Ashwin’s

Chemistry
12 Lab
Book
2008
Course: SCH4U Electronic
Teacher: Mr. Linzel
Document
Introduction
The lab we are doing is a review of the Grade 11 unit Quantities in Chemical Formulas. To understand
this lab, we must know the basics first. We know that atoms, ions and molecules are too small to see
and that observable changes in chemical reactions must involve extremely large numbers of these
entities. To count these large numbers, a precise and convenient way has been formulated to determine
their mass. This is called the mole. This is the number used by chemists to define numbers of entities as
small as atoms (SI symbol, mol). A mole is the amount of substance containing 6.02x1023 of anything.
This is known as Avogadro’s constant. We have been familiarized by solving for the variables of molar
mass, number of moles or mass by using the equation:

n=m
M
n= number of moles

m= mass

M= molar mass

Stochiometry is the relationship between quantities of reactants and products that are involved in
chemical reactions. Stochiometry is a very important in the fields of industry, medicine and ecology. We
also know that you must balance out formulas for reactions. This is due to the fact that the mass of the
products in a chemical reaction is always equal to the mass of the reactants which is stated by the Law
of conservation of mass. Stochiometry is very important because it helps us determine empirical
formulas, which are the simplest forms of the chemical reaction.

Ex.

Na + O2  NaO 2Na + O2  2NaO

This is an obvious example of law of conservation of mass. If we look at the first part of the reaction, we
know that we cannot leave the equation like that. This would mean that 2 parts of oxygen had been
reacted to form one part of oxygen. This would mean that one part of oxygen is missing. In accordance
to the law of conservation of mass, we know this is false. Therefore when we balance the equation as
shown in the next step, the number of each reactant is the same as the number of each product.

For this lab, we must be able to tell if a chemical reaction or a physical reaction is occurring. To know
this we can tell which type of reaction is occurring by what is happening in the reaction. We know that
for chemical reactions a new substance is created. Indicators of a chemical reaction taking place are
appearance, texture, color, odor, melting point, boiling point, density, solubility, and polarity. Physical
reactions are reactions that simply change the state of the matter. Physical reactions are reversible. An
example is water turning to ice by the process of freezing.

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Purpose
Determine the formula for a copper chloride hydrate compound; including the moles of the hydrate.

Hazardous Material Assessment

Copper Chloride - Copper Chloride is hazardous to eyes and can cause irritation to eyes,
skin, and respiratory tract and gastro intestines. Chopper Chloride should always be kept
in a tightly closed container. To dispose of this sample, follow federal, state and local
regulations.

Ethanol- Exposure over 1000pm of ethanol may cause headaches, irritation of eyes, nose
and throat. If ingested, it may cause blindness. Ethanol should be kept in a cool,
ventilated area which is kept away from heat. Oxidizing materials and strong acids should
be kept away from it. Ethanol should be disposed according to state regulations.

Hydrochloric Acid- Hydrochloric acid causes severe burns and may be fatal if inhaled or
swallowed. The vapor produced from the acid, is extremely irritating. It can cause
damage to the respiratory passages and lungs, irritation to the eyes, skin, respiratory tract
and gastrointestinal discomfort. Hydrochloric acid should be kept in a container that is
tightly sealed in a well ventilated area away from incompatible materials. Hydrochloric
acid should be disposed in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local
regulations.

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Procedure

1. Gathered required materials from materials list.

2. Used an electronic balance scale to mass, in grams, a pure crucible. Had used Sig
Figs at two decimal points.
3. 1.00 gram of Copper Chloride Hydrate was massed in a crucible on the electric
balance scale. Data was recorded in data table.
4. Used a clay triangle to support the crucible contacting the copper chloride hydrate.
Clay triangle was supported by an iron ring attached to the retort stand. This allowed
the crucible to be stable over the Bunsen burners flame.
5. Carefully lit the Bunsen burner and left a distance of 5-7 cm from crucible.
6. Had gently heated the crucible so that the green crystals had changed to a brown
color. This had identified evaporation of the hydrate from Copper Chloride.
7. Sample was left to cool before being massed. Once the sample had cooled, the mass
of the crucible in grams was recorded in data table. Mass of evaporated water was
found by simply subtracting mass of the crucible by itself.
8. Transferred the brown crystals (anhydrous copper chloride) in the crucible to a 50 ml
beaker. Had rinsed out the crucible with 16 ml of distilled water. The brown crystals
had dissolved in the distilled water by doing this.
9. The beaker was then swirled around to ensure that all crystals of copper chloride were
properly dissolved.
10. Placed a strip of aluminum wire of a mass of 0.25 grams into the beaker.
11. Observed the reaction between the aluminum wire and the copper chloride.
Observations were recorded in table.
12. A few drops of 6M of HCl were applied to dissolve remaining insoluble aluminum
salts.
13. Had used filter paper and folded it evenly twice to take the shape of the funnel. The
funnel was then placed inside a beaker.
14. Had carefully poured the solution into the funnel allowing it to filter into the beaker.
This had ensured that the copper chloride would remain in the filter paper.
15. Had placed a few drops of ethanol into the gravity filter to ensure only copper was left
in the filter.
16. Had taken the filter paper with the copper intact and placed it on a glass disk in the
incubator to dry.
17. Had then massed the filter paper with the copper on it. Had then subtracted the mass
of the filter paper from the total mass to get the reaming mass of the copper in grams.

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 Table of Materials and Equipment
Materials and Equipment Amount
Hydrochloric acid (HCl) 6M
Copper Chloride Hydrate 1.00g
95% Ethanol (C2H5OH) 10 Ml
Retort Stand 1
Crucible 1
Electronic Scale 1
Clay Triangle 1
Graduated Cylinder 1
Beaker 1x 50 ml
Glass Funnel 1
Filter Paper 1
Lab Goggles 1
Pipette 1
Aluminum Wire 1

Data Table
Chemical Compounds & Equipment Mass of
Chemicals
and
Equipment
(grams)
Pure Crucible 11.84

Copper Chloride Hydrate 1.00

Copper Chloride Hydrate + Crucible 12.84

Copper Chloride Anhydrous + Crucible 12.65

Mass of Evaporated Water 0.21

Aluminum Strip 0.25

Filter Paper 0.52

Glass Disk 18.42

Copper + Filter Paper + Glass Disk 19.32

Copper 0.38

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Qualitative Table
Process
Dehydrating H2O from Copper Chloride
Hydrating Anhydrous Copper Chloride with
Distilled Water
Adding an Aluminum Strip to the Solution
Removing Copper from Aluminum Strip with HCL
Qualitative Observations
While dehydrating the water from the copper
chloride, the sample had started to turn a
brownish color. As the time increased, the green
crystals started becoming less visible. This was due
to the heat from the Bunsen burner. Once all the
crystals in the sample were brown, it was massed
three times to make sure it had reached a constant
mass.
The brown Crystals were again mixed with distilled
water. As this was done, the brown crystals had
turned back to a turquoise color indicating the
sample was rehydrated.
When the aluminum strip was placed in the copper
chloride hydrate water solution, it instantaneously
reacted. Bubbles and gas were visible during the
reaction which also released a fair amount of heat.
This process had produced a single displacement
reaction:
3CuCl2 + 2Al  2AlCl3 + 3Cu
The use of hydrochloric acid was involved to
remove any copper that had still remained on the
aluminum foil. The HCl had reacted very fast with
the aluminum strip producing fizzing and hydrogen
gas.
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Data Analysis

Through the use of Stochiometry, the calculations state that the empirical formula of the unknown
copper chloride hydrate was

CuCl2 · 2H2O

This empirical formula was found by using the basic equation to find the number of moles of chlorine,
water and copper. You then take the number of moles and divide it by the lowest number of moles. This
gives you the number of moles in proportion to one mole of the smallest molar volume.

Since Copper is a multivalent atom. It can have a charge of +1 or +2. In this lab we were not told which
copper we were using which means we had to analyze the reactions and decide which copper would fit.
CuCl would not fit the reaction due to the fact that if CuCl was placed into distilled water, it wouldn’t
dissolve. Also it would definitely not change color due to it not dissolving. We know that CuCl2 would
dissociate since it was in an aqueous solution. From this previous knowledge we can conclude that it we
had used CuCl2 in this reaction.

The formula was used to find the number of moles of each substance. The mass was taken

from the data table and the molar mass was taken from the periodic table of elements. This had
concluded that the values were 1 for copper and 2 for chlorine and water. Therefore the ratio was 1:2:2
in the copper (II) chloride dehydrate compound.

To figure out where sources of error may exist, the equation to calculate Percentage error was used.

We use this equation by taking the theoretical yield of copper which was 0.37g subtract to the actually
yield of 0.38g. This is then divided by the theoretical yield and multiplied by 100 to give you a
percentage of error. This had proven that the percentage error in this lab was 1.9%. This is a very low
percentage and means that the amount of error was low and that the experiment was done to a
successful standard.

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