Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

How pH affects the concentration

Of vitamin C

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Contents
Possible areas of investigation ................................................................................................................ 3
Background Research.............................................................................................................................. 4
Research Questions ................................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Aim .......................................................................................................................................................... 5
Hypothesis .............................................................................................................................................. 5
Variables ................................................................................................................................................. 8
Independent Variable ......................................................................................................................... 8
Controlled Variables............................................................................................................................ 8
Dependant Variable ............................................................................................................................ 8
Equipment ................................................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.
Procedure ................................................................................................................................................ 9
Risk Management .................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Changes to procedure .............................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Raw Data .................................................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

Abstract
To investigate the effect of pH on the rate of oxidation of 0.005mol/L ascorbic acid in a solution of
iodine, HCl and starch indicator at a constant temperature and in the same light intensity. I
hypothesis the lower the pH level of the solution is, the lower the concentration of ascorbic acid will
be. To test if this hypothesis is correct, set up a redox titration of iodate into a solution of iodine,
ascorbic acid (concentration you want to find), starch indicator (to see endpoint) and the pH changer
(NaOh/ Distilled water/HCl). The hypothesis was correct, the lower the pH level of the solution is the
faster the ascorbic acid will oxidise. The result was semi successful and the hypothesis was proved to
be correct.

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Background
Titration is a common method used in chemistry to find an unknown concentration of an identified
analyte. A chemical reaction is set up between known concentrations of solution with an unknown
concentration of solution. This process is done by slowly adding a standard solution of titrating
reagent, or titrant, from a burette. The addition is stopped when the end-point is reached.
Vitamin C or absorbic acid is a power anti-oxidant that is essential for the human body. It works in
the human body by helping to protect the cells from damage caused by free radicals. The body also
needs Vitamin C for collagen which helps wounds to heal. Among this it also helps the immune
system to work properly in defending your body from diseases. Fruits and Vegetables are the best
source of Vitamin C with citrus fruits being at the top with the most Vitamin C. If your body does not
get enough Vitamin C (less than 10mg a day for two weeks) you may get scurvy which can cause
such symptoms as inflammation, poor wound healing, joint pains, or loss of teeth.
Oxidation is when oxygen molecules react with all different substances that they contact, can be
from metal to living tissue. With the discovery of electrons, oxidation was defined as the loss of at
least one electron when two or more substances react. Oxidation can be not such a bad thing, to
sometimes being destructive. An example of bad side of oxidation is the spoiling of fresh fruit or the
rusting of metals.
Reduction is essentially the opposite of oxidation its any reaction that involves the gaining of
electrons. A reduction reaction will always occur when an oxidation reaction does.
PH is one of the factors that can affect the rate of oxidation with absorbic acid, so it is a good
independent variable to test. The lower the pH level of the solution is, the faster the absorbic acid
should oxidise. At low pH, the H+ concentrations are high, H+ ions oxidizes a vitamin c molecule by
taking one electron from it.
Ascorbic acid, or Vitamin C, is oxidized by iodine according to the following equation: C6H8O6 + I2 =
C6H6O6 + 2HI (Thomas, 2001)

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Background Research
1. Chemical structure of vitamin C?

2. What is the definition of Oxidation and Reduction?

Oxidation: A reaction in which electrons are lost to another species.
Reduction: Involves the gaining of electrons. Eg. When iron reacts with oxygen it forms a
chemical called rust, the iron is oxidized and the oxygen reduced.
3. What are some factors that will increase the rate of oxidation of Vitamin C?
Temperature of the solution can affect the rate of Oxidation. The pH levels and surface area
can also affect this.
4. What is an anti-oxidant?
Anti-oxidant are nutrients and enzymes that can help to prevent and repair damage to your
bodys tissue. This occurs by anti-oxidants slowing or preventing the effect of free radicals.
5. Why are we using redox titration?
Redox titration is a way to determine how much vitamin C there is in different things. A
common example of a redox titration is treating a solution with iodine with a reducing agent
and using starch as an indicator.
6. What colour is endpoint?
With the help of the starch indicator we can see the endpoint which in this case is a blueblack colour.
7. Why cant we just titrate with iodine only?
Titration can be performed using just iodine solution and not iodate, but the iodate solution
is more stable and gives more accurate results.
8. What sorts of things contain vitamin C?
Oranges, fruit juice, vitamin tablets and various supplements.

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

9. Does temperature affect the rate of oxidation?

Temperature increases the rate of oxidation because the molecules are moving around
faster and having more collisions, so there are more opportunities for the reaction to occur.

Aim
To investigate the effect of pH on the rate of oxidation of 0.005 mol/L ascorbic acid in a solution of
iodine, HCl and starch indicator at constant temperature and in the same light.

Hypothesis
I hypothesise the lower the pH level of the solution is, , the lower the concentration of ascorbic acid
will be.

Rationale
At low pH, the H+ concentrations are high, H+ ions oxidizes a vitamin c molecule by taking one
electron from it. The concentration of the vitamin C solution will decrease with the pH of the
solution as long as other factors which may affect oxidation (such as time, light intensity and
temperature) are kept constant.

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Risk Management
Hazard
Iodine

Risk Evaluation
Moderate

How to prevent
-

Hydrochloric Acid

Moderate

Skin contact- flush skin

with water for 15 minutes
while removing
contaminated clothing
and shoes. Get medical
attention.
Eye contact Flush eyes
with water for 15
minutes, warm water
must be used. (MSDS
Solutions Center, 1991)
Skin contact- flush skin
with water for 15 minutes
while removing
contaminated clothing
and shoes. Get medical
attention.
Eye contact Flush eyes
with water for 15
minutes, warm water
must be used. (MSDS
Solutions Center, 1991)

Absorbic Acid

Low

Skin Contact Wash with

soap and water, get
medical attention if
irritation develops. (MSDS
Solutions Center, 1991)

Starch Indicator

Low

Skin Contact Wash with

soap and water, get
medical attention if
irritation develops. (MSDS
Solutions Center, 1991)

Sodium Hydroxide

High

Very hazardous in case of

skin contact (corrosive,
irritant, permeator), of
eye contact (irritant,
corrosive), of ingestion,
of inhalation. The amount
of tissue damage depends
on length of contact. Eye
contact can result in
corneal damage or
blindness. (MSDS
Solutions Center, 1991)

Chris Poli

Equipment
-

Retort Stand
Burette
10ml Vitamin C Solution
Iodine
Iodate
1ml Starch Indicator
NaOH 0.025M
NaOH 1M
HCL 0.025M
HCL 1M
Distilled Water
Beaker 50/80/100mL
Measuring cylinder 10/25mL
Pipette 25/20/10mL
Heat proof mat
Aluminium foil

11.7

Chemistry

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Variables
Independent Variable
The pH levels of the solution; we are changing this variable by using different acids and bases. The
Acids we used are 1M of HCl and 0.025M of HCL. For the bases we are using 1M of NaOH and
0.025M of NaOH. We are also using distilled water. We used these acids and bases to drop or
increase the pH of the absorbic acid solution. NaOH increases the pH, HCL decreases the pH and
distilled water neutralizes the pH.

Controlled Variables
-

Light intensity
Amount of solution
Temperature
pH of the same solution
Time solution is left in the open

Dependant Variable
Concentration of Ascorbic Acid.

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Procedure
1. Two/One day before the trialling change the pH of absorbic acid solution by adding 10mL of
absorbic acid to a flask and then putting either NaOH, if you want to increase the pH,
Distilled water if you want to have the pH neutralised and HCL if you want to lower the pH.
2. Add 10mL of Absorbic Acid solution to a flask, and then add 5mL of Potassium Iodide
(0.6mol/L), 5mL of HCL (1mol/L) and 1mL of starch indicator.
3. Set up the burette attached on the retort stand, while make sure the tap on the burette is
closed, add 50mL of 0.002mol/L potassium iodate into burette.
4. Put the solution flask with the pH changer you are trialling under the burette and turn the
tap so the iodate is slowly dripping into the solution, stop the tap when the solution in the
flask reaches endpoint (Purple colour).
5. Record titre volume and repeat titrations 5 times for each trial.

Diagram

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Results
Distilled Water
Titre
Pilot
1
2
3
4
5

Initial Volume
0
4.50
9.30
14.00
18.40
23.20

Final Volume
4.50
9.30
14.00
18.40
23.20
28.10

Titre Volume
4.50
4.80
4.70
4.40
4.80
4.40

Initial Volume
0
3.7
6.8
10.4
14.1
17.4

Final Volume
3.7
6.8
10.4
14.1
17.4
21.5

Titre Volume
3.7
3.1
3.6
2.7
3.3
3.1

Initial Volume
0
4.5
8.9
14.0
18.3
22.2

Final Volume
4.5
8.9
14.0
18.3
22.2
26.4

Titre Volume
4.5
4.4
5.1
4.3
3.9
4.2

Initial Volume
0
2.4
4.4
6.5
9.1
11.4

Final Volume
2.4
4.4
6.5
9.1
11.4
13.4

Titre Volume
2.4
2
2.1
2.6
2.3
2

HCl 1M
Titre
Pilot
1
2
3
4
5

HCl 0.025M
Titre
Pilot
1
2
3
4
5

NaOH 0.025M
Titre
Pilot
1
2
3
4
5

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Averages
Solution

Average Titre
Volume (mL)

Distilled Water (pH

7)

4.68

NaOH 0.025M (pH 7) 2.23

HCl 1M (pH 1)

3.25

HCl 0.025M (pH 3)

4.40

Average Titre
Volume

3.29

Graphs of Data

Titration of Distilled Water +

Ascorbic Acid

30
25
20
15

Initial Volume

10

Final Volume

Titre Volume

0
1

Chris Poli

11.7

Titration of HCl 1M + Ascorbic Acid

Chemistry

Chris Poli

11.7

Analysis
Sample Calculation
To find concentration of ascorbic acid solutions with differing pH values:
1. IO3- + 5I- + 6H+ 3I2 + 3H2O
2. CHO + I -> CHO + 2I +2H
Average Titre Volume = 3.29mL
Mol= m x v
= 0.002 x 0.00329
= 6.58 x 10^-5
Using this answer find the moles of Iodide
IO3I2
1

1.974 x 10^-5

X: 1.974 x 10^-5

To find concentration of Vitamin C:

M = Moles/V
M = 19.74 x 10^-5/3.29x 10^-3
M = 0.006mol/L
Average concentration of ascorbic acid is 6 x 10^-3 mol/L

Chemistry

Chris Poli

11.7

Chemistry

Discussion
As these results show, the lower the pH of the solution, the lower the concentration of ascorbic acid
is. The trends on the graphs show that the solutions with the lower pH did have a lower
concentration as hypothesised. The NaOH 0.025M (pH 5) has a lower pH then the distilled water as
shown in the data tables above, the average titre of NaOH 0.025M was 2.33 and the average titre of
distilled water was 4.68. This data set proves my hypothesis. The HCL 1M solution had a pH of 1
meaning it was very acidic and it had one of the lowest average titre volume out of the 5 different
solutions we used. I believe there was a mistake with recording this data as the average titre should
have been lower than the NaOH 0.025M. The HCl 0.025M (pH 3) also had a lower titre volume than
the distilled water (pH 7) proving the hypothesis further. This shows that my hypothesis was correct
as I stated, saying that the lower the pH the lower the concentration of the solution. Shown by the
average sample calculation you can see the average concentration of ascorbic acid is 0.006mol/L.
The NaOH 1M trial was excluded from the set of data as the ascorbic acid was already fully oxidised
when it was titrated, leaving all titre volumes at 0. This would have ruined the average set of data
and not been a reliable result to use. The trials that titrated and went past the end point were also
discarded as too much iodate was added to the solution; you can see this by looking at the dark
colour of the solution in the flask.
The experiment did have flaws and limitations, the main one being time and the amount of
titrations possible. The NaOH 0.025M (pH 5) titrations were not accurately measured as the average
titre is much too low compared to the other pH trials. Experiment was limited with getting the
perfect pH for each trial and having time to adjust and test the pH and make it to what we want. The
endpoint of the solutions was sometimes slightly different colours, meaning the iodate put into
the flask could be more or less than needed to actually reach the endpoint. The experiment was
somewhat rushed on time meaning the exact mL of a certain solution might have been a point off
the actual needed, this may affect results. . Time has a huge effect on vitamin c it being left out as
the ascorbic acid oxidizes from the air, meaning the ascorbic acid is turned into dehydroascorbic acid.
This means that the calculations to find the amount of ascorbic acid will not be correct.
The results of the experiment could have been more reliable if it was repeated multiple times using
an identical procedure, or an alternative is to use another substance that contains vitamin c to see if
it has the same effects. Other small issues that could have been improved are if we measured the
temperature of the solution each trial to make sure they were all the same, therefore not affecting
the results at all. Another way to improve results would be leaving the solution for a shorter time,
so the results would have worked out better, the ascorbic acid would have not oxidised as much
meaning the scrapped trial of NaOH 1M would not have been excluded, adding another data set to
the results making the experiment more accurate.

Conclusion
I believe the experiment was semi-successful; there were many obvious flaws in the data and you
can see a slight trend, being the lower the pH the lower the concentration of the ascorbic acid. The
trend is though not as obvious and perfect as it should be to completely prove the hypothesis. These
results should not be considered very accurate or reliable to use for further studies.

Chris Poli

11.7

Bibliography
MSDS Solutions Center. (1991). Retrieved from MSDS: http://www.msds.com/
Thomas, M. (2001, 8 1). Vitamin C. Retrieved from MadSci: madsci.org

Acknowledgments
Benjamin Panzera Group member

Chemistry