CHEMISTRY LABORATORY 101, Sec B Activity No.

8 Title: Grahams Law of Diffusion

Name: Valdez, Vanesa Joy M.

Group No. 2

Date Performed: September 05, 2013 Date Submitted: September 24, 2013

Rating 1. Objective 2. Data, Results and Discussion 3. Q & A 4. Conclusion 5. N & F -

Total Score:

I Introduction: Diffusion is the spreading of gases to occupy all the space available to them. A gas will diffuse even if another gas is present in the same space. The molecules of gases are far enough apart to allow other gas molecules to fit in between. The rate at which a gas diffuses is directly proportional to the average speed of its molecules: the faster molecules diffuse at a faster rate. The rates depend on the molar masses. Thomas Graham of Scotland discovered the gas law of diffusion in 1829. He used an apparatus to study the diffusion of gases the rate at which two gases mix. This apparatus consists of a glass tube sealed at one end with plaster that has holes large enough to allow a gas to enter or leave the tube. When the tube is filled with H2 gas, the level of water in the tube slowly rises because the H2 molecules inside the tube escape through the holes in the plaster more rapidly than the molecules in air can enter the tube. By studying the rate at which the water level in this apparatus changed, Graham was able to obtain data on the rate at which different gases mixed with air. II Objectives: a. To be able to compare the distance traveled by NH3 and HCl. b. To be able to determine the percentage error of the predicted ratio and the experimental ratio of the distance traveled by NH3 and HCl III Data, Results and Discussion: 1. 2. 3. 4. Length of glass tube = 41.5cm Distance traveled by NH3 = 27.5cm Distance traveled by HCl = 14.0cm Experimental Ratio: Distance traveled by NH3 / Distance traveled by HCl = 27.5 / 14.0 = 1.96

5. Predicted Ratio:

= 1.47 x 100%

6. % Error = = x 100% = 33%

Discussion: The exact time taken for the ring to form will depend on the dimensions of the tube, the amount of the solutions which are put on the cotton wool wads, and the temperature of the room. Hydrogen chloride and ammonia diffused from opposite ends of the long tube. They meet and react to produce ammonium chloride, a white solid powder (ring-formed). The distances of the white powder from either end of the tube are measured, and the ratio was compared with a predicted ratio from Graham's Law. The percentage error obtained was 33%. The ring (NH4Cl) formed nearer to the hydrochloric acid end of the tube because hydrogen chloride diffused more slowly than ammonia. This is because hydrogen chloride has almost twice the molecular weight of ammonia. Lighter gases diffuse faster. State Grahams Law of Diffusion: The rate at which gases diffuse is inversely proportional to the square root of their densities. IV Answers to Questions: 1. Write the chemical equation for the reaction that took place. Answer: NH3 (g) + HCl (g) NH4Cl (s)

2. The hydrochloric acid bottles left out in the laboratory, with time, become covered with white powder. Suggest a possible composition for this powder. Why do the ammonia bottles become less covered than do the HCl bottles? Answer: The white powder is NH4Cl (Ammonium Chloride). It is the product of the reaction between Ammonia and Hydrogen Chloride. 3. If equal amounts of helium and argon are placed in a porous container and allowed to escape, which gas will escape faster and how much faster? Solution: R1 = He R2 = Ar Molecular weight of He = 4.0g Molecular weight of Ar = 39.9g

By Graham's Law:

= 3.16

Answer: Helium will escape faster than Argon because it is less dense (has lower molecular weight) than Argon. Using the formula, Helium escapes 3.16 times faster than Argon. 4. What is the molecular weight of a gas which diffuses 1/50 as fast as hydrogen? Solution: R1 = unknown gas R2 = H2 Ratio = 1/50

Molecular weight of the unknown gas = x Molecular weight of H2 = 2.0g

By Graham's Law:

= )(

) = ( )( )

= (square both sides to remove the square root) 5000 = x Answer: The molecular weight of the unknown gas which diffuses 1/50 as fast as Hydrogen is 5000g/mol.

5. How much faster does hydrogen escape through a porous container than sulfur dioxide? Solution: R1 = H2 R2 = SO2 Molecular weight of H2 = 1.0g x 2 = 2.0g Molecular weight of SO2 = 32.1g + (16.0g x 2) = 64.1g

By Graham's Law:

= 5.66

Answer: Hydrogen diffuses 5.66 times faster than sulfur dioxide.

V Conclusions: The following conclusions were drawn after the experiment: a. The distance traveled by NH3 is 27.5cm while the distance traveled by HCl is 14.0cm. Because ammonia is lighter, it will diffuse faster than hydrogen chloride. A quick calculation (using Grahams law of diffusion) showed that ammonia diffused 1.47 times faster than hydrogen chloride. b. Base from our experiment, NH3 diffused 1.96 (expected value) faster than HCl, but our predicted ratio is 1.47 (accepted value). The percentage error obtained was 33%. The experiment is not expected to give close quantitative agreement between calculated and observed values, but the ammonia did diffuse faster than the HCl.

Sources/References: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Diffusion of Gases. Retrieved from: http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/olcweb/cgi/pluginpop.cgi?it=swf::600::450::/ sites/dl/free/0023654666/339133/diffusionASSEMBLED.swf::Diffusion%20of%20Gas Nuffield Foundations, 2011. Retrieved from: http://www.nuffieldfoundation.org/practical-chemistry/diffusion-gases-ammonia-andhydrogen-chloride