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Experiment #1

Chemistry II Laboratory

Enthalpy and Entropy of Zinc with Copper Sulfate


{Adapted from CCLI Initiative Computers Used in Chemistry Laboratory Instruction
Enthalpy & Entropy of Zinc with Copper Sulfate, Amend, J., Montana State
University, Bozeman, MT, 2009.}
Objectives: To determine changes in enthalpy and entropy of the reaction of zinc with
copper sulfate by two methods: calorimetry (Experiment #1) and electrochemistry
(Experiment #2). To compare enthalpy values found by both methods.

Introduction: Thermodynamics is the study of energy changes that occur in chemical


and physical processes. The enthalpy and entropy changes of a system undergoing such
processes are interrelated by the change in free energy, G, according to the equation,
G = H - TS

(1)

The investigation focuses on the reaction


Zn (s) + CuSO4 (aq)

ZnSO4 (aq) + Cu (s)

(2)

G will be calculated from the H and S values obtained electrochemically. The


validity of the Equation (1) will be tested by comparing the value of H obtained
electrochemically with the value of H obtained calorimetrically for the same reaction.
The Calorimetric Method
The ideal calorimeter is a perfectly insulated vessel which contains a large known weight
of solution in perfect thermal contact with an accurate thermometer. When measured
quantities of reactants are introduced into the reaction vessel, the heat of reaction changes
the temperature of the calorimeter solution. The heat of the chemical reaction is given by
the equation
H = (K + W)(Ti Tf)
n
where H is the heat of reaction at constant pressure
n is the number of moles of a limiting reactant
K is the heat capacity of the calorimeter solution
W is the heat capacity of the calorimeter
Ti is the initial temperature of the calorimeter solution
Tf is the final temperature of the calorimeter solution

(3)

The heat capacity of the calorimeter solution is obtained by multiplying the specific heat
of the solution (3.8 J g-1 C-1 for CuSO4) by the weight of the solution in the calorimeter.
W, the estimated calorimeter cup heat capacity, is 30 J C-1.
Safety Precautions: Safety goggles must be worn in the lab at all times. Any skin
contact by chemicals should be washed immediately.
BEFORE PERFORMING THIS EXPERIMENT.
EACH GROUP WILL NEED A LAPTOP COMPUTER!!
Interfacing the Microlab Software and Hardware
PLEASE FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY!!
MicroLab Software:
1. Attach the USB cable to your computer. The cable should also be plugged into
the MicroLab Interface. Turn the Microlab Interface on (on/off button is on the
front side of the interface on the right hand side).
2. Your computer (Windows 7 or XP Pro operating system) should recognize the
USB connection as a plug and play device.
3. The MicroLab software is available on the course LMS website. Run the
Microlab Set Up Executable file to run the software on your computer. Follow
the directions of the set up file. Once Set Up is complete a MicroLab shortcut
icon should be on your desktop.
4. If the computer and MicroLab interface are not communicating, for example you
cannot open the program or the program is running in simulation mode, see the
Special Note below.
5. At this point you will need to create an experiment program by selecting certain
sensors and calibrating those sensors as needed.

Special Note: Resetting the USB Communications port assignment


If Microlab will not open correctly, First close the MicroLab program and then do the
following:
1. Open Control Panel on your computer.
2. Select System
3. Select Hardware
4. Select Device Manager
5. Scroll down to Ports (COM and LPT)
6. Select USB
7. Select Port Setting
8. Select Advanced
9. Open the drop down menu of Com Port Number
10. Select the lowest available COM port for the USB connection. (COM 1 or 2
works best.)
11. Save this setting and exit.
12. Re-open MicroLab.
Creating a MicroLab Program: Once the MicroLab program opens it will ask for a
particular experiment. Choose MicroLab Experiment then click on OK. (At this
point an experiment name is not required.)

1. Once the MicroLab window opens then select Sensor so that it is highlighted
blue (shown below).

2. At bottom of the same screen click Add Sensor.


3. The add sensor window will open for you to select the sensor, appropriate units
and calibration as needed.

From the drop down menu, select thermistor. Then click on the CAT-5 A input so that it
is highlighted red as shown above. Make sure your actual Thermistor is plugged into the
same CAT-5 jack on the front panel of the MicroLab interface panel. In the Label
window, type in Temperature. Click next to calibrate.

Microlab Thermistor Temperature Sensor Calibration


To calibrate the thermistor temperature sensor you will need a beaker of ice water,
a second beaker of room temperature water, a third beaker of warm water (between 50
60 C), the microlab interface with a temperature sensor attached and a thermometer.
The subsequent data you record is highly dependent on this calibration. So data recorded
for the experiment will only be as good as your calibration!!

1. Click on Perform New Calibration.


2. Click on Add a Calibration Point. Using the beaker with ice and water,
insert both the temperature sensor from the Microlab interface and the
thermometer. Allow both temperature sensors to equilibrate, then read the
temperature on the thermometer and enter the value in the Actual Value
box. You will notice that the red line in the Rate of Change window is
moving, that is OK. Once the red line equilibrates and stays within the green
shaded area, then click on OK to record the temperature sensor voltage
value that corresponds to the temperature of the ice water.

3. Repeat this measurement for the room temperature beaker of water and then
the warm water (50-60 C) beaker.
4. Once you have all three measurements you must fit a curve to the data. A
Steinhart-Hart Equation or logarithmic curve fit is best for the thermistor
temperature sensor data points. So select the best curve fit.
5. Click on Accept and Save This Calibration and provide a filename for the
calibration when prompted.
6. If asked, the units for temperature you will be using is Celsius (C).
7. Once the calibration is complete then next task is continued construction of
your program. Add a second sensor of time with seconds as the units.

8. Once both sensors are added, you can click and drag each sensor to the graph,
spreadsheet and digital window. The temperature sensor should be on the yaxis and time on the x-axis of the graph. By doing this you can see the change
in temperature real time on the graph and digital window, as well the data will
be recorded to a spreadsheet for later analysis. (See image below.)

9. Click on File on the top toolbar, then click save experiment. Give your
experiment program a name, such as Thermistor. This program will be used
to record calorimetry data needed for the first Chemistry II experiment.

Experimental Procedures:
Part I Calorimetry
Materials:
0.5 M Copper Sulfate
Zinc Powder
150 mL beaker
250 mL beaker
Thermistor.exp Microlab Program
Waste Container

Procedure:
1. Accurately add 50 mL of 0.5 M CuSO4 solution to a clean and dry 150 mL
beaker. Place the 150 mL beaker inside a 400 mL beaker. Assume the density of
the CuSO4 solution to be 1 g/mL and the calorimeter heat capacity to be 30 J/C.
2. Cover the calorimeter with the lid and immerse the tip of the thermistor probe into
the solution but without resting it on the bottom.
3. Weigh 0.5 g of zinc powder on a tared piece of weighing paper. Record the exact
value in your lab notebook.
4. Start the Thermistor.exp program to record temperature and time of the CuSO4
solution in the calorimeter for 2-3 minutes. The system needs to reach
equilibrium.
5. Add the zinc powder to the copper solution. IF any zinc remains attached to the
weighing paper, reweigh the paper and remaining zinc. Record this value.
Calculate by difference the amount of zinc that was added to the calorimeter and
record that value in your lab notebook.
6. Using a glass stir rod, continuously stir the solution and break up any clumps of
material that may form. You may have to break up some of the resulting residue
(copper coated zinc powder) in order to ensure complete reaction.
7. Once the reaction is complete, stop the microlab program. From the resulting
plot, determine the initial and final temperature and calculate H per mole of
zinc.
8. Collect all waste into the waste jar provided.

Microlab Software manipulations:


If you are working on this data after lab, open Microlab and choose Simulate/Open
File/Hand Enter to look at your data. Once the program opens you must then open each
individual file to use the data collected.
To find T for each reaction:
Click on Select Domain in the graph area of the MicroLab screen. A magnifying glass
should appear as your mouse pointer. Choose the area of the initial linear portion of the
data before mixing occurred by click and dragging the magnifying glass over the area of
the data points (this can be repeated, so do not worry if you do not get the area you want
the first time!). Once you release the mouse, the area will be rescaled on the screen.
For the Initial Temperature:
Click on Analysis in the graph area. The next window is to confirm that the area you
chose is correct and any changes in the domain selection can be made here. Click on
OK. When the next window opens, choose First Order (Linear). The equation to the
line will appear below the graph. Record that equation or print that graph. Enter the time
of mixing in seconds as the x value and calculate the y value. That will be your initial
temperature in Celsius.

For the Final Temperature:


Click on Zoom Out All and the entire graph will be shown again. Perform the same
steps as above except choose the linear portion of the plot after mixing where the
temperature has leveled off. . Enter the time of mixing in seconds as the x value and
calculate the y value. That will be the final temperature in Celsius. The difference
between the two temperatures (T final T initial) is T for the reaction.
Other manipulations:
1. Data can be saved and exported to other graphing programs, i.e., Excel, as a
comma separated text file. Click on File on the top toolbar and then click on
Export Data As and choose Comma-Separated- Value text file and provide a
file name and save.
2. Graph properties can be changed by clicking on Graph on the top toolbar and
clicking on Graph Properties. The properties window will offer a selection
of changes that can be made to the presentation of the data.
3. Graphs from the MicroLab program can be printed directly by clicking on
Graph on the top toolbar and click on Print This Graph.

Post Laboratory Report:


Calorimetry:
1. From the plot, determine the temperature of the copper sulfate solution before
mixing (Ti) and the maximum temperature of the mixture (Tf). Report the change
in temperature (T).
2. Using Equation (11), determine the enthalpy change, H, per mole of zinc added.
Show all calculations and the final value with the proper units.

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