SKU3073 Chemistry

Semester 1 2020/2021

EXPERIMENT 4

PREPARATION AND DILUTION OF IRON(III) CHLORIDE SOLUTION

4.1 OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this experiment, students should be able to:

1. prepare a standard (stock) solution from solid

2. determine the concentration of solution by using dilution technique

3. determine the concentration of coloured compound in solution using colorimetric

4.2 INTRODUCTION

Concentration is a general measurement unit stating the amount of solute present in a known
amount of solution:

𝐴𝑚𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑒
Concentration =
𝐴𝑚𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

Molarity is the mole of solute in 1 L (1 dm3) of solution, as shown as followed equation:

𝑀𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑒
Molarity (M) =
𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (1 𝐿 /1 𝑑𝑚3 )

Stock solution is the solution with known concentration. This solution is bought directly from the
manufacturer or formed by dissolving the desired amount of solute into a volumetric flask of a
specific volume. Stock solution is frequently diluted to solution of lesser concentration for
experimental use in the laboratory. Dilution is a process of lowering the concentration of the
solution by adding a specific amount of water to the solution. However, increasing the volume
will not change the amount of solute in the solution. Therefore, according to the relationship
between the amount of solute, concentration, and volume of the solution, the concentration of
the diluted solution can be determined as given equation:

M1V1 = M2V2

Where M1 = concentration of concentrated solution (mol dm3)

V1 = volume of concentrated solution (dm3)

M2 = concentration of dilute solution

V2 = volume of dilute solution

Colorimetric is a technique method of determining the concentration of a chemical element or

Chemicals

Iron(III) chloride hydrate, FeCl3.xH2O

Potassium thiocyanate, KSCN (0.10 M)

Solution of iron(III) chloride, FeCl3 (unknown concentration)

Apparatus

Volumetric flask (10 mL)

Graduated/volumetric pipette

Test tube

Test tube rack

Weighing bottle

Beaker (25 mL)

Pipette dropper

Glass rod

4.3 PROCEDURE

Part A Preparation of stock solution: 10 mL of 0.10 M iron(III) chloride

1. Prepare a stock solution of 0.10 M iron(III) chloride in 10 mL volumetric flask (Figure 4.1).

2. Calculate the mass (g) of iron(III) chloride solid that needs to be weighed.

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 SKU3073 Chemistry
Semester 1 2020/2021

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 4.1: a) Weigh an amount of solute and transfer it into a small beaker. Add a small amount
of distilled water to the beaker and stir the solution until the solid is totally dissolved.
Transfer the solution to the volumetric flask; b) Add a portion of distilled water to the
volumetric flask and swirl the mixture until all solute dissolve; c) Add distilled water into
volumetric flask until up to the mark. Then, cap the flask and invert several times until the
contents are thoroughly mixed and completely dissolved.

Part B Dilution of 0.10 M iron(III) chloride

1. Calculate the volume (mL) of the stock solution needed to prepare 0.05 M.

2. Use dilution technique to prepare four (4) standard solutions of iron(III) chloride in 10 mL
volumetric flask: 0.01 M, 0.005 M, 0.001 M and 0.0005 M (Figure 2.2) from 0.05 M iron(III)
chloride.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 4.2: a) Stock solution; b) Transfer the measured volume of stock solution to a second
volumetric flask; c) Dilute the measured volume of solution in second volumetric flask with
distilled water until up to the mark. Then, cap the flask and invert several times until the
contents are thoroughly mixed and completely dissolved.

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 SKU3073 Chemistry
Semester 1 2020/2021

Part C Colorimetric analysis of iron(III) chloride

1. Observe and record the colour intensity of the iron(III) chloride solution at five different
concentrations (0.05 M, 0.01 M, 0.005 M, 0.001 M and 0.0005 M).

2. Transfer each 5 mL of the prepared solution into test tube and add 2 drops of KSCN
solution to each test tube. Shake each test tube until homogenous and observe any
colour changes (test tube a – e).

3. Transfer 5 mL of iron(III) chloride solution (unknown concentration) into another test tube
and add 2 drops of KSCN solution. Shake it until homogenous and compare the colour
of the solution with the series of solution that have prepared in step 3. Proposed the
concentration for this iron(III) chloride solution.

4.4 QUESTIONS

1. Why are the standard solutions always prepared in a volumetric flask?

2. Is there any difference(s) between stock solution and standard solution?

3. What is the difference between a dilute solution and a concentrated solution?

4. What is the purpose of colourimetric analysis?

4.5 REFERENCES

1. Dilution Calculations From Stock Solutions. (2019). Retrieved from

2. Department of Chemistry (2013). Anoka-Ramsey Community College CHEM 1020:

3. Guide to Preparation of Stock Standard Solutions. (2011). Retrieved from

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 SKU3073 Chemistry
Semester 1 2020/2021

4.6 WORKSHEET

Part A Preparation of stock solution iron(III) chloride

Table 4.1: Stock solution iron(III) chloride

Molarity of stock solution (M)

Volume of volumetric flask (mL)

Mole of FeCl3

Molar mass, FeCl3 (g/mol)

Mass FeCl3 (g)

Part B Dilution of 0.10 M iron(III) chloride

Table 4.2: Series of iron(III) chloride solution at five different concentrations

a) Volume of stock solution needed to prepare 0.05 M

b) Volume (V1) of solution needed to prepare 0.01 M

c) Volume (V1) of solution needed to prepare 0.005 M

d) Volume (V1) of solution needed to prepare 0.001 M

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 SKU3073 Chemistry
Semester 1 2020/2021

FeCl3 (mL)

e) Volume (V1) of solution needed to prepare 0.0005 M

Part C Colorimetric analysis of iron(III) chloride

Table 4.3: Colorimetric analysis of iron(III) chloride

Colour observation after addition KSCN.

Rank the solutions (test tubes a-e) in order of decreasing

Concentration of unknown FeCl3

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DATE LECTURER’S SIGNATURE/STAMP