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Period 1
The Law of Conservation of Mass Lab
Purpose: In this experiment you will test the law of Conservation of Matter. This
will be done by comparing the moles of a particular product with moles of one of the
reactants using stoichiometry calculations.
Hypothesis: I believe that both products being tested will prove the Law of
Conservation of Matter.
Background: Just as coefficients tell us relative amounts of molecules of various
compounds on both sides of the equation, they in the same way are proportional to the
relative number of moles of the reactants and products. But, are moles conserved from
one side of the equation to the other? Then how does the Law of Conservation of Matter
work? One of the products of the reactions is a gas, which causes limewater to turn
cloudy (CO2). Another of the products is Salt (NaCl). This is another example of a
polyatomic ion coming apart during the reaction. Since two of the products are lost as
gases, how will we make a fair comparison between products and reactants to support our
purpose?
Materials: See Handout
Procedure: See Handout
Data and Observations: NaHCO3 + HCl CO2 + NaCl + H2O
Data Table