DISCUSSION

In this practical of saponification, the titration method was used with the purpose of finding the
reaction rate constant, k and the order of the reaction performed at the different temperatures
mentioned. Order of a reaction describes the mathematical form in which the results of the
changes during a chemical reaction can be demonstrated, while the reaction rate constant, k is the
constant of proportionality which relates the rate of a chemical reaction and the concentrations of
the reactants. [Laidler K J, 2015].

Order of reaction
From the shape of the graphs of /(()) (M-1) v/s time (min) and a-x (M) v/s time (min)
obtained, it can be deduced that the saponification reaction between NaOH and Ethyl Acetate
undergoes a 2nd order reaction. Moreover, the order of reaction is known to be independent of
temperature as orders change only when the reaction changes. (University of Rhode Island, n.d).
As it can be seen from our experiment, at all corresponding temperatures, the order of reaction
remained the same, i.e. of second order.

Rate constant
Furthermore, according to the Arrhenius equation, it is understood that as temperature increases
the reaction rate constant also increases. However, in the practical done, it is noted that there are
certain anomalies in the rate constants for the respective temperatures depicted on the graph. As
illustration, at temperature 15 20oc, the rate constant decreases from 6.69 - 2.31 M-1/min, and as
from 20 40oc, it increases from 2.31 5.12 M -1 /min. This is supported by the fact that not all
points lie on the line of best fit for all graphs, for example at 24,40 and 60 oc, the values of R2 are
less than 0.75, which is not suitable. Eventually, the above mentioned inaccuracies and
discrepancies can be due to:

Contamination of equipment.
Ineffective stirring by magnetic stirrer.
Parallax error white reading the burette.
Error of apparatus.
Drop in temperature of the batch reactor as the reaction was being carried out.
 Safety aspects and recommendations

1. Reagents should be handled with caution, as well as when sampling from flasks or the
reactor. Appropriate personal protective equipment such as gloves, should be used sat all
times.
2. The solutions such as HCL should be handled in a well ventilated area.
3. The reactor could have been placed in a water bath in order to avoid any kind of
temperature drop which could affect the results.
4. The conductivity measurement method could have been used for a more suitable rate
constant or perform the experiment on wider range of temperatures.

REFERENCES

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