Chem I Name:

Per:
Household pH Lab ALTERNATE ASSIGNMENT Please print page ONE, complete,
and turn in
Purpose:
The purpose of this lab is to characterize household substances in terms of their pH, pOH, ion
concentrations and to determine if the solution is acidic or basic using different indicators.
Alternate Procedures:

Use the chart found on the last page of this document to fill in the appropriate colors for each
indicator at the specified pH values in Table 1. Phenolphthalein has already been done for you
as an example. For litmus you may need to reference your textbook or class notes as it is not on
the chart.

Use the information that has been supplied at the end of this document to determine an
approximate pH based on each indicators color, and to determine the overall approximate pH,
pOH, [H+], and [OH-] for the household items listed. You will also need to fill in the category
column and classify the substance as an acidic, basic, or neutral.

Data:
Table 1: Colors of Buffer Solutions at Each pH
pH 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Phenolphthalein No No No No No No No Ligh pink Dar Dar Dar
colo colo colo colo colo colo colo t k k k
r r r r r r r pink pink pink pink
Thymol blue

Litmus

Phenol red

Bromophenol
blue

Bromocresol
green

Methyl red

Methyl orange

Alizarin yellow

Table2: Household Items

ID Substan Catego Indicator Indicator Indicator Appx. pOH [H+] [OH-] Acidic,
ce ry (i.e. #1 #2 #3 pH Basic,
food, (ID of (ID of (ID of or
drink) indicator indicator indicator Neutral
and appx. and appx. and appx. ?
pH) pH) pH)
A Vinegar

Conclusions: Use the back of the first page to write the following conclusions
1. Paragraph 1: Discuss the role of indicators in acid-base chemistry, including how they
were and their usefulness.
2. Paragraph 2: If you were given a household item that is yellow in alizarin yellow, and blue
in litmus, what is the pH range of the item? What would you choose as a third indicator to
further narrow down the range? Discuss the reasoning for your choice and what
conclusions you would be able to make (be specificif the chosen indicators turns ___
then the pH range will be ___....)

Chart for Data Table 1:

 Inf
ormation for Data Table 2:
Substance A was vinegar. It turned bromthymol blue to yellow, methyl orange to red, and
thymol blue to yellow.
Substance B was glass cleaner. It turned bromthymol blue to blue, alizarin yellow to
yellow, and phenolphthalein to pink.
Substance C was isopropyl alcohol. It turned phenol red to yellow, bromcresol green to
blue, and methyl red to yellow.
Substance D was hydrogen peroxide. It turned litmus to red, bromophenol blue to blue,
and bromocresol green to green.
Substance E was milk of magnesia. It turned methyl red to yellow, phenolphthalein to
pink, and alizarin yellow to yellow.