Brigid O’Brien

12/11/17
Abstract
The purpose of this investigation was to understand how to test and analyze whether or not a sample of
water from the Animas River that Akos, Brianna, and myself had collected earlier possessed the ions
!Ca 2+,  Cl
! −, !Fe 3+, and !SO 2−
4   present. In order to do this, students had to assess whether or not a
precipitate was formed during the chemical reaction, understand the function of a reference solution,
control solution, and an indicator solution in relation to these particular tests. The first and foremost
question being asked in this investigation was if the ions being tested for were present in the test water/
Animas River water? This experiment was conducted by testing an indicator solution against a reference
solution, control solution, and test water, which resulted in finding out whether or not a color was created,
a precipitate was formed and if the ion being tested for was present. The results of this investigation were
interesting in that the only ion that was present in the test sample was chlorine. Calcium, iron, and sulfate
were not present. Therefore, calcium, iron, and sulfate are not currently present in the Animas River, but
chlorine is. This investigation was significant in that it allowed students to fully understand the
importance of ions and how they can be used to identify whether or not an element is present in certain
solutions or water samples. It was also significant in that students learned the relevance of a reference and
control solution. Additionally, students were given a visual of a precipitate being formed, which they then
applied to their conclusions on whether or not an ion was present in a certain solution.

Results
Table 1 - Testing for Precipitates and Ions in Certain Solutions
The initial layout of this table was graciously lent to my group by Cady, which we later changed to meet
the needs of our work.

Precipitate Ion
Ion possibly Indicator formed (y/ present (y/
present solution Tested water Color n) n)

!Ca 2+  !Na 2CO 3 reference (! CaCl 2 ) white y y

!Ca 2+ !Na 2CO 3 control clear n n

!Ca 2+ !Na 2CO 3 test water clear n n

!C l − !A gNO 3 reference (! CaCl 2 ) white y y

!C l − !A gNO 3 control clear n n

!C l − !A gNO 3 test water slightly white y y

!Fe 3+ !K SCN reference  ! (Fe(NO 3)3) brown y y

!Fe 3+  !K SCN control clear n n

!Fe 3+  !K SCN test water clear n n

!S O 2−
4   !B aCl 2 reference (! FeSO4 ) white y y

!S O 2−
4   !B aCl 2 control clear n n
 !S O 2−
4   !B aCl 2 test water clear n n
In this lab, four different tests were carried out to decipher whether or not there was calcium, chloride,
iron, or sodium oxide present in the Animas River test water. Each test included a specific indicator
solution, reference and control solution. The reference solution combined with the indicator solution
always tested positive for the ion being present, as it formed a precipitate, whereas the control always
tested negative, as it was distilled water and did not form a precipitate. To figure out whether or not the
sample of test water had the given elements present, we combined the test sample with the indicator
solution and compared its reaction to the reaction of the control and reference solutions.

Chemistry Content
! 2−
Particulate Realm Images - Testing for SO 4
Figure 1 - Drawing of Reference Solution!FeSO4 - Before Combination
Blue: Fe
Green: S
Purple: O
Particulate Realm

This photo represents the particulate realm of the reference

solution FeSO
! 4 in that the Fe and SO atoms
are split apart since the solution is aqueous and can dissolve in water, which is defined as solubility. The
SO atoms stay together and do not disperse because of their double bonds.

Figure 2 - Drawing of Indicator Solution -!BaCl 2Before Combination

Pink: Cl
Red: Ba
Particulate Realm

This photo represents the particulate realm of the indicator solution

BaCl
! 2in that Ba and Cl atoms are split apart and since the solution is aqueous and soluble.

Figure 3 - Reference and Indicator Solution Combined

Key for colors remains the same as the above Figure 1 and Figure 2.
Particulate Realm

This photo represents the particulate realm of the indicator and the reference solution combined. The Ba
and SO
! 4 attract to each other and sink to the bottom of the beaker because they are insoluble -- this is the
precipitate that was seen for this particular experiment. When a molecule is insoluble it cannot dissolve
into water. The Fe and Cl remain separated because they are soluble. See the chemical equation for this
representation below.

Chemical Equation
Balanced Chemical Equation #1:
FeSO
! 4(aq)  +  BaCl 2(aq) → Ba SO4(s) + FeCl 2(aq)
Iron sulfate in an aqueous state reacts with barium chloride in an aqueous state to create barium sulfate in
a solid state as the precipitate, and iron chloride in an aqueous state.

Balanced Chemical Equation #2:

! 2CO3(aq)  + CaCl 2(aq)  → CaCO 2(s)  + 2NaCl (aq)
Na
Sodium carbonate in an aqueous state reacts with calcium chloride in an aqueous state to create calcium
carbonate in a solid state and sodium chloride as an aqueous state.