Usama Asad

Arthur, Sherilyn
Matthew
CH111-L1 Monday 2:30-5:30pm

150629890
22/02/2016

Chemistry Lab Experiment 4: Le

Chteliers Principle
Abstract
This experiment was performed to determine how reactions reach
states of chemical equilibria when different stresses, such as temperature
and concentration changes, are placed upon them, according to Le
Chtaliers Principle. According to Le Chtaliers Principle, a reaction would
shift to the left or to the right in order for it to compensate for the change
and stressor, and reach equilibrium, or reduce the stress on the system. A
state of equilibrium is when the rates of reaction for both forward and
reverse, are equal, and there is no physical and chemical net change. Firstly,
in part A.I, concentration change was observed by adding an acid to
chromate ions and observing through colour change. In part A.II, acid was
added to methyl orange and phenolphthalein separately and results were
recorded through colour change. In Part B, heating and cooling were applied
to a solution at equilibrium, and results were observed through colour
change. In part C, HCl was added to a barium chromate solution, and results
were again observed through colour change. Finally, in Part D, the law of
Chemical Equilibrium was used to make the precipitation of Calcium Oxalate
as complete as possible. In Part A.I, the reaction shifted to the right when
acid was added, and to the left for both indicators when acid was added. The
number of drops used and the predicted number of drops used were the
same for both indicators. In part B, the reaction shifted to the right when
heat was added, concluding an endothermic reaction, and to the left when
the solution was placed in an ice bath. To reverse colour change, water was
added, proving a successful hypothesis. In part C, when acid was added the
reaction shifted to the left, and the precipitate dissolved, when HCl was
added. In part D, the precipitate that formed was CaC2O4, and the reactions
shifted left to form a precipitate, the product, when acid was added. The
addition of acid, HCl gave a more complete precipitate. All trends were
according to the predictions of Le Chtaliers Principle, and one other trend
was the 1:1 ratio of drops used between HCl and NaOH, the acid and base

used in Part A.II, indication similar molarities. In conclusion, using Le

Chateliers Principle to predict how a reaction reduced the stress of changes
in concentration and temperature that were placed upon it, was successfully
carried out and observed through a number of different reactions.

Procedure
For the procedure, see lab manual (CH111 Lab Manual, Winter 2016) pages
57-59.
Wilfrid Laurier University Chemistry Department. Winter 2016. Experiment
4. Le Chteliers Principle. Pages 35-38 in Chemistry 111 Lab Manual. Wilfrid
Laurier University, ON, Canada.

Results
A.I: Acid-Base Equilibria
Added
Volume
(mL or
drops)
Colour

K2CrO4
3 mL

H2SO4
5 drops

NaOH
4 drops

H2SO4
6 drops

Bright
Brownish
Yellow
Dark
Yellow
Yellow
Orange
Table 1; 2 CrO4^2- (aq) + 2 H+ (aq) Cr2O7^2- (aq) + H2O
(l)
A.II: Weak Acid-Base Indicator Equilibria-Methyl Orange
and Phenolphthalein
Added
Volume

Methyl
Orange
1 drop

HCl

NaOH

HCl

2 drops

4 drops

2 drops

(mL or
Drops)
Colour

Light
Clear
Clear
Clear
Orange
Pinkish Red Yellow
Pinkish Red
Table 2; Hln (aq) + H2O (l) H3O+ (aq) + ln- (aq) (ln= Methyl
Orange)
Predicted # Drops:2
Actual Drops: 2

A.II: Weak Acid-Base Indicator Equilibria-Methyl Orange

and Phenolphthalein
Added
Volume
(mL or
Drops)
Colour

Phenolphth
alein
1 drop

HCl

NaOH

HCl

2 drops

4 drops

4 drops

Clear,
Clear,
Clear,
Clear,
colourless
colourless Dark Pink
colourless
Table 3; Hln (aq) + H2O (l) H3O+ (aq) + ln- (aq) (ln=
Phenolphthalein)
Predicted # Drops:4
Actual Drops: 4
B: Complex Ion Equilibria: Temperature Dependence
of Co(II) Complex Ion
Added

CoCl2

Sample 1
HCl

Volume
(mL or
Drops)

3mL

10 Drops

Sample 2
Sample 2
Hot Water Cold
Water
12 seconds 5 seconds
to change
to return to
colour
previous
colour

Colour

Clear
Bubblegum
Pink

Clear Pale
Lavender

Dark bluish
purple

Clear
bubblegum
pink

Hot Water Cold

Repeated Water
Repeated
Colour

Dark Bluish
Purple,
Clear

Clear, Dark
bubblegum
pink

Table 4;Co(H2O)6^2+ (aq) + 4Cl- (aq) CoCl4^2- (aq) +

6H2O (l)
Hypothesis Test: If I added more H2O, the reaction will
shift to the left to produce more reactants, therefore
resulting in a colour change.

C: Equilibrium of Barium Chromate

Added
Volume
(mL or
Drops)
Colour

BaCl2
3 mL

K2CrO4
6 drops

HCl
12 drops

Clear,Colour
less

Pale milky Clear,

yellow with Bright
a tinge of
Yellow
green
(faint)
Table 5;Equilibrium of Barium Chromate

D: Application of the law of Chemical Equilibrium to

Calcium Oxalate

Added

CaCl2

Volume
(mL or
drops)
Colour

3 mL
Cloudy

Sample Sample
1
2
H2C2O4 (NH4)2C
2O4
1 drop
2 drops
Slightly
Cloudy

Sample
1 & HCl

Sample
1 and
NH3

9 drops

30 drops

Very
Clear,
Cloudy
Colourle
White
ss
Table 6; Ca2+ (aq) + C2O4^2- (aq) CaC2O4 (s)

Clear,
Colourle
ss

Part D: NH3 + CaCl2 Results: The precipitate turned out to be

CaC2O4, since the solution, after adding NH3 turned it cloudy,
adding NH3 to CaCl2 did not turn it cloudy, even after >30 drops.
However, samples 1 and 2 containing C2O4, turned cloudy.

Questions
1)

Since an acid was being added to the solution, therefore more

H+ ions, the reaction would try producing more of the Dichromate ion,
the product, to compensate for the added reactant, to shift the
reaction back to equilibrium. So the reaction shifts right.
2)
The hydroxide ions exerted an effect by reacting with the
hydronium ions that were added from the acid, to produce H2O, which
was a reactant, so it was, in effect, resisting the change of
concentration of products, by producing more reactants.
3)
Methyl orange turns dark pinkish red in acids and light yellowish
orange in bases. When an acid was added to indicator, protons were
added, so the reaction shifted left to produce more of the base and
lessen the hydronium concentration, while when the base was added,

the hydroxide ions reacted with the hydronium ions, so the reaction
shifted right to produce more hydronium ions.
For Phenolphthalein, colourless in acids and bright pink in bases.
Adding HCl shifted the equation to the left, and it remained colourless,
while adding a base, NaOH, shifted the reaction to the right, to turn
clear, dark pink. The reaction shifted due to the same reasons
described for Methyl Orange.
4)
Yes, the answers were accurate. This is because in an acid base
situation such as NaOH and HCl, molarities usually end up on a 1:1
ratio. Meaning, 1 mole of HCl= 1 mol of NaOH. So the weak acid- base
needed equal amounts of drops to change the indicator from colourless
to pink, and vice versa.
1)
Starting with temperature, this reaction is endothermic. Since
heat was added, the reaction changed colour and shifted to the right to
produce more products to reach equilibrium again. Adding HCl also
made the reaction shift to the right, since increasing the concentration
of the reactants caused the reaction to shift right to make more
products to stabilize the concentration change of ions that put stress
on the system.
2)
Yes, it was. H2O is a product, and increasing the concentration of
the products will put stress on the system, causing it to shift to the left
to produce more reactants, and therefore changing the colour back.

1)

BaCl2 (aq) + K2CrO4 (aq) -> BaCrO4 (s) + 2 KCl (aq)

= Ba^2+ (aq) + 2 Cl^- (aq) + 2K^+(aq) + CrO4^2- -> BaCrO4(s) + 2

K^+ (aq) + 2 + Cl^-(aq)
=

Ba^2+ (aq)

2)

+ CrO4^2- (aq)

->

BaCrO4 (s)

Due to the common ion effect, the precipitate dissolves to leave

a bright yellow clear solution. Since HCl and KCl, both have the
same anion. The reaction would shift left, since the concentration of
the chloride anions increases, the reaction produces more reactants
to achieve equilibrium.
1) Calcium Oxalate should be made more acidic to produce a more
complete precipitate. This is because hydronium ions are a reactant,
according to the equations, and adding acid will increase the
concentration of hydronium ions, and therefore, increasing the
reactant concentration, which will then shift to the left to produce

more precipitate, the product.

2) The precipitate was calcium oxalate.

3)

It will exert a greater effect on the precipitation of the salt of a

weak base. This is because when the weak salt breaks down, the
base will hydrolyze with the water molecules to produce a nonneutral solution. Therefore, when a strong basic solution is added to
the salt of a weak basic solution, the weak base would react with
the strong base, and form a more complete precipitate.

Discussion
The results of the experiments were recorded accordingly, in reference
to Le Chtaliers Principle. In Part A.I, adding HCl increased the concentration
of the reactant side, making the reaction shift to the right to produce more
products to reach equilibrium (Question #1, Table 1). In part A.II, the reaction
shifted to the left when acid was added to the methyl orange indicator,
changing the colour from light orange to pinkish red, and increasing product
concentration (Question #3, Table 2). Also in part A.II, adding acid to
phenolphthalein shifted the reaction to the left to produce more products,
while adding base turned the colour from colourless to dark pink, while also
then shifting the reaction back to right, due to an increase in concentration
of the reactants (Question #3, Table 3). In part B, temperature was
additionally used as a stress factor on a reaction. The reaction turned out to
be endothermic, since adding heat caused the reaction to shift to the left and
change colour, and according to Le Chtaliers Principle, addition of reactants
upsets equilibrium and causes the reaction to shift right to make more
products. Taking away heat therefore returned the colour back to normal by
producing more reactants on the left, and therefore, more heat. Adding acid,
H+ ions, increased reactant concentration and caused the reaction to shift
right (Question #1 Part B, Table 4). In part C, the precipitate dissolved due to
the common ion effect, where both HCl and potassium chloride had similar
anions. Therefore, product concentration increased, and the reaction shifted
to the left, and the precipitate dissolved (Question #2 Part C, Table 5). In Part
D, the precipitate was determined to be CaC2O4 (Table 5), and the reactions
in both test tubes, A and B, shifted to the right to produce a precipitate when
acid was added, indicating product formation due to an increase in reaction
concentration. The addition of acid gave a better and cloudier precipitate
(Question # 1

part D, Table 5). Human sources of error included accidentally adding more
or less drops of acid or base into solutions, which resulted in inaccurate
measurements and recorded results. Also, inaccurately determining the
observed results, such as precipitate formation or colour changes that
occurred. An experimental source of error couldve been impure equipment
and solutions, resulting in improper predictions and observations, such as the
wrong colour change, etc. A way to improve this lab would be to add more
experiments to observe changes other than concentration, such as pressure
changes.

Conclusion
The results were determined accordingly, using the predictions of Le
Chtaliers Principle. In Part A.I, the reaction shifted to the right when acid
was added, and to the left for both indicators when acid was added, meaning
concentration changes in reactants and products, respectively. The number
of drops used and the predicted number of drops used were the same for
both indicators. In part B, the reaction shifted to the right when heat was
added, concluding an endothermic reaction, and to the left when the solution
was placed in an ice bath, indicating temperature change. To reverse colour
change, water was added, proving a successful hypothesis. In part C, when
acid was added the reaction shifted to the left, and the precipitate dissolved,
when HCl was added. In part D, the precipitate that formed was CaC2O4, and
the reactions shifted left to form a precipitate, the product, when acid was
added. The addition of acid, HCl, gave a more complete precipitate. In
conclusion, using Le Chateliers Principle to predict how reactions reduced the
stress of concentration or temperature changes that were placed upon them,
and reached equilibrium, was successfully carried out and observed through
a number of different reactions.