CHEMISTRY Lab Report - THER 368
CHEMISTRY Lab Report - THER 368
CHEMISTRY Lab Report - THER 368
Lab Report # 1
Introduction
The objective of this lab experiment is to determine the heat of neutralization, ΔHneutzn (reaction
between an acid and a base) by measuring the temperature change, ΔT when a neutralization
reaction occurs. When 1 mol of HCL reacts with 1 mol of NaOH, the exothermic reaction releases
heat that is transferred to the product solution which is water and NaCl. The reaction formula is as
shown below:
The heat transferred is reported in kJ/mol. This heat of neutralization cannot be directly measured,
however the heat transferred can be extrapolated and calculated from the laboratory data. The heat
𝑸
∆𝑯𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒕𝒛𝒏 =
𝒏𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕
where,
where,
The hypothesis formed in this experiment is that 0.1 mol of HCl will react exactly with 0.1 mol of
NaOH to form H2O and NaCl with the release of heat, an exothermic reaction. Assuming that all
the heat of reaction is transferred to the resulting product in H2O and no heat is loss to the
surrounding polystyrene cup and to the surrounding air, the heat of neutralization should be
Pre-Lab Questions
𝑸
∆𝑯𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒕𝒛𝒏 =
𝒏𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕
where,
8 oz polystyrene cup
Stirring rod
Ring stand
Clamp
Thermometer in split rubber stopper
150 mL beaker
Graduated cylinder
Safety goggles
Non-latex gloves
The equipment is set up as shown in Figure 1 below.
Figure 1. 1 Equipment for time-temperature study.
Chemicals
Excellent solvent.
HCl in a beaker alternately in 30 seconds interval over a 5-minute period starting with the
NaOH solution.
At 5 minutes, pour all of the HCl into the polystyrene cup with the NaOH solution and stir
at a constant rate. Measure the temperature of the mixture starting at the 5.5-minute mark
Repeat the experiment with clean and dry equipment and a new polystyrene cup.
Plot the time-temperature curve and calculate the average heat of neutralization.
Safety Precautions
HCl and NaOH are highly corrosive and toxic. Both these aqueous solutions can cause
burns on contact with skin. Eye goggles are worn at all times to protect the eyes.
Non-latex gloves are worn at all times to prevent skin contact with any of the solutions.
Handle all glass ware with care to prevent breakage and cuts.
Handle and pour HCl and NaOH carefully to prevent splashes or spillage.
Add or pour acid to water or aqueous solutions and never water or aqueous solution to acid
to prevent a vigorous reaction which may cause boiling and may splash on to parts of the
body.
Wash hands thoroughly after the experiment is complete and clean up.
Procedure
First, measure 50.0 mL 2M HCl in a graduated cylinder and pour it into a clean, dry 150 mL
beaker. Then, using another clean, dry graduated cylinder measure 51.0 mL 2M NaOH and pour
it into a clean dry 8-oz polystyrene cup. Then obtain two thermometers with the split rubber stopper
installed and fastened to ring stands. Place the polystyrene cup with the NaOH solution and the
beaker with the HCl solution on to each ring stand. Lower the thermometers so that the ends are
Using a timer to track the time, take the temperature measurement of the NaOH solution first then
the HCl solution 30 seconds later. Then alternate taking the readings between the two solutions at
At 5 minutes, pour all of the HCl solution into the NaOH solution in the polystyrene cup and stir
at a constant rate. This is a deviation from the laboratory manual that instructs for addition of
NaOH solution to the HCl solution. This deviation is done as a safety precaution to add acid to
water or to aqueous solutions. Take the temperature reading of the mixture at 5.5 minutes and in
1-minute intervals thereafter for the next 15 minutes. The experiment is repeated using clean, dry
change, ΔT is determined from the graphs. Then, the heat of reaction Q is calculated and finally
Observation
The HCl and NaOH solution are both colorless initially prior to the start of the experiment. During
the mixing and throughout the experiment the resulting reactants were also colorless. No color
changes were observed during the experiment. The temperature of HCl before mixing appears to
be stationary at 24 °C. The temperature of NaOH before mixing appears to be stationary at 24 °C.
The maximum temperature of the solution mixture in both experiment determination 1 and
determination 2 was observed to be at 33.5 °C. At the end of the experiment at time 20 minutes,
both experiment determination temperatures were also observed to be the same at 31.0 °C. During
the experiment the polystyrene cup felt warmer than compared to prior to mixing the solutions.
Results
Table 1 and Table 2 below shows the data collected in both experiment determinations. See
30.0
29.0
28.0
27.0
26.0
25.0
24.0 y = 24
23.0
22.0
21.0
20.0
0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.010.011.012.013.014.015.016.017.018.019.020.021.022.0
Time, min
31.0
30.0
29.0
28.0
27.0
26.0
25.0
24.0 y = 24
23.0
22.0
21.0
20.0
0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 10.011.012.013.014.015.016.017.018.019.020.021.022.0
Time, min
= 0.1 = 0.1
Tinitial, °C
Tfinal, °C
3.89𝐽 3.89𝐽
× ×
𝑔‧𝑑𝑒𝑔 𝑔‧𝑑𝑒𝑔
= 4126.92 = 4045.20
The data of the experiment is as given in Table 1, Table 2 and in Data Sheet 1. The results of the
calculations are given in Table 3 and Data Sheet 2. From Table 1, Table 2 and in Data Sheet 1, the
average initial temperature of the reactants is found to be 24.0 °C in both determinations. The final
temperature of the mixture is extrapolated from the curves in Figure 2 and Figure 3, and gives the
values of 34.1 °C and 33.9 °C for determination 1 and determination 2, respectively. This is done
by using the trendline y = -0.1919x + 35.024 for determination 1 and substituting x = 5 min. For
determination 2, the final temperature is extrapolated using trendline y = -0.1923x + 34.847 from
The temperature change, ΔT is then calculated as 10.1 °C and 9.9 °C as shown in Table 3 for
4126.92 J and 4045.20 J, for determination 1 and determination 2, respectively. The heat of
neutralization ΔHneutzn for determination 1 is calculated as -41.27 kJ/mol and for determination 2
Discussion
The limiting reactant in the heat of neutralization experiment is HCl since the experiment uses 1
mL more NaOH than the HCl solution. Also noting that both the NaOH and HCl solution used
have the same 2 M molarity and from the balanced equation 1 mol of HCl neutralizes 1 mol of
NaOH, the conclusion can be made that the limiting reactant is HCl solution.
The percentage error is then calculated as:
|−58.5 − (−40.86)|
= × 100%
58.5
= 30.15%
What is calorimetry?
Calorimetry is the measurement of heat changes i.e. either released or absorbed during a chemical
reaction.
The Styrofoam cup acts as an insulated container that enables the reactions to occur inside it. Since
the Styrofoam material is a poor heat conductor, heat loss to the surrounding environment can be
minimized.
The reaction is exothermic since the Styrofoam cup feels warm to the touch indicating that heat is
being released.
The system is the solution mixture and the surroundings is the air and the Styrofoam cup.
If the expected value for the heat of neutralization is -55.8 kJ/mol, how does your
o Higher? Why?
o Same? Why?
The experimental results calculated as the average of ΔHneutzn = -40.86 kJ/mol, which is lower than
the theoretical value of -55.8 kJ/mol with a 30.15% error. This is a significant percentage in error.
Sources of error
This lower value of -40.86 kJ/mol could be attributed to a significant heat loss to the environment.
Although the polystyrene cup is a good insulator, some heat could still be loss through the material.
Furthermore, heat from the solution could be lost through convection on the surface of the solution
since the polystyrene cup is uncovered. Another source of error could be due to inconsistency in
stirring when the HCl solution is added to the NaOH solution. If the stirring is slow when the HCl
is poured into the NaOH solution, the reaction could have occurred more slowly and thus cause
the reaction to occur more slowly, thus producing less heat of reaction.
This experiment could be improved by minimizing heat loss as much as possible. The polystyrene
cup could be double insulated by placing it into another dry and empty polystyrene cup. The outer
polystyrene cup and the air trapped in between both cups act as very good insulators. Furthermore,
a lid with holes to allow the stirring rod and thermometer through could also act as a good insulator
The results of this experiment deviates from the hypothesis formed that the heat of neutralization
from reaction of 0.1 mol of HCl with 0.1 mol of NaOH would result in ΔHneutzn = -58.5 kJ/mol.
The actual average ΔHneutzn calculated from the result of the experiment determination 1 and
determination 2 was at -40.86 kJ/mol, which is lower than the theoretical value of -58.5 kJ/mol,
with a large 30.15% error. As discussed in the previous section, the lower value of -40.86 kJ/mol
could be attributed to a significant heat loss to the environment. Although the polystyrene cup is a
good insulator, some heat could still be loss through the material. Furthermore, heat from the
solution could be lost through convection on the surface of the solution since the polystyrene cup
is uncovered. Another source of error could be due to inconsistency in stirring when the HCl
solution is added to the NaOH solution. If the stirring is slow when the HCl is poured into the
NaOH solution, the reaction could have occurred more slowly and thus cause the reaction to occur
more slowly, thus producing less heat of reaction and ultimately lowering the heat of
neutralization.
This experiment may yield closer values to the theoretical value of -55.8 kJ/mol if heat loss could
be minimized as much as possible. For example, the polystyrene cup could be placed into another
empty polystyrene cup to act as a double insulator. The outer polystyrene cup and the air trapped
in between both cups act as very good insulators. Furthermore, a lid with holes to allow the stirring
rod and thermometer through could also act as a good insulator to minimize heat loss to the air.
The gaps holes for the thermometer and stirring rod would allow equalization of pressure between
the system and the environment to produce constant pressure. An air tight lid may cause the
pressure to build up within the system causing inconsistent results. Subsequently, inconsistent
stirring could be eliminated by using magnetic stirrers that is made of non-reacting material.
Post-Lab Questions (if any)
1. A student was given only one graduated cylinder to use for this experiment. After using it
to measure 50.0 mL of the assigned acid, the student failed to rinse or dry the cylinder
before measuring out the 50.5 mL of the base. Would the calculated ΔHneutzn be higher,
lower, or the same as the literature ΔHneutzn? Briefly explain this difference as a result of
The ΔHneutzn would be higher in this case. Some of the acid remaining in the graduated
cylinder would react to neutralize the base, thus lowering the molarity of the base or OH-
concentration. As such, the base becomes the limiting reactant in the calculation
𝑸
∆𝑯𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒕𝒛𝒏 =
𝒏𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕
With the lowering of number of moles of limiting reactant in the base, ΔHneutzn would
increase. As a result of using the same graduated cylinder in the experiment, the heat of
2. Explain how the following changes in the procedure for this experiment would affect the
results.
The glass beaker would transfer heat away from the solution faster than the polystyrene
cup. This would lower the solution temperature and lower the ΔT in the experiment. Since
heat transfer and heat of neutralization is proportional to ΔT, the ΔHneutzn would be lower
(2) A pressed polystyrene top was used to cover the polystyrene cup after the acid and base
This would increase the vapor pressure in the polystyrene cup and as such ΔHneutzn
3. The accepted ΔHneutzn of hydrobromic acid (HBr) reacting with NaOH solution and of
(1) Write net ionic equations to show what aqueous HBr and HNO3 have in common.
They are both strong bases and both their cations, Na+ and K+ are located in Group 1
(3) Explain why you would expect that ΔHneutzn for Hbr reacting with NaOH solution and
ΔHneutzn for HNO3 reacting with KOH solution would be identical. Write appropriate
HNO3(aq) + KOH(aq) ⇋ H2O(l) + KNO3(aq) , both 1 mol of acid reacts with 1 mol of bases.