Nyambura Mungai

Chemistry Practical on Rates of Reaction

Effect of concentration on rates of reaction

Aim: To investigate the effect of different concentrations of a solution on the rate of a reaction. Research Question: Why does the rate of a reaction change when the concentration of a solution is changed? Hypothesis: The rate of the reaction will speed up when the solution becomes more concentrated. Reasoning: The rate will become faster as the solution becomes more concentrated because there are more reacting particles and so there are more frequent collisions. Chemical reaction: The experiment was conducted using hydrochloric acid and magnesium strips.This is the balanced equation: 2HCl + Mg Apparatus: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Measuring cylinder Magnesium strips Ruler Different concentrations of HCl(1M, 1.5M, 2M, 2.5M) 4 beakers Stopwatch Glass rod (optional) Scissors MgCl2 + H2

Variables: Independent- Concentrations of HCl Dependent - Rate of reaction/Time taken for reaction to end Control- Volume of HCl,Length of Magnesium strips.

10s Chemistry

Nyambura Mungai Method: 1. Measure 20ml of 1M of HCl in a measuring cylinder and pour into the beaker. 2. Measure with the ruler 1 cm of the magnesium strip and cut it. 3. Drop the magnesium into the beaker and immediately start the stopwatch.record observations and stop the stopwatch when the magnesium completely disappears. Record the time in seconds. 4. Repeat steps 1-4 for 1.5 M,2 M and 2.5 M. Results and observations: Concentration of HCl/moldm3 1 Time/secs 101 Observation The magnesium fizzed and a gas evovled. the magnesium floated and moved on the surface until it eventually disappeared. " " " " " " " " " " " "

1.5 2 2.5

48 34 22

Line Graph showing the effect of different concentrations on the rate of a reaction
120 100 Rate of reaction/Seconds 80 60 40 20 0 1 1.5 2 2.5 Concentration of Hydrocloric acid/moldm3

10s Chemistry

Nyambura Mungai Conclusion: As we can see from the tables of results and the graph, the more concentrated the solution was the less time it took for the reaction to finish taking place. This further proves our reasoning that the more concentrated the solution the more reacting particles there are and so there are more frequent and successful collisions. Therefore we can conclude the higher the concentration the faster the rate of the reaction.

Evaluation: Overall I think the experiment was very successful and went smoothly. however there is always room for improvement. The things i would like to change in future experiments are: Use a burette instead of a measuring cylinder as a burette is more accurate. Conduct the experiment at least three times, to ensure accuracy and precision when it comes to observation and recording of results. Ensure all HCl solutions are labeled correctly to avoid confusion.

I encountered one other problem that almost interfered with my results. The 2M of hydrochloric acid was extremely underactive, it was taking a longer time than even the 1M to react after more than three trials i asked for another 2m to be prepared and when i used the newly prepared one it gave the appropriate and expected result. Most likely the other 2M had been contaminated or mixed with another substance.

10s Chemistry