Christien Ayers

3/12/17
Chemistry X
Lab Report

From Light to Molarity

Background

Spectrophotometry is a measurement of how much light a chemical substance absorbs or

transmits. A spectrophotometer is an instrument that measures the intensity of light absorbed
after it passes through a sample of a solution of the chemical substance. This allows for the
concentration of the chemical substance to be determined, which is the focus of this lab.

Materials

The materials needed for this lab are the following: Spectronic 20D, two glass cuvettes (with one
filled with distilled water), 6 glass test tubes, a 10 mL graduated cylinder, 40 mL sample of
cobalt nitrate Co(NO3)2, a beaker filled with distilled water, a 10 mL glass pipette with a pipette
pump (for the sample of Co(NO3)2) and a plastic pipette (for the distilled water), lens cleaning
paper, and Parafilm.

Procedure

1. Label your test tubes with a washable marker, lettering them from A to F.
2. Using the 10 mL glass pipette, draw 7 mL of the 40 mL sample substance, and insert it
into test tube A. (Repeat 5 more times, drawing 1 mL less of the sample substance each
time and inserting it into a different test tube (B, then C, etc.).)
3. Now using the plastic pipette, draw some water and measure out 1 mL into the 10 mL
graduated cylinder, and then pour it into test tube B. (Repeat 5 more times, drawing 1 mL
more of distilled water each time and inserting it into a different test tube (C, then D,
etc.).)
4. Next, using the plastic pipette draw enough distilled water to almost fill up a cuvette, and
insert it into one of the glass cuvettes now known as the blank.
5. After that, prepare a sample cuvette by drawing the 7 mL solution in test tube A with the
glass pipette and then inserting it into the other glass cuvette.
6. Move to the spectrophotometer, and using the wavelength knob set the wavelength to 520
.
 7. Blank the spectrophotometer with no cuvette inside by pushing the MODE button until
the red light appears next to Absorbance, and then with the compartment empty and the
lid down, adjusting the 0 %T knob until the digital display reads 1.000.
8. Zero the spectrophotometer with the blank by inserting it into the compartment of the
spectrophotometer, lining up the hash marks, closing the lid, and then turning the 100%
T knob until the digital display reads .000.
9. Read the sample next: Remove the blank, and place the sample cuvette into the
compartment. Line up the hash marks, and again close the lid. Read the display, and
record this value in the data table. Then repeat 5 to prepare a new sample cuvette after
pouring out the previous one (using the solution from test tube B, then C etc.), and repeat
steps 7 and 8 before reading the next sample.
10. After recording the data, calculate the molarity of each solution from each of the test
tubes using the dilution equation.

Data

Data of Knowns

volume volume Diluted M Absorbance

standard water

7 mL 0 mL 0.250 M 0.835

6 mL 1 mL 0.214 M 0.774

5 mL 2 mL 0.179 M 0.698

4 mL 3 mL 0.143 M 0.566

3 mL 4 mL 0.107 M 0.478

2 mL 5 mL 0.071 M 0.326

Data of Unknowns

Sample Dilution Absorbance

A 0.130 M 0.454

B 0.186 M 0.736
Analysis

Absorbance of a Solution as a Function of Molarity of a Solution

Knowns-
6 mL 0.25 M = 7 mL M2
M2 = 1.5/7 = 0.214 M
5 mL 0.25 M = 7 mL M2
M2 = 1.25/7 = 0.179 M
4 mL 0.25 M = 7 mL M2
M2 = 1/7 = 0.143 M
3 mL 0.25 M = 7 mL M2
M2 = 0.75/7 = 0.107 M
2 mL 0.25 M = 7 mL M2
M2 = 0.5/7 = 0.071 M

Unknowns-
0.250 M / C2 = 0.867 / 0.454
0.250/(0.867 / 0.454) = 0.130 M
0.143 M / C2 = 0.563 / 0.736
0.143/(0.563 / 0.736) = 0.186 M

Conclusions and Discussion

The concentrations of the unknowns were 0.130 M for Sample A and 0.186 M for Sample B. I
got these concentrations by first finding the absorbance of the substance, having to dilute sample
be to get the absorbance to fit on my standard curve graph I created. Then, looking at the
standard curve graph created from the 6 known samples, and Beers Law (which says
concentration of first solution divided by concentration of second solution equals absorbance of
first solution divided by absorbance of second solution) to find the molarity of the two unknown
solutions.

One source of experimental errors was the limited amount of instruments we could use. We only
had one glass pipette and one plastic pipette, and those were our only tools to draw liquid. With
the glass pipette the first time we drew solution, a few large droplets got stuck onto the sides of
the inside of the pipette. When we drew the second solution, the droplets gave the solution a mL
or 2 of extra solution which messed up the results of the lab. If we had more pipettes, or even 6
for each test tube the amount of error made would be minimized. Another source of error which
is related to the first, is that small droplets of solution were also clinging onto the inside of
cuvette which also messed up the amount of solution for each sample.

This lab taught me that before I perform a lab, I need to prelab thoroughly and carefully to make
sure I understand all parts of the lab before I begin actually doing the experiment. I understood
what the materials were what they did but I didnt know why we used them and I had to figure
that out as the lab was happening, which made the whole situation more stressful and confusion
than it needed to be. I think some improvements to the lab could be made though. This lab was
quite difficult, even after understanding what I was trying to do overall, and I think more
explanation about how to go about the lab, with more clear and precise directions could help
make the lab easier to understand.