S1371787 Ali Hussain
Wed PM, Group 3
Experiment 5: Analysis of an Alka Seltzer Tablet
Aim
The aim of this experiment is to find out the active components of an Alka Seltzer
tablet by calculating the percentage by mass of sodium hydrogen carbonate the
tablets contain. Then using UV spectroscopy, the quantity of salicylate in a tablet was
to be found.
Procedure
In part one of the experiment, six solutions were made of deionised water and
ethanoic acid. The weight of the deionised water and beaker were recorded. An Alka
Seltzer tablet was added to the beakers and weighed as well once the effervescence
had stopped.
The six solutions were made as follows:
Volume of water (cm3) Volume of ethanoic acid
(cm3)
Solution 1 35.0 0
Solution 2 30.0 5.0
Solution 3 25.0 10.0
Solution 4 15.0 20.0
Solution 5 5.0 30.0
Solution 6 0 35.0
From the results obtained, a graph of calculated percentage by mass of NaHCO 3
versus volume of ethanoic acid. From all the solutions made, solutions 2-6 can be
disposed; solution 1 needs to be kept for part 2.
In part 2 of the experiment 10 cm3 of 2 M sodium hydroxide is added to the solution
1 beaker. Anti-bumping granules are also added to this solution and boiled for 10
S1371787 Ali Hussain
Wed PM, Group 3
minutes. The solution is then cooled and transferred to a volumetric flask and made
up the mark with deionised water. 10 cm3 of this solution is transferred into another
flask and 50 cm3 of iron (III) nitrate solution is also added to that flask and made up
to the mark with deionised water. The absorbance at 540nm of this solution was
measured and the concentration of salicylate present could be measured using the
Beer-Lambert law.
Results
Table 1:
Weight Weight of Weight of Weight Mass of Percentage
of tablet (g) beaker, difference NaHCO3 by mass
beaker solution, (mass of reacted NaHCO3
and and tablet CO2 (g)) (g) (%)
solution (g)
(g)
Solution 1 85.545 2.885 87.990 0.44 0.84 29.12%
Solution 2 83.722 2.885 85.713 0.894 1.71 59.27%
Solution 3 83.547 2.885 85.688 0.744 1.42 49.22%
Solution 4 85.229 2.885 87.297 0.817 1.56 54.07%
Solution 5 77.237 2.885 79.327 0.795 1.52 52.69%
Solution 6 79.592 2.885 81.749 0.728 1.39 48.18%
Calculated percentage by mass of NaHCO3 versus volume of ethanoic acid
S1371787 Ali Hussain
Wed PM, Group 3
x axis volume of ethanoic acid (cm3)
y axis percentage by mass of NaHCO3
Calculations
Calculating the concentration of salicylate
A=Ecl
C=A/El
C=(0.908)/(5.4x10^-5cm)(4752 dm3 cm-1)
C= 3.5M
Discussion
The results of part 1 allowed table 1 to be produced and completed. The weight
diiference (mass of CO2) was calculated by adding the weight of the beaker and
solution with the weight of the tablet and subtracting it from the weight of beaker,
solution and tablet. The mass of NaHCO3 reacted was calculated by using the
formula:
Mass=Mass of carbon dioxide/molar mass of carbon dioxide * molar mass of
NaHCO3
The percentage by mass of NaHCO3 was calculated by the formula:
Percentage Mass = mass of NaHCO3 reacted/mass of tablet *100%
S1371787 Ali Hussain
Wed PM, Group 3
The data collected in part 1 (solution 1) and part 2 was used to calculate the
concentration of salicylate present, 3.5M. The Beer-Lambert law was used to carry
out this calculation. A slight problem occurred with the results for the absorbance
because in part 2 the final solution was not made correctly. The solution was too
concentrated; therefore the UV spectrophotometer was showing an absorbance of
1.0. So we took the absorbance results from another group who found it to be 0.908.
Questions
1. HCO3 (aq) + H+ (aq) H2O (l) + CO2 (g)
2. Citric acid C6H8O7
3. IUPAC name for acetic acid ethanoic acid
4. The dissolving of CO2 in reaction solution will lead to too small a value of percent
by mass of NaHCO3 in Alka Seltzer tablets. The evaporation of water will lead to too
large a value of percent by mass of NaHCO3 in Alka Seltzer tablets. The evaporation
of water may be corrected by subtracting the weight loss of a blank solution from
the weight loss of the reaction. The quantity of dissolved CO2 can be estimated by
the information used in published articles: 10 mL 6M HCl solution absorbs about 3.0
10-4 mol of CO2 (2). This value should be added to the weight loss obtained.
5. When NaHCO3 is in excess, the acid (H+ ) in the reaction is the limiting reactant.
On the other hand, when the acid is in excess, sodium bicarbonate becomes the
limiting reactant. Since the amount of sodium bicarbonate in a tablet is fixed, the
amount of CO2 generated remains constant regardless of the quantity of vinegar
added.
6. Mass = 284mg
7. The packaging says the mass of aspirin is 300mg and the slight difference could
have been caused by the impurities found in the 284mg sample.
Conclusion
S1371787 Ali Hussain
Wed PM, Group 3
This experiment dealt with investigating the active components of Alka Seltzer
tablets and determining the percentage by mass of sodium hydroxide carbonate the
tablets contained (Table 1). The quantity of salicylate in each tablet was also
calculated, 3.5M. Because of the error that occurred in part 2, results for the
absorbance (0.908) had to be taken from another group.
