colorless in acids, and its
endpoint is marked by a color change to pink, when the entire volume of the analyte
has reacted with a small amount of the titrant.
The molecular formula of sulfuric acid is H2SO4. It is a highly corrosive acid made from
sulfur dioxide, and is known to be among the most extensively used products in the
chemical industry. Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is also an important base that is used in
factories, which is involved in the manufacture of cleaning products, water
purification techniques, and paper products. This compound is a strong alkali, and is
also known as lye and/or caustic soda. The following paragraphs will explain the
entire titration procedure in a classic chemistry experiment format.
Aim
Apparatus/Equipment Needed
Materials:
Procedure
of the acid H2SO4, i.e., SO42 . This gives out H2SO4. Water is formed as a result of the
-
reaction between the cation of the acid (H ) that combines with an anion of the base
+
(OH ).
-
The complete balanced equation for the reaction between sulfuric acid and sodium
hydroxide is:
H2SO4 + 2NaOH → Na2SO4 + 2H2O
So, the net ionic equation of sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide, after crossing out
the spectator ions, is:
2H+ + 2OH- → 2H2O
For example, during three rounds of the experiment, the amount of NaOH needed to
react with sulfuric acid is 12 ml, 13 ml, and 12.5 ml, respectively. Thus, by taking their
average, 12.5 ml of NaOH neutralized the acid with the unknown concentration.
Suppose the molarity of sodium hydroxide is 0.1 mol/L. The formula for calculating
the number of moles of a solution is:
Number of Moles (N) = Volume (V) x Molarity (M)
Thus, the formula becomes,
Now, according to the equation 1 mentioned above, exactly half the number of moles
of sulfuric acid take part in the reaction; i.e., the number of moles required for the
neutralization process are:
The volume of sulfuric acid used in this experiment is 10 ml. By rearranging the above
formula, the molarity or concentration of H2SO4 is calculated: