I.

PRELIMINARY TESTS
S. No. EXPERIMENT OBSERVATION INFERENCE
1 SOLUBILITY 1) Soluble 1) May be Sulphate,
Nitrate, Chloride or
A little of the salt is Ammonium
shaken with water. Carbonate.

2) Insoluble 2) May be Carbonate

or Sulphide.
2 ACTION OF HEAT: 1) Colourless, odourless 1) May be Carbonate.
gas turning limewater
A small amount of milky.
the salt is heated
gently   in   a dry test 2) Decripitation occurs 2) May be Nitrate.
tube. with evolution of
reddish brown gas.

3) Salt sublimes with 3) May be

evolution of pungent Ammonium.
smelling gas giving
dense white fumes with
a glass rod dipped in
conc
HCl.                               

4) The white salt turns 4) May be Zinc.

yellow on heating.

5) No characteristic 5) Absence of
change. Carbonate, Nitrate,   
Ammonium and Zinc.
3 FLAME TEST: 1) Bluish colour flame. 1)  Presence of
Copper.
A small amount of 2) Brick red flame. 2) Presence of
the salt is made into Calcium.
a paste with conc.
           HCl in a watch glass 3) Grassy green flame. 3) Presence of Barium.
and introduced into
the non-luminous 4)  No characteristic 4) Absence of Copper,
part of the Bunsen coloured flame. Calcium and Barium.
flame.
4 ASH TEST: 1) Green ash. 1) Presence of Zinc.

A filter paper is
soaked into a paste of
2) Blue ash. 2) Presence of
the salt with conc.
Aluminium.
HCl and Cobalt
Nitrate solution in a 3) Pink ash.                  3) Presence of
watch glass and Magnesium.
burnt. 4) No characteristic 4) Absence of Zinc,
coloured ash. Aluminium and
Magnesium.

II. TESTS FOR ACID RADICALS

5 ACTION OF DIL HCl 1) Brisk effervescence 1) Carbonate is
of colourless, confirmed.
To a small amount of the odourless gas turning
salt dilute HCl is added. lime water milky.

2) Rotten egg smelling 2) Sulphide is

gas turning lead confirmed.
acetate paper black.

3) No characteristic 3) Absence of
change. Sulphide /
Carbonate.
6 COPPER TURNINGS 1) Reddish brown gas 1) Presence of
TEST: is evolved. Nitrate.

A small amount of the salt

is heated with Copper
Turnings and a few drops
of conc. Sulphuric acid.
2) No reddish brown 2) Absence of
gas is evolved. Nitrate.

7 CHROMYL CHLORIDE 1) Red orange vapours 1) Chloride is

TEST: evolved are passed confirmed.
through water to get a
To a small amount of the yellow solution, which
substance a pinch of on adding lead acetate
Potassium Dichromate is forms a yellow
added and heated with few precipitate.
drops of conc. Sulphuric
acid.

2) No Red orange 2) Absence of

vapours. chloride.
1) Pungent smelling 1) Presence of
gas forming dense Ammonium.
white fumes with a
glass rod dipped in
conc. HCl and also
turns litmus paper
blue.
  2) No pungent 2) Absence of
smelling gas. Ammonium.
8 ACTION OF NaOH: 1) Pungent smelling 1) Presence of
gas forming dense Ammonium.
A small amount of the white fumes with a
substance is heated with glass rod dipped in
Sodium Hydroxide. conc. HCl and also
turns litmus paper
blue.

2) No pungent 2) Absence of
smelling gas. Ammonium.

III. TESTS WITH SODIUM CARBONATE EXTRACT

9. PREPARATION OF SODIUM CARBONATE EXTRACT:
A small amount of salt is mixed with twice the amount of sodium carbonate and 20ml of
distilled water is added, boiled for 10 minutes, cooled and filtered. The filtrate is called
“SODIUM CARBONATE EXTRACT”.

S. EXPERIMENT OBSERVATION INFERENCE

No
10 BARIUM CHLORIDE 1) A white precipitate, 1) Sulphate is
TEST: insoluble in conc. HCl. confirmed. 

To a few drops of the

extract, dilute 2) No white 2) Absence of
Hydrochloric Acid is precipitate. Sulphate
added until the
effervescence ceases and
2ml of Barium chloride
solution is added.
11 SILVER NITRATE 1) A curdy white 1) Presence of
TEST: precipitate, soluble in Chloride.
excess of ammonium
To a few drops of the hydroxide.
extract dilute Nitric Acid
is added until the
effervescence ceases and
2ml of Silver Nitrate 2) A black precipitate. 2) Presence of
solution is added. Sulphide.
3) No precipitate. 3) Absence of
chloride/ sulphide.

12 BROWN RING TEST: 1) Brown ring is 1) Nitrate is

formed at the junction confirmed.
To a few drops of extract of the two layers.
dilute Sulphuric acid is
added until the
effervescence ceases, then
freshly prepared.
2) No brown ring. 2) Absence of
Nitrate.

IV .IDENTIFICATION OF THE BASIC RADICALS

 13. PREPARATION OF ORIGINAL SOLUTION:
The original solution is prepared by dissolving the salt in
#  Water  (When the salt is water soluble)
#  Dil. HCl   (When the salt is water insoluble)
                                  #  Hot mixture of dil. HCl + dil. HNO3 (When the salt is sulphide)
14. GROUP IDENTIFICATION

S. EXPERIMENT OBSERVATION INFERENCE

No
1 To a few drops of the 1) White precipitate. 1)  Presence of First
original solution 2ml of Group. (Pb).
dilute HCl acid is added.
2) No characteristic 2) Absence of First
precipitate. Group (Pb).

2 To a few drops of the 1) Black precipitate. 1)  Presence of Second  

original solution 2ml of Group (Cu).
dilute HCl acid and H2S
gas is passed. 2) No characteristic 2) Absence of Second
precipitate. Group (Cu).

3 To a few drops of the 1) Gelatinous white 1)  Presence of Third

original solution 1ml precipitate. Group (Al / Fe).
NH4Cl and 2ml NH4OH
solutions are added. 2) No characteristic 2) Absence of Third
precipitate. Group (Al / Fe).

4 To a few drops of the 1) Dirty white 1)  Presence of Fourth

original solution 1ml precipitate. Group Zn,Mn.
NH4Cl and 2ml NH4OH
solutions are added and 2) No characteristic 2) Absence of Fourth
H2S gas is passed. precipitate. Group Zn,Mn.

5 To a few drops of the 1) White precipitate. 1) Presence of Fifth

original solution 1ml Group (Ca / Ba).
NH4Cl, 2ml NH4OH and
2ml (NH4)2CO3  solutions
are added. 2) No characteristic 2) Absence of Fifth
precipitate. Group (Ca / Ba).

6 To a few drops of the 1) White precipitate. 1) Presence of Sixth

original solution 1ml Group (Mg).
NH4Cl, 2ml NH4OH and
2ml Di Sodium
Hydrogen Phosphate are 2) No characteristic 2) Absence of Sixth
added. precipitate. Group (Mg).

V .CONFIRMATORY TESTS FOR BASIC RADICALS

S. EXPERIMENT OBSERVATION INFERENCE

No
 AMMONIUM
1 Original solution + Sodium Reddish brown Ammonium is
Hydroxide + Nessler’s precipitate. confirmed.
reagent.
First group  -  LEAD
1 Original solution + Yellow precipitate. Lead is confirmed.
Potassium Chromate.
2 Original solution +   Yellow precipitate Lead is confirmed.
Potassium Iodide. soluble in hot water
which reappears as
golden yellow spangles
on cooling.

Third group - ALUMINIUM

1 Original solution + Sodium White precipitate Aluminium is
Hydroxide in drops to soluble in excess of confirmed.
excess. sodium hydroxide.

2 Original solution + A bright red lake. Aluminium is

Ammonium Hydroxide + confirmed.
Aluminon reagent.

Fourth group - ZINC

1 Original solution + Sodium White precipitate Zinc is confirmed.
Hydroxide soluble in excess of
sodium hydroxide.

2 Original solution + White precipitate Zinc is 

Potassium Ferro cyanide. soluble in excess of confirmed.
sodium hydroxide &
insoluble in dilute acid.

3 Added lead dioxide to Pink Colouration Mn (II) Confirmed.

above solution, then added formed.
concentrated nitric acid.
Boiled it.

Fifth group - CALCIUM

1 Original solution + No precipitate. Calcium is
Potassium Chromate. confirmed.
2 Original solution + White precipitate Calcium is
Ammonium Hydroxide + insoluble in acetic acid. confirmed.
Ammonium Oxalate.

Fifth group - BARIUM

1 Original solution + Yellow precipitate, Barium is
Potassium Chromate. soluble in acid. confirmed.

2 Original solution + Dilute White precipitate Barium is

Sulphuric Acid. insoluble in acetic acid. confirmed.

Sixth group - MAGNESIUM

1 Original solution + Sodium White precipitate, Magnesium is
Hydroxide. insoluble in excess of confirmed.
sodium hydroxide.
 2 Original solution +   Blue precipitate. Magnesium is
Magneson reagent. confirmed.

RESULT

                The given simple salt contains

1. Basic Radical           : __________________
2. Acid Radical             : __________________