Calorimetry Experiment Calorimetry 1. The purpose of this experiment is to determine the acid content of an unknown HCl solution by employing two separate, independent calorimetric methods. Special Material Needed Obtain a Styrofoam cup, a digital thermometer, a 25-mL buret, a stopwatch, and an unknown HCl solution from the stockroom window. Pre-Lab Reading General Chemistry , Ebbing, section 6.6 4.
Every chemical change is accompanied by a change in energy, usually in the form of heat.
If heat is evolved, the reaction is exothermic and if heat is absorbed, the reaction is endothermic. While it is difficult to measure heat flow, it is fairly easy to measure temperature changes. This value is generally converted to a molar quantity and reported as heat of reaction per mole. In part A of this laboratory experiment, you will monitor temperature changes which occur during the reaction between a hydrochloric acid solution and a sodium hydroxide solution in order to determine the heat of reaction. You will then repeat the procedure in part B to determine the concentration of an unknown hydrochloric acid solution.