Name: Dawson Cuthbert Spectrophotometric Determination of

Date: November 26 2016 Iron in an Iron Tablet Lab#: H

Introduction
Motivation:

The objective of this experiment is to determine the mass of iron in an iron tablet ( 1). On
the bottle, it states the amount of iron in milligrams (mg) in each tablet. After doing the
experiment, the amount on the bottle will be compared to the measured amount, and the
percent error (the accuracy) will be calculated. The second portion of the experiment will be to
determine the concentration of iron in an unknown sample, Sample A. A spectrophotometer will
be used to measure the absorbance for the tablet and Sample A, and these will be compared
with the absorbance of known concentrations.

Background:

A spectrophotometer is an instrument used to measure the absorbance (light intensity) of

a solution at a given wavelength (1). Once the wavelength is selected the absorbance of a
solution can be read. When several samples with known concentrations are tested in this
manner, a concentration versus absorbance graph can be made and can be used a to produce a
formula describing the relationship between the concentration of iron and the absorbance. With
this formula, you use the spectrophotometer results to predict the concentration of a solution.

3+ 2+
The iron in the tablet and in Sample A are in Fe
state. To reduce it to Fe
Ascorbic

acid C6 H 6 O6 is added (2). Phenanthroline is added to allow the spectrometer to get a reading

and compare the intensity of the colour against the known solutions ( 3). This reaction can be
summed up by the following formula:

+

2++C 6 H 6 O 6 +2 H 3+ 2+

3++C 6 H 8 O 6 2 Fe ~ changing Fe to Fe

2 Fe

3+
Fe ( phen )3
2++3 phen ~ phenanthroline is used to display colour for the spectrophotometer.
2 Fe

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Context:

By using the formulas given above in the Background and tested by the
spectrophotometer, the light intensity will be calculated by spectrophotometer. This will produce
the absorbance of the solutions and unknown solutions. After the known absorbances are
compared and graphed, the formula from the graph will be used to determine the molarity of the
unknown solutions. With the molarity and absorbance, we can find the mass. This is done using
colorimetry and spectroscopy.

Data Analysis and Calculations

1. Iron (II) Concentration in Standard Solution
Solution #3:
Consentration of Stock Solution :2.55 x 104 M

Volume pipet
Consentration Stock x
Volume volumetric

mol 0.003 L mol

2.55 x 104 x = 1.53 x 105
L 0.05 L L
5 mol
Consentration Solution 3=1.53 x 10
L

mol
Solution 1: 0.00
L

mol
Solution 2: 5.10 x 106
L

5 mol
Solution 4: 2.55 x 10
L

5 mol
Solution 5: 5.10 x 10
L

2. Calibration Curve
See appendix.

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3. Iron (II) Tablet Concentration
y = 11690x + 0.0005 y tablet = 0.312

Consentrationtablet = x

y tablet y found 0.3120.0005

x= x=
1169 0 1169 0

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x=2.66 x 10 M

4. Iron (II) Concentration in Tablet Stock Solution

y = 11690x + 0.0005 y tablet = 0.341

Consentrationunknown= x

y tablet y found 0.3410.0005

x= x=
1169 0 1169 0

x=2.91 x 105 M

5. Mass of Iron (II)

mol mol mol 1L 25 0 ml 100 ml 50 ml

M= x L=mols ~ 2.66 x 105 x x x x =0.000 665 mol
L L L 1 000 ml 25 ml 2 ml 1ml

g 55.85 g
Mass=mols x =m g ~ Mass=0.000 665 mol x 1 mol =37.14 m g
mol

6. Percent Error
Calculated Result Accepted Result
%Error= x 100
Accepted Result

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 37.1435.00
= x 100 =6.11
35.00
Mass of Iron

Summary of Data and Results

Table 1: Concentrations and Absorbance of Standards Solutions of Iron (II)

Standard Volume of Iron Stock Concentration of Iron (II) Absorbance at
Solution # solution(ml) 510 nm
mol
L )

1 0 0.00 0.000
2 1 5.10 x 10
6 0.058

3 3 1.53 x 10
5 0.183

4 5 2.55 x 105 0.293

5 10 5.10 x 105 0.596

Table 2: Concentrations, Absorbance and Calculated % Error of Iron Tablet in Fe(II)

Sample Absorbance Concentration of Concentration of tablet Mass of Fe % Error
at 510 nm Fe in the tablet stock solution (Sample Tablet
solution (M) A) (M) (mg)
Fe 0.312 2.66 x 10 5 5
2.91 x 10 37.14 6.11
Tablet

Conclusion
The purpose of this lab was to find the mg of iron, Fe (2+) in a tablet and in an unknown solution
(Sample A). By making solutions with known concentrations and testing them in a
spectrophotometer, I derived a formula. By using the formula and measuring the absorbance in
Sample A and the tablet, I determined the concentration. Using a formula for molarity to mass
(Section 5 above), I determined the mass of iron in the tablet. The bottle stated that each tablet
contains 35 mg of iron. The mass of iron in the tablet was 37.14 mg. The measured

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concentration of the tablet was 2.66 x 10 M and the concentration of Sample A was

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2.91 x 10 M. The measured mass was within reason, with an error of 6.11%.

References
(1) VIU Chemisty Department. Lab H: Spectrophotometer Determination of Iron in an Iron Tablet,
Fall 2016 ed; Nanaimo, British Colombia, 2016.
(2) Scanlon, C; Gebeyehu, Z; Griffin, K; Dabke, R. B. Volumetric Titrations Using Electrolytically
Generated Reagents for the Determination of Ascorbic Acid and Iron in Dietary Supplement
Tablets: An Undergraduate Laboratory Experiment. Journal of Chemical Education. 2014,
Volume: 91, Issue: 6, Pages: 898-901
(3) Dabke, R. B; Gebeyehu, Z; Thor, R. Coulometric Analysis Experiment for the Undergraduate
Chemistry Laboratory. J. Journal of Chemical Education. 2011,
Volume: 88, Issue: 12, Pages: 1707-1710.
(4) Arnold, R. J; Arndt, B; Blaser, E; Blosser, C; Carlton, D; Sog Chung, W; Fiorenza, G; Heath, W;
Jacobs, A; Kahng, Koh, E; Le, T; Mandla, K; Mccory, C; Newman, L; Pithadia, A; Reckelhoff, A;
Rheinhardt, J; Skljarevski, S; Stuart, J; Taylor, C; Thomas, S; Tse, K; Wall, R; Warkentien, C.
Overcoming Matrix Effects in a Complex Sample: Analysis of Multiple Elements in
Multivitamins by Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Journal of Chemical Education 2011,
Volume: 88, Issue: 4, Pages: 484-487.
(5) Physical Constants of Organic Compounds. CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.
97th ed.; [Online]; Haynes, W. M., Ed.; CRC Press: Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton, FL, 2016;
http://www.hbcponline.com (accessed November 26, 2016)

Appendix
For the reference pages 2, 3, 4 they will be stapled and marked to this report.

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