Boiling Point Colligative Property Law for

Aqueous Solutions of Colorful Strong

Electrolytes
When a solute is dissolved in a solvent, the boiling point is elevated relative to the pure
solvent’s boiling point. The elevation in boiling point temperature is proportional to the
number of dissociated moles of solute in the solvent. The colligative property equation that
shows this relationship is:
| T | = i kb • molal
where T is the boiling point elevation, kb is the boiling point elevation constant for a
particular solvent, molal is the molality of the solution (in units of mol solute/kg solvent), and i
is the ideal van’t Hoff factor that represents the ratio of the number of moles of dissolved solute
particles relative to 1 mole of solid solute formula unit. For example, i = 3 for solid magnesium
chloride ideally dissolving in water:
𝐻2𝑂
MgCl2(s) → Mg2+(aq) + 2 Cl-(aq)

OBJECTIVES
In this experiment, you will acquire a colorful ionic solid, dissolve a measured mass of solute in
a measured mass of water, use a hot plate to heat the solution, observe the boiling point of the
solution, compare it to the boiling point of the pure solvent, calculate kb for the solvent, and
assess how well theory matches reality. You will also share your data with your lab mates,
record their data, and see how constant the kb value of the solvent really is among your lab
mates.

Prelab task: Read the entire procedure. On a new blank page in the lab notebook and using
pen, write the headers (your name, date, title of experiment) and write a meaningful statement
of purpose. You may have to guess how many pages to leave blank between the prelab task you
wrote for the “Freezing Point Depression Experiment” and this page, but do your best. Please
do not write about both experiments on the same page.

MATERIALS
400 mL beakers
Thermometer
hotplate
Some or all of the following ionic solids will be provided:
copper(II) sulfate, anhydrous *Stockroom: Consider not providing these
cobalt(II) sulfate, heptahydrate because hydroxides may form with glass at

copper(II) acetate, monohydrate* high temperature for these aqueous

nickel(II) chloride, hexahydrate compounds. If necessary, use conc’d HCl(aq)

to wash and collect first rinse.
iron(III) chloride, hexahydrate*

PROCEDURE
1. Obtain and wear goggles.
2. Set up a hot plate in the hood.
3. Record the mass of an empty 400 mL beaker. You will probably have to use the imprecise
balance that doesn’t have a glass cage because it has a higher maximum mass limit than the
 more precise analytical balances that do have glass cages. Add about 300 mL of distilled
water to the 400 mL beaker and record the precise mass of the water and the beaker.
Determine the precise mass of the water in the beaker by subtracting the appropriate
values.
4. Choose one of the colorful ionic solids, record the chemical formula and name. Acquire 5.0
grams of that ionic solid in a plastic weigh boat.
5. Record the precise total mass of the ionic solid and the weigh boat. Pour the ionic solid into
the approximately 300 mL water that is in the beaker and immediately record the precise
mass of the weigh boat and any residue of the solid that stayed behind in the weigh boat.
Determine the precise mass of ionic solid that was delivered to the water by subtracting the
appropriate values.
6. Carefully stir the solution with a clean glass stir rod from your lab drawer until the solute is
fully dissolved. If your solute does not fully dissolve, consult the instructor. Appreciate the
beautiful natural colors.
7. Put the beaker containing the solution on the hot plate and carefully bring the solution to a
boil in the hood. When the solution is at a full, strong, rolling boil, dip your thermometer
into the solution and record its boiling point without having the thermometer in contact
with the beaker. Record the boiling point temperature with the appropriate significant
figures.
8. Also fill a beaker with distilled water, carefully bring it to a boil. When the water is at a full,
strong, rolling boil, dip your thermometer into the water and record its boiling point
without letting the thermometer touch the beaker. Record the appropriately precise
number of significant digits according to the precision of the thermometer.
9. Carefully allow the solution and the water to return to a safe handling temperature. The
solution can be disposed of in the appropriate waste collection container. The distilled
water can be poured down the drain.
10. Determine and record the value of the ideal Van’t Hoff factor, i, for your solute.
11. Determine and record the moles of solute that you dissolved in the solvent.
12. Determine the mass of solvent in units of kilograms.
13. Determine the concentration of your solution in units of molality.
14. Determine | ΔTb | = | boiling point of solution – boiling point of solvent |.
15. Calculate kb, the boiling point elevation constant for the solvent.
16. Report the following information to your TA or instructor: chemical formula of your
solute, value of i (the ideal Van’t Hoff factor) for your solute, molality of your solution, and
| ΔTb |.
17. Acquire the data from all of the classmates: their values of i, molality, and | ΔTb |.
18. Calculate the value of i×molality for your ionic solution and also for your classmates’ ionic
solutions.
19. Using Excel, make a scatter plot of (x,y) pairs wherein x = i×molality and y = | ΔTb |. Obtain
the equation for the best-fit line. Report the value of the slope and properly label its units.
Also report the correlation coefficient (R or R2) value as given by Excel’s best-linear-fit tool.
20. The slope of this line should theoretically be equal to the kb value for water. Find the kb
value for water provided in McQuarrie’s textbook. Calculate the percent error and report it.
21. Comment on sources of variation and major assumptions that were made which are likely
contributors to any observed deviation between theory and experiment.