CHEMISTRY

QUALITATIVE INORGANIC ANALYSIS

S.N. Experiment
Preliminary Tests
1.

Colour :

* Colourless(white)
* Blue or bluish green
* Light green
* Dark green
* Pink violet
* Light pink
Odour: A pinch of the salt is
* No characteristic smell
taken and rubbed with a drop * Ammoniacal smell
of water.
* Vinegar smell
Solubility:
*Soluble in water
*Soluble in dil.HCl
*Colourless odourless gas
Dry heating test:A small
turns lime water milky.
amount of salt is heated in a
*Pungent smelling gas,
dry test tube.
white fumes with NH4 OH
*Vinegar smell
*White sublimate formed
on the walls of test tube.
*Yellow when hot and
white when cold.
Flame test:A little of the salt is *No characteristic colour
made into paste with conc.HCl. *Golden yellow
A platinum wire is dipped in
*Lilac
the paste and showed on the
*Apple green
flame.
*Crimson red
*Brick red
*Bright bluish green

3.
4.

5.

1.

Observation

Inference
Absence of Cu2+,Ni2+,Co2+etc.
Presence of Cu2+or Ni2+.
Presence of Fe2+.
Presence of Cr3+.
Presence of Co2+.
Presence of Mn2+.
Absence of NH4+ orCH3COONH4+ may be present.
CH3COO- may be present.
NH4+ may be present.
Pb2+may be absent.
CO32- may be present.
Cl- may be present.
CH3COO- may be present.
NH4+ may be present.
Zn2+may be present.
Absence of Ba2+, Sr+, Ca2+etc
May be presence of Na+
May be presence of K+
May be presence of Ba2+
May be presence of Sr2+
May be presence of Ca2+
May be presence of Cu2+

Systematic analysis of acid

radicals(anions)
Dil.H2SO4 test:
a)To a little of the salt 1-2 ml.
of dil.H2SO4 is added.
b)A Little of the salt is rubbed
with dil.H2SO4 in a watch glass

*Brisk effervescence with

the liberation of colourless
odourless gas.
*Vinegar smell

Presence CO32Presence of CH3COO(acetate)

2.

3.

4.

Conc. H2SO4 test:

A little of the salt is heated
with 2ml conc. H2SO4.

*Colourless gas with pungent

smell and gives dense white
fumes when a glass rod
dipped in NH4OH is shown
at the mouth of the test
tube.
* Light brown fumes with
pungent smell becomes
dark brown on heating with
copper turnings(paper ball)
*Reddish brown fumes with
pungent smell.
* Deep violet vapours
* Colourless gas with vinegar
smell
White precipitate

A little of the salt is acidified

with dil.HCl and BaCl2
solution is added.
A little of the salt is acidified
Yellow precipitate
with dil.HNO3 and excess of
ammonium molybdate solution
is added.

Presence of Cl-

Presence of NO3-

Presence of BrPresence of IPresence of CH3COOPresence of SO42Presence of PO43-

Confirmatory tests for

acid radicals
1.

2.

3.

4.

Carbonate(CO32-):
To a little of the salt solution,
few drops BaCl2 solution is
added.
Acetate(CH3COO-):
To a little of the salt solution
neutral ferric chloride solution
is added.
Chloride(Cl-)
a)To a little of the salt solution
dil.HNO3 and AgNO3
solutions are added.
b)Chromyl chloride test:
A little of the salt is heated
with potassium dichromate
and conc. H2SO4.
Bromide and iodide(Br-,I-):
To a little of the salt solution
dil.HNO3 and AgNO3 solutions
are added.

White precipitate

Presence of CO32- is
confirmed.

Red colour

Presence of CH3COO- is
confirmed.

White precipitate soluble in

NH4OH

Presence of Cl- is confirmed.

Orange red precipitate

Presence of Cl- is confirmed.

*Pale yellow precipitate

sparingly soluble in NH4OH
*Yellow precipitate insoluble
in NH4OH

Presence of Br- is confirmed.

Presence of I- is confirmed.

Nitrate(NO3-):
Brown ring test:A small
quantity of freshly prepared
FeSO4 solution is added to a
little of the salt solution and
then conc. H2SO4 is added
along the sides of the test tube.
Sulphate(SO42-):
To a little of the salt solution
acetic acid and lead acetate are
added.
Phosphate(PO43-):
To a little of the salt solution
few drops of magnesia mixture
is added.

5.

6.

7.

1.

2.
3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

A brown ring is formed at

the junction of the layers.

Presence of NO3- is
confirmed.

White precipitate soluble in

excess of ammonium acetate
solution.
White crystalline precipitate

Presence of SO42- is
confirmed.
Presence of PO43- is
confirmed.

Systematic analysis of
basic radicals
(Prepare a solution of the salt
in water)
A little of the salt is heated
with NaOH solution.

To a little of the salt solution ,

dil.HCl is added.
If no precipitate, H2S gas is
passed through the above
solution.
Solid NH4Cl and excess of
NH4OH is added to the salt
solution.
If no precipitate, H2S gas is
passed through the above
solution.
Solid NH4Cl , excess of NH4OH
and (NH4 )2CO3 are added to
the salt solution.
To a little of the salt solution,
solid NH4Cl ,excess of NH4OH,
and disodium hydrogen
phosphate solutions are added.
The inner side of the test tube
is scratched with a glass rod.

Smell of ammonia and gives

dense white fumes when a
glass rod dipped in conc.HCl
is shown at the mouth of the
test tube.
White precipitate.
Yellow or black precipitate.

Presence of NH4+ (0 group)

Presence of group I
cations.(Pb2+)
Presence of group II cations.
(Cu2+- black, Cd2+-yellow)

White gelatinous precipitate Presence of group III cations.

or reddish brown precipitate. (Al3+-white gelatinous,
Fe3+-reddish brown)
Dirty white, pink or black
Presence of group IV cations.
(Zn2+-white,Mn2+-pink,Co2+
precipitate.
or Ni2+-black)
White precipitate.
Presence of group V cations.
(Ba2+, Sr2+ or Ca2+)
White precipitate.

Presence of group VI cations.

(Mg2+)

 Confirmatory tests for

basic radicals
1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Group 0 (Ammonium ion):

To a little of the salt solution
NaOH is added and then
Nesslers reagent.
Group I cation (Pb2+)
a)To a little of the salt solution,
few drops of potassium
chromate solution are added.
b)To a little of the salt solution,
few drops of potassium
iodide solution are added.
Group II cations (Cd2+,Cu2+)
Group II precipitate is boiled
with dil.HNO3 and NH4OH is
added in drops and then in
excess.
Group III cations (Al3+,Fe3+)
Test for Al3+:
a) Lake test: Group III
precipitate is dissolved in
dil.HCl and two drops of
blue litmus solution is added
followed by NH4OH
dropwise
b) Ash test:A little of the salt is
dissolved in few drops of
conc. HNO3 and boiled with
cobalt nitrate solution. A
filter paper soaked in this
solution and burnt to ashes.
Test for Fe3+:
Potassium thiocyanate is
added to the salt solution.
Group IV cations(Zn2+,Co2+,
Ni2+, Mn2+)
Test for Zn2+:
a)To a little of the salt solution
few drops of potassium
ferrocyanide solution are
added.
b) Perform ash test.

Brown precipitate.

Presence of NH4+ is
confirmed.

Yellow precipitate.

Presence of Pb2+ is
confirmed.

Golden yellow precipitate .

Presence of Pb2+ is
confirmed.

*White precipitate soluble in

excess NH4OH.
*Pale blue precipitate
changes to deep blue
solution.

Presence of Cd2+ is
confirmed.
Presence of Cu2+ is
confirmed

Blue floating precipitate.

Presencs of Al3+ is confirmed.

Blue ashes.

Presencs of Al3+ is confirmed.

Blood red colour

Presence of Fe3+is confirmed.

White precipitate

Presence of Zn2+is confirmed.

Green ashes.

Presence of Zn2+is confirmed.

6.

7.

Test for Co2+:

NaOH is added to a little of the
salt solution in drops to excess
and warmed.
Test for Ni2+:
To a little of the salt solution,
NH4OH is added in excess
followed by dimethyl glyoxime
reagent.
Test for Mn2+:
Salt solution is boiled with few
drops of conc.HNO3 and a
pinch of lead peroxide.Boil,
cool and allow to settle.
Group V cations (Ba2+,Sr2+,
Ca2+)
Test for Ba2+:
To a little of the salt solution
acetic acid and potassium
chromate solutions are added.
Test for Sr2+:
To a little of the salt solution
acetic acid and ammonium
sulphate solutions are added
Test for Ca2+:
To a little of the salt solution
ammonium chloride,
ammonium hydroxide and
ammonium oxalate
solutions are added.
Group VI cations (Mg2+ )
a) To the salt solution
NH4Cl, NH4OH in excess
and ammonium phosphate
solutions are added. Rub the
sides of the test tube with a
glass rod.
b) Perform ash test.

A blue precipitate formed in

the cold changed to pink on
warming.

Presence of Co2+is confirmed.

A red rose precipitate.

Presence of Ni2+is confirmed.

A pink coloured solution.

Presence of Mn2+is
confirmed.

Yellow precipitate.

Presence of Ba2+is
confirmed.

White precipitate.

Presence of Sr2+is
confirmed.

White crystalline precipitate

Presence of Ca2+is
confirmed.

A white precipitate.

Presence of Mg2+is
confirmed.

Pink ashes.

Presence of Mg2+is
confirmed.

GEETHA.K
OOEHS, SHJ(BOYS)