DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

The researchers made use of experimental research design in this study. An

experimental research is defined as observation under controlled conditions. Since
the objective was to determine the densities of the given liquids using the
pycnometer, the researchers made sure to be as accurate as possible in all steps of
the procedure.

The apparatus used in this experiment are as follows:

1 pycnometer
1 400 mL beaker
150C thermometer
1 wash bottle
1 dryer

The reagents used are:

Hydrochloric acid
Distilled water
Methanol
Chloroform
Unknown liquid

Procedure

A. Determination of Density of Water

First, the researchers performed an acid wash on the pycnometer with hydrochloric
acid followed by distilled water. After drying the pycnometer with the hair dryer, the
empty pycnometer was weighed on an analytical balance. Next, the pycnometer
was completely filled with distilled water and weighed again. The temperature of the
water was also taken using a thermometer. The weight of water was computed by
subtracting the weight of the empty pycnometer from the weight of the pycnometer
filled with water.

The general formula for density was rearranged in order for the researchers to
compute for the volume of water. This rearrangement is shown in Equations 2.1 and
2.2 below.

m
= (2.1)
v

mH O
v= 2

(2.2)
H 2 O
where mH2O is the experimentally determined weight of water, and H2O was
obtained from Table 2.1.

T (C) H2O (g/cm3)

15 0.99996
16 0.99994
17 0.99990
18 0.99985
19 0.99978
20 0.99820
21 0.99799
22 0.99777
23 0.99754
24 0.99730
25 0.99705
Table 2.1. Temperature Dependence of Distilled Water Density (H2O)

B. Determination of Density of Liquid

To determine the densities of the remaining liquids, Procedure A was repeated for
each reagent. That is, the weight of the liquid was first measured by subtracting the
weight of the empty pycnometer from the weight of the pycnometer filled with the
liquid.

The volume of water obtained from Equation 2.2 is also equal to the volume of the
pycnometer used, and as the same pycnometer was used throughout the
experiment, the volume of the liquids in the experiment was constant.

ml
v= (2.3)
l

mH O ml
2
= (2.4)
H 2 O l

Rearranging Equation 2.4 results in the equation used by the researchers in order to
determine the densities of each of the liquids, with water as the reference liquid.

ml H O
l= 2

(2.5)
mH O
2
 LIST AND USES OF APPARATUS

Pycnometer a small glass bottle of known volume for determining the

relative density of liquids and solids by weighing.
Beaker a cylindrical flat-bottomed container used in laboratories, usually
made of glass and having a pouring lip. It is used to hold and heat liquids.
Thermometer an instrument for measuring temperature, often a sealed
glass tube that contains a column of liquid, as mercury, that expands and
contracts, or rises and falls, with temperature changes, the temperature being
read where the top of the column coincides with a calibrated scale marked on
the tube or its frame.
Wash Bottle a bottle or flask with a bent tube through its cap or stopper that
is used to direct a stream of water (as by squeezing the bottle if it is flexible)
onto something to be washed or rinsed.
Dryer typically a mechanical device for creating a current of air used to dry
or heat something.