2019 DHS Year 5

Practical 5–1: [Kinetics]

To investigate the kinetics of the reaction between thiosulfate ions and acid

Aim of To investigate the kinetics of the reaction between thiosulfate ions and acid
Experiment:

Skills: After this experiment, you should be able to:

• deduce volume proportional to concentration;
• analyse data graphically or with the use of logical reasoning to find orders of
reaction;
• conduct a clock reaction/ experiment;
• use initial rate method to determine order of reaction.

Description: When aqueous sodium thiosulfate is mixed with hydrochloric acid, a suspension
of solid sulfur is formed.

Na2S2O3 (aq) + 2HCl (aq) → 2NaCl (aq) + SO2 (g) + S (s) + H2O (l)

Using FA 1, FA 2 and distilled water, you are to perform experiments to investigate

the kinetics of the reaction between thiosulfate ions and acid.

Pre–Lab You are required to view the LabSkills module and attempt the interactive
Assignment: exercises on Reaction Rate under ‘Lab Calculations_Reaction Rates’ &
Common Experiments_Iodine Clock under ‘Lab Calculations_Reaction
Rates’ before this practical lesson.

You are also required to read the following pages in Practical Handbook 2:
 Clock Reaction
 Keeping Total Volume of Mixture Constant

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 2019 DHS Year 5

Chemicals & You are provided with

Apparatus:
FA 1 is 1.00 mol dm–3 aqueous hydrochloric acid, HCl
FA 2 is 0.10 mol dm–3 aqueous sodium thiosulfate, Na2S2O3

S/N Apparatus Quantity per student

2
plastic measuring
1 100 cm3 measuring cylinder
cylinder to measure
water
2 50 cm3 measuring cylinder 1
3 250 cm3 beaker (clean & dry) 3
4 stop watch 1
5 plastic dropper 2
6 distilled bottle 1
7 card with X 1

Procedure: 1. Using an appropriate measuring cylinder, transfer 20.0 cm3 of FA 1 into a

clean, dry 250 cm3 beaker. Stand the beaker over the printed insert.

2. Transfer 40.0 cm3 of distilled water using another measuring cylinder into
the beaker containing FA 1.

3. By means of another measuring cylinder, pour 50.0 cm3 of FA 2 into the

beaker containing FA 1 and simultaneously start the stopwatch. Swirl the
beaker quickly to allow the reagents to mix, taking care not to spill the
contents. Allow the mixture to stand.

4. Note the time taken, to the nearest second, for the printed insert to
just become completely obscured by sulfur produced in the reaction.
Record your readings as mixture 3 as indicated in the table on the
next page.

5. Calculate the value of the relative rate (given as the reciprocal of the time
taken).

6. Rinse the beaker thoroughly and dry it.

7. Repeat the experiment using four other different volumes of FA 2 and

distilled water. Choose two volumes of FA 2 higher, and two other volumes
lower than 50 cm3, such that there are five volumes of FA 2 between 30 –
70 cm3 in total. Vary the volume of distilled water such that the total volume
of the mixture is kept the same for all five mixtures. Record the time taken
and calculate the values of the relative rate for each mixture.

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 2019 DHS Year 5

Results

Volume of Volume of Volume of Relative rate

Mixture FA 1 / cm3 Water / cm3 FA 2 / cm3 Time, t / s 1
( ) / s–1
t
1 20.0 20.0 70.0 32 0.0313

2 20.0 30.0 60.0 38 0.0263

3 20.0 40.0 50.0 48 0.0208

4 20.0 50.0 40.0 60 0.0167

5 20.0 60.0 30.0 89 0.0112

 All time readings to nearest 1s [1]
 Correctly calculated relative rate, to 3 s.f [1]
 Volume of FA 2 chosen are between 30 – 70 cm3 and
total volume of each mixture = 110 cm3 [1]

[3]

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 2019 DHS Year 5

Questions:

(a) Explain whether it is valid to assume that the concentration of S2O32– can be represented by
the volume of S2O32– across all 5 experiments

It is valid to assume that concentration of S2O32– can be represented by the volume of S2O32–
in the conducted experiments as

S2O3 2  S2O3 
2
vol of
S2O3 
2
   FA 2 [1]
  mixture total volume of mixture

Since the total volume of each mixture is the same at 110 cm3, with the addition of varying
volume of water, and S2O3 
2
is also constant [1],
  FA 2

[S2O32–]mixture = k (Volume of S2O32–.)

[S2O32–]mixture  Volume of S2O32–.

This ensures that [S2O32–]mixture  Volume of S2O32–. [1]

[3]

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 2019 DHS Year 5

(bi) Plot a graph on the grid provided below to find order of reaction with respect to S2O32-.

Correct axes and labelling of axes with units [1]

Dependent variable: relative rate & independent variable: volume of FA2; wrong
axes [0]
Appropriate scale (occupy at least half the graph grid) [1]
Correct plotting of all 5 points [1]
Straight line graph [1]
All 5 points are no further than one small square away from line in either direction
(ie. best–fit) [1]

[5]

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 2019 DHS Year 5

(bii) Based on the graph plotted in (b)(i), determine, with reasoning, the order of reaction with
respect to thiosulfate ions.
[2]

The volume of HCl used was kept constant at 20.0 cm3 and volume of Na2S2O3 is
proportional to concentration of Na2S2O3 in a constant total volume mixture.
Since the graph obtained shows a straight upward sloping line, it indicates that the rate is
directly proportional to the concentration of Na2S2O3. [1]

Thus, the reaction is first order with respect to thiosulfate ions. [1]

(c) Using your graph in (b)(i), determine the time taken for the sulfur to appear when
58 cm3 of FA 2 is mixed with 20 cm3 of FA 1 and 32 cm3 of water.
[2]

From the graph,

for 58 cm3 of FA 2, 1/t = 0.0253 s–1 [1] – with working shown on graph

 t, time taken for sulfur to appear = 39.5 s [1]

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