Chem 26.

1
1st Semester, AY 2019 – 2020
Problem Set #1

PROBLEM SOLVING. Show your complete solution to each of the problems. Box your final
answer.

A. STATISTICS

1. Dipper, Mabel and Seus decided to determine the mass, in lbs, of copper oxide. The following
are the data they obtained:

Dipper Mabel Seus

14.771 14.784 14.752
14.787 14.758 14.784
14.803 14.765 14.765
14.781 14.794 Spilled

a. What is the mean and standard deviation of each set of data?

b. What is the confidence interval of each set of data?
c. Calculate the pooled standard deviation.

2. B1 and B2 are independent analysts who wanted to determine the % Fe in a steel standard.
They wanted to determine whose method is better for the Fe analysis. Their data were as follows

Table 2. % Fe in a steel standard using various methods.

B1 B2
5.6 5.2
5.3 5.1
4.9 4.5
5.6 4.6
8.7 4.7
5.0 5.5
5.1

a) Calculate the correct mean and standard deviation for each data set.
b) Calculate the confidence limits at 95% confidence level for each data set
c) It was found out that the steel standard contains 4.8 (±0.1)% C. Determine which
method is more accurate at 95% confidence level.

Table 1.1. Values of t for various levels of probability.

n-1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
T90% 6.31 2.92 2.35 2.13 2.02 1.94 1.90 1.86 1.83 1.81
T95% 12.7 4.30 3.18 2.78 2.57 2.45 2.36 2.31 2.26 2.23
T99% 63.7 9.92 5.84 4.60 4.03 3.71 3.50 3.36 3.25 3.17

Table 1.2. Critical Values for the Grubbs Test

N 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
g95% 1.1543 1.4812 1.7150 1.8871 2.0200 2.1266 2.2150 2.2900
g99% 1.1547 1.4962 1.7637 1.9728 2.1391 2.2744 2.3868 2.4821
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B. SOLUTION PREPARATION, ALIQUOTS, and DILUTIONS

1. A geochemist wanted to determine the amount of Cr in a piece of ruby using UV-Vis

spectrophotometry. A stock solution was prepared by dissolving 5 mg pulverized ruby in 100 mL
water. A 30 mL aliquot of the stock solution was diluted to make a 150-mL solution. The final
solution for analysis was prepared by diluting 30 mL of the previous solution with 20 mL distilled
water; this solution contains 3.1 ppm Cr. What is the amount of Cr (in ppm) present in the pulverized
ruby?

2. Koko was asked to prepare a working titrant solution for titrimetric analysis of Fe(II). He first
prepared a stock titrant solution. He prepared it by dissolving 5.92 ± 0.01 g of potassium dichromate
(FW = 294.185 ± 0.001) in enough water, transferring it quantitatively to a 500.0 ± 0.5 mL
volumetric flask, and diluting it to mark with deionized water. For the working titrant, 15.4 mL of
the stock solution was transferred using a measuring pipette with an uncertainty of ± 0.1-mL to a
50.0 ± 0.5 mL volumetric flask and diluted to mark with distilled water.

What is the molar concentration of the working titrant solution? Include the uncertainty.

3. A lab technician weighed 2.112 g of fertilizer and dissolved it with 35.0-mL concentrated acid. He
then transferred it quantitatively to a 250.0-mL volumetric flask and diluted it to mark with distilled
water. Afterwards, he took a 35.0-mL aliquot of the solution, transferred it to a 1000.0-mL
volumetric flask, and diluted it to mark with distilled water. The density of the solution was assumed
to be 1.00 g/mL. Calculate the concentration of fertilizer (in ppm) present in the final solution.

C. CHEMICAL KINETICS

1. Given the following experimental data, find the rate law expression and the rate constant for
the reaction:
NO(g) + NO2(g) + O2(g)  N2O5(g)

Run [NO]0 (M) [NO2]0 (M) [O2]0 (M) Initial Rate

(M/s)
1 0.10 0.10 0.10 2.1 x 10-2
2 0.20 0.10 0.10 4.2 x 10-2
3 0.20 0.30 0.20 1.26 x 10-1
4 0.10 0.10 0.20 2.1 x 10-2

a. Determine the rate order with respect to NO, NO2, and O2. Provide the equation of the best
fit line and R2 for each reactant.
b. What is the over-all rate order?
c. Determine the average rate constant, k.

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2. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) were banned due to its contribution to the depletion of the ozone layer
(O3). Consider the gas phase reaction between CFC and O3 which produces O2.

Run Temperature, [CFC], [O3], Reaction

C mM mM rate, x104
mM/min
1 0.05 0.10 2.1
2 0.15 0.10 6.35
3 25 0.25 0.10 10.73
4 0.15 0.20 12.87
5 0.15 0.30 19.2
6 18 0.15 0.10 4.17
7 32 0.15 0.10 10.23

a. Calculate the rate orders with respect to CFC and O3. Give the equation of the best
fit line and R2 for each reactant.
b. Establish the rate law for the reaction.
c. Calculate the average rate constant for the runs at 25 deg C.
d. Determine the energy of activation (Ea) and collision frequency (A).

D. COMMON-ION EFFECT & BUFFERS

1. Hans wishes to produce 600.0 mL of a 0.500 M buffer solution (Ka = 6.0 x 10-4) at pH = 3.00
from 1.00 M stock nitrous acid solution and solid potassium nitrite (85.10 g/mol).

a. Calculate the required components of the buffer to be used and describe its preparation.
b. If 250 mL of 0.10 M NaOH is added, what is the pH of the resulting solution?

2. Kara wants to study the inhibition of α-glucosidase, an enzyme involved in the digestion of
carbohydrates. She found that her enzyme’s optimum pH is 8.00. You were by Kara to help her
prepare a 200 mL of 0.10 M of this buffer. The only reagents available in the laboratory are tabulated
below:

Acid Ka Salt FW
1.0 M HOAc 1.80 x 10-5 NaOAc 82.0
1.5 M HNO2 4.00 x 10-4 NaNO2 69.0
5.0 M HClO 3.00 x 10-8 NaClO 74.5
6.0 M HCN 6.17 x 10-10 NaCN 49.0

A. What reagents should you use to prepare the buffer?

B. Calculate for the amounts of acid and salt you need to prepare the buffer.
C. Kara, who is desperate to finish her thesis, disturbs you and accidentally spilled 2.0 mL,
0.1 M HCl to the buffer. What is the new pH of the buffer?

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