Ko University

SPRING 2016
CHEM 102 GENERAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY
EXPERIMENT 3
COLLIGATIVE PROPERTIES:

FREEZING POINT DEPRESSION AND BOILING POINT ELEVATION

OBJECTIVES
Learn about colligative properties in solutions
Investigate the effect of solute on the freezing point of a solvent
Investigate the effect of solute on boiling point of a solvent
Calculate molecular weight of solute from the freezing point depression and the
boiling point elevation it causes

INTRODUCTION
Colligative properties are a subset of intrinsic properties of solutions, which means
they do not depend on the size of the sample. They depend on the relative ratio of the
solvent and the solute. Some of the colligative properties you may learn during this semester
are:

Freezing point depression

Vapor pressure depression

Boiling point elevation

Osmotic pressure

In this experiment we will investigate two of these colligative properties, freezing point
depression and boiling point elevation. The addition of a solute will shift the phase diagram
of the solvent and will result in boiling point elevation and freezing point depression at
atmospheric pressure.
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Boiling point elevation:

The boiling point of a solution is directly correlated to the vapor pressure of that
solution. Boiling occurs when the kinetic energy of the molecules at the surface is enough to
overcome the intermolecular forces and the atmospheric pressure and escape from the
solution, going into gas phase. Therefore the molecules that are closer to the surface of the
liquid, or those at the liquid-air interface, have a greater chance of escaping from the liquid.
When a solute is added to the liquid, the solute molecules occupy some of the space at the
liquid-air interface, and less molecules of solute can be found at the surface. As a result, the
vapor pressure of the solvent decreases and the solvent molecules will need more energy to
evaporate. If we show the vapor pressure of the pure solvent as P0 and the vapor pressure of
the solution (solute added to the solvent) as P, the relationship can be shown as:

P < Po
vapor pressure
of the solvent
above a solution

vapor pressure
of the pure solvent

This relationship is quantified by Raouls Law, where X is the mole fraction:

P = solvent Po
That relationship in turn will increase the boiling point of the solution. The change in boiling
point is directly proportional to the ratio of solute molecules to the solvent molecules. In
dilute solutions, that can be represented by the molality of the solution. The change in
boiling point can be calculated by using the following formula:

Tb = Tb(solution) Tb(solvent)= Kb m

where Tb is boiling point, Kb is the boiling point elevation constant, and m is the molality of
the solution. (Remember that molality is moles of solute per kilograms of solvent). The
boiling point elevation constants for some solvents are given in the table below:

Boiling Point Elevation Constants

Compound
Boiling Point (oC) kb (oC/m)
water
100
0.515
ethyl ether
34.55
1.824
carbon disulfide
46.23
2.35
benzene
80.10
2.53
carbon tetrachloride 76.75
4.48
camphor
207.42
5.611

Freezing point depression:

Freezing of a liquid occurs when the molecules have a low kinetic energy and they
start to form crystals. An added solute will interfere with the formation of the ice crystal
lattice. The amount of freezing point depression depends on the mole fraction of the solute,
so it can be calculated by using the following formula:

Tf = - (Tf(solution) Tf(solvent)) = - Kf m

In this experiment, you will use a salty ice slush to generate a very cold ice bath. You will
determine the freezing point depression caused by ethylene glycol, which is used as an
antifreeze.

Freezing Point Depression Constants

Compound

Freezing Point (oC)

kf (oC/m)

water

1.853

acetic acid

16.66

3.90

benzene

5.53

5.12

p-xylene

13.26

4.3

naphthalene

80.29

6.94

cyclohexane

6.54

20.0

carbon tetrachloride

-22.95

29.8

camphor

178.75

37.7

At the end of the experiment, you will determine the boiling point elevation and the freezing
point depression caused by the different solutes, and will determine the molecular weight of
these solutes.

MATERIALS

Solution bottles

Glass stirring
rod

Beaker

Wash bottle

Weighing boat

Balance

Thermometer
probe

LabQuest Mini

Beaker tongs

Graduated
cylinder

Heater

Test tube

EXPERIMENTAL METHODS

Data Collection:
1. Connect the LabQuest Mini to the computer.
2. Connect the temperature probe to LabQuest mini. Turn on the Logger Pro software on the
computer by double clicking on the icon.

3. You should immediately see the screen displaying a time and temperature graph.
4. On the top menu, select the Data Collection icon.
5. Select the mode to be time based, duration: 10 minutes, sampling rate: 6 samples/minute
(See the figure below).

6. When you are ready to record data, press the Collect button.
7. When you are done with collecting the data, hit Stop to end the data collection.
8. Save your data:
File Export as CSV
Save your file on the desktop with the name of the solvent as the file name.
Open the file you saved and make sure that the excel columns contain the same data as in
the columns of the Logger Pro software.

9. Clean the temperature probe by gently wiping the probe with a dampened paper towel.
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A. Experimental procedure for boiling point determination

10. Measure and place 50 ml of distilled water into a 150 ml beaker and start heating on the
heater. (How many grams of water is it?)
11. Start recording the temperature of the solution.
12. Bring the water to a rolling boil and measure and record the boiling point of the distilled
water at ambient conditions (i.e. at room temperature, under normal atmospheric pressure.)
13. Discard the hot water carefully into the sink. CAREFUL: The water and the vapor will be
extremely HOT.
14. Measure and place 50 ml of distilled water into a 150 ml beaker.
15. Measure 10 g of NaCl in a plastic weighing boat and quantitatively transfer into the water in
the beaker. In order to do this you will need to rinse the weighing boat with some of the
distilled water in the beaker.
16. Stir the contents until a homogeneous mixture forms.
17. Start heating on the heater and start recording temperature vs. time.
18. Bring to a rolling boil and measure the boiling point of the solution.
19. Discard the hot water carefully into the sink. CAREFUL: The water and the vapor will be
extremely HOT.
20. Repeat steps 14-19 by using sucrose instead of NaCl.

B. Experimental procedure for freezing point determination

21. Add 10 ml distilled water into a test tube.
22. Place into a salty ice bath in a 250 ml beaker.
23. Start recording the temperature.
24. Record the temperature without disturbing until you see the supercooling, and then mix the
slurry to obtain homogeneous mixture.
25. Stop recording when the temperature reaches a plateau (about 10 minutes)
26. Discard the frozen slurry.
27. Weigh 5 grams of sucrose on a plastic weighing boat and quantitatively transfer into a test
tube. To do this, add the sucrose into the test tube and then rinse the weighing boat with 10
ml of distilled water into the test tube.
28. Repeat steps 22-26.
29. Add and mix 2 ml ethylene glycol in 10 ml of distilled water.
30. Repeat steps 22-26.

31. Once you collect and save the data for all the solvents, e-mail the data to yourself and your
partners.
32. Erase your data from the desktop.
33. Clean up your hood, bench and the set-up materials.
Wipe the countertop of the hood with a dampened paper towel.
Place the cleaned temperature probe in its cover.
Place the LabQuest Mini and the cable inside the box.
34. Return the borrowed equipment to your lab TA.
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DATA:

Record the following data in your notebook

Boiling point elevation
Solution

Boiling point

Distilled water
Distilled water + 10 g NaCl
Distilled water + 10 g sucrose

Freezing point depression

Solution

Freezing point

Distilled water
Distilled water + ethylene glycol
Distilled water + 10 g sucrose