DETERMINING COPPER SULFATE HYDRATES FORMULA

Abstract
A hydrate is a compound that contains water molecules in its crystalline structure. Each individual hydrate contains a specific number of water molecules associated with the main compound. Copper Sulfate Pentahydrate contains 5 moles of water per one mole of Copper Sulfate. In this lab, a sample of Copper Sulfate Hydrate was heated to remove the water from the sample. The mass of the remaining sample was used to calculate the amount of water lost. This mass was then used to calculate the number of moles of water in the sample. Utilizing the mass of the remaining sample the moles of copper sulfate were calculated. The mole ratio was then determined by using both of these calculations. By comparing the predetermined value with the value obtained in the experiment you are able to calculate how accurate your calculations are. Experimental error plays a large part in just how accurate your calculations are. The errors that can occur in an experiment can have a large effect on the calculations made throughout the lab. These errors need to be taken into consideration when the final calculations are made. From the initial mass calculations to the age of the sample; all can cause a change in the values obtained. There are many different errors that can occur during a lab procedure. This helps us to understand the concept of accuracy. This lab provides a better understanding of how scientists determine certain characteristics such as mass, compound formulas, mole to mole ratios and percent compositions of specific compounds.

Introduction
The amount of hydrate found in a one gram sample of Copper Sulfate Hydrate was 4 moles of water per one mole of copper sulfate. The weight of the crucible was 26.19g and the weight of the Copper sulfate Hydrate was 1.00g. After the sample was heated the mass was 26.89g. Subtracting the 26.89g from the 27.19g we are able to see that 0.30g of the sample was removed. This is the amount of water or hydrate that was contained in the sample. The number of moles of water was then calculated by dividing 0.30g of water by waters molar mass of 18g/mole which gives you 0.017moles of water. Then the remaining mass of the sample (1.00g-0.30g=0.70g) was used to calculate the moles of copper sulfate in the sample. Divided 0.70g by 159.608g/mol which is the molar mass of copper sulfate. This calculates to be 0.0044mol of copper sulfate in the sample. Then divide the number of moles of the copper sulfate into the number of moles of water (0.017mol/0.0044mol)which was 3.8636(the mole ratio). This number was rounded up to be approximately 4moles of water to one mole of copper sulfate. This would in turn show the chemical formula to be CuSO4 4H2O. Once the numbers of moles were determined the percent of water that was contained in the sample was calculated. The molar mass of the whole formula (231.608g/mol) was divided into the

molar mass of the 4 moles of water (18g/mol *4=72g) in the sample. (72g/231.608g *100=31.09% water) This calculation was derived using the rounded mole ratio. By using the mass of the water divided by the mass of the original sample then multiplying by 100 the percent composition of water to be approximately 30% (0.30g/1.00g*100=30%). The remaining 70% of the sample was copper sulfate. The values obtained in the lab were then compared to the actual value of the Copper Sulfate Pentahydrate. The actual ratio of copper sulfate to water is 5 moles of water to one mole of Copper Sulfate. Calculate the % of water using this formula (CuSO4 5H2O) you would discover that water is approximately 36.1% water. Find the molar mass of this compound then divide the molar mass into the mass of water in the compound and multiply it by 100 and the % of water is calculated. You can then compare the actual percent composition to the percent composition that was calculated during the lab procedure. The percent composition in the sample was 31.06% per the chemical formula and the actual percent was 36.01%. As you can see when a lab procedure is performed there can be sources of error that could cause the difference between the values obtained and the predetermined values. In this lab one source of error could possibly be losing some of the sample during the heating process. Stir sticks were utilized to help ensure that the sample did not burn. Once the stir stick was removed some of the sample remained on the end which causes a slight amount of error in our second mass calculation. Other areas of error could include measuring the mass of the original 1.00g sample. The mass may be slightly off depending on the scale used and if the scale was zeroed prior to weighing the sample. If some of the sample happened to be on the scale or fall on the scale without any knowledge this will cause less of the sample to be put in the crucible than the one gram needed. The slight change in the mass can cause errors in the mass calculations. Since water evaporates as we all know the temperature in the room could also cause some of the water to have already evaporated out of the sample prior to the lab being performed. This could decrease the amount of hydrate to be found in the sample. Another way in which error could occur is if you spilled some of the dry sample before weighing it. This can have an effect on the answer for x. If this happened the mass of the water removed would be large. This would increase the percent composition and the mole ratio of water to copper sulfate. Just as with any forward reaction there is always the reverse reaction. Once the sample cooled completely water was added back into the sample. The sample gave off heat once the water was mixed in. The forward reaction of the heating of Copper Sulfate Hydrate heat was absorbed and this would be called endothermic. Now in order to have the reverse reaction happen once the water was added back in the heat had to be released which is called an exothermic reaction. The heat gained during the forward reaction is equal to the heat released during the reverse reaction and this is why the crucible felt warm once the water was added. This concluded the lab procedure for determining the formula for Copper Sulfate Hydrate.

Methods
The supplies needed for the lab are as follows: a digital scale, copper sulfate pentahydrate, crucible, heating plate, clothes pin, glass stir stick and goggles. The digital scale is tarred to zero before being any of the weights. The first weight taken was the weight of the crucible. Once the

weight of the crucible was documented the scale was reset back to zero with the crucible still on the scale. One gram of Copper Sulfate was measured out in the crucible. The copper sulfate was then placed on the heating plate about medium heat. The copper sulfate was heated until the water was completely removed from the substance. The copper sulfate was on the plate for approximately 15 minutes before the color change in the substance was complete. The copper sulfate changed from an aqua blue to a very light blue once heated thoroughly. Once the water was removed and the color had completely changed the crucible was removed from the heating plate using the clothes pin and was placed on the table to cool. Once the crucible was cooled it was then placed back on the scale for another reading. To ensure that all of the water was removed from the cooper sulfate the substance was again placed back on the metal plate and reheated again for about 5 minutes. After the five minutes was up the crucible was again cooled and then placed on the scale. At this point if both weights were consistent then we can determine that all of the water had been forced out. Once the sample cooled completely and the readings were completed the crucible is to be held in the palm of your hand. Then pour some water back into the crucible. At this time the sample is then discarded. The reading from the final weight was then subtracted from our first weight. This gave the amount of water driven off in grams. The amount driven off was then divided by the molar mass of water which is 18 g/mol; which gave the total number of moles of water driven out of the copper sulfate. Once that was determined the amount of copper sulfate was able to be calculated in the original sample by subtracting the amount of water removed in grams from the 1 gram total of the original substance. Then the amount of copper sulfate was divided by molar mass which gave the number of moles of copper sulfate. Then the moles of water were divided into the moles of copper sulfate which gave the ratio of water to copper sulfate. This gave the formula for the hydrate copper sulfate.

Results
The mass of the crucible used in the lab was 26.19g and the mass of the CuSO4 was 1.00g. The mass of the sample once heated was 26.89g and the mass of the sample after being heated the second time was again 26.89g. All of the mass calculations are represented in table 1. Using the masses from table 1 and the molar mass of each compound as shown in table 2 the moles of water in the sample were determined to be 0.017mol H2O and there was .0044mol of Copper Sulfate. The number of moles of water was then divided by the moles of copper sulfate to determine the mole Crucible Weight Original Sample Wgt after 1st heat Wgt after 2nd Total Amount CuSO4 Amt: heat Lost:

ratio. The ratio of water to copper sulfate was 4 moles of water for every one mole of copper Table 1: Mass of Crucible and Sample

26.19g

1.0g CuSO4

26.89g

26.89g

0.30g water

0.70g

Compound CuSO4 H2O

Mass in sample 0.70g 0.30g

Molar Mass 159.608g/mol 18.0g/mol

# of moles 0.0044mol 0.017mol

Table 2: Moles of Water and Copper Sulfate Using mass of the water and the mass of the sample in table one the percent composition was determined. The sample was determined to be approximately 30% water and 70% copper sulfate. The following graph is a visual representation of the percent composition of the CuSO4 hydrate.

Copper Sulfate Hydrate

Copper Sulfate 69% Water 31%

Table 3: Percent Composition

Discussion
The amount of hydrate found in the one gram sample of Copper Sulfate Hydrate was 4 moles of water per one mole of copper sulfate. The weight of the crucible was 26.19g and the weight of the Copper sulfate Hydrate was 1.00g. After being heated the weight was 26.89g. Subtracting the 26.89g from the 26.19g we are able to see that 0.30g of the sample is gone. This is the amount of water in the sample. Then find the moles by dividing 0.30g of water by its molar mass of 18g/mole which gives you 0.017moles of water. Then you take the remaining portion of the sample which is 0.70g (1.00g-0.30g) copper sulfate and divide that by its molar mass of 159.61g which tells us there is .0044mol of copper sulfate. Then divide the number of moles of the copper sulfate into the moles of water which gives us 3.8636(the mole ratio). This number would round up and be approximately 4moles of water to one mole of copper sulfate. This would in turn show the chemical formula to be CuSO4 4H2O. Once the moles were determined we are able to calculate the percent of water which was 30%. As with any lab procedure there are always sources of error. In this lab one source of error could possibly be losing some of the sample during the heating process. Stir sticks were utilized to help ensure that the sample did not burn. Once the stir stick was removed some of the sample remained on the end which causes a slight amount of error in our calculation. Other areas of error include measuring out the original sample. The mass may be slightly off depending on the scale and how accurate it is. If some of the sample happened to be on the scale or fall on the scale without knowledge this will cause more of the sample to be put in

the crucible which in turn can alter our calculations. Since water evaporates as we all know the temperature in the room could also cause some of the water to have already escaped prior to the lab test. Another way in which error could occur is if you spilled some of the dry sample before weighing it. This can have an effect on the answer for x. If this happened and you were unaware it is possible to measure a larger amount of water removed from the sample which in turn would increase the percent composition and the mole ratio of water to copper sulfate. Once the sample cooled completely water was added back to the sample. The sample gave off heat once the water was mixed in. The forward reaction of heating of the Copper Sulfate Hydrate heat was absorbed and this would be called endothermic. Now in order to have the reverse reaction happen once the water was added back in the heat had to be released which is called exothermic reaction. The heat gained during the forward reaction is equal to the heat released during the reverse reaction and this is why the crucible felt warm once the water was added. The actual ratio of copper sulfate to water is 5 moles of water to one mole of Copper Sulfate. Calculate the % of water using this formula (CuSO4 5H2O) you would discover that water is approximately 36.1% water. Find the molar mass of this compound then divide the molar mass into the mass of water in the compound and multiply it by 100 and the % water is calculated.

Conclusion
Through completing this lab the concept of a hydrate was more understandable. Through calculations we were able to compare the amount of water we observed and the amount of water that was supposed to be in the sample. As the values showed that there is always error that needs to be accounted for during a lab. Even the manufacturer of the Copper Sulfate Hydrate has to take into consideration of error. The errors that occurred during this lab put in to perspective that just a small amount of error can me a big change in the outcome. From the first measurement of the sample there are many ways in which we could have been off. The one gram of a substance could have actually been less because of a small amount of the compound falling on the scale instead of in the crucible. By stirring the sample again some was lost. These small errors could be part of the explanation of why our water content was less than that of the actual value. You gain more of an understanding of just how sensitive the measurements of experiments are and why scientists have to repeat experiments to ensure they are as accurate as they can be. A new found respect for the determination of people to understand what is not so easily seen.

References
An Introduction to Chemistry; Atoms First by Mark Bishop http://chemicals.etacude.com/c/copper_sulfate2.php