Apparatus

General Apparatus in IGCSE Chemistry

1. Apparatus W is Filter Funnel

2. Apparatus X: Boiling Tube/Test Tube

3. Apparatus A: Test Tube/Boiling Tube

4. Apparatus B: Measuring Cylinder

5. Apparatus B is a Gas Syringe

6. Apparatus A is a water bath/trough.

Experiments
Reducing Copper (III) Oxide to Copper and Testing
Products of Combustion
 Reducing Copper(III) Oxide to Copper
 Testing products of combustion:

Showing that Oxygen and Water are needed for

Rusting Iron and that air is 21% Oxygen
 Shows that oxygen and water are needed for rusting iron
 Showing that air is 21% Oxygen

Rates of Reaction
Factors Affecting the Rate of Reaction
 Different temperature acid
 Different sizes of particle/reactants

 Concentration of acid

Rate of Reaction
Graphs
1. Concentration

2. Catalyst
3. Temperature 4. Surface Area

Timing
 Time how long it takes for the cross to disappear from view

 You can change the temperature and concentration of acid used

Planning Investigation
Ways to Tackle this Question
The Planning Investigation (6 marks) is one of the key highlights of the IGCSE
Chemistry: Alternative to Practical, and it is possible to achieve full marks in this
question. Unlike IGCSE Biology and physics, Chemistry requires a detailed step-by-step
process in planning your investigation.
1. Independent Variable: The variable you will change
2. Dependent Variable: The variable you will measure.
3. Control Variable: Variables that you will keep the same.

Key things which help to guide your response:


 If there are large lumps, you must state, “Use a pestle and mortar to crush”. This will get you 2
marks.
 Stating the apparatus + exact volume/mass + name of chemical/substance, always!
o E.g. Use a measuring cylinder to measure 50cm3 of hydrochloric acid
 Draw a labelled diagram (even if it doesn’t directly tell you to do this)
o You may also get some marks on labels
 State the type of experiment you will carry out (e.g. chromatography/crystallisation)

Example Question:
six marks response:
Prepare all the apparatus needed for this investigation. Weigh the same mass of the
Cadmium metal and placed it in a beaker. Add 30cm^3 of dilute hydrochloric acid into
the beaker, whose concentration remains unchanged. Observe the reaction in a set
time of 2 minutes and record the gas produced using a gas syringe. Repeat the
investigation using Cobalt and Vanadium. A conclusion can be made by comparing
which metal produces the largest gas volume and placing it accordingly from least to
most reactive.

Constant Variables
 Diameter of beaker

 The Cross
 Volume

Chromatography
Chromatography
 Principle: Difference in solubility separates different pigments

o Drop the substance to center of filter paper and allow it to dry

o Drop water on the substance, one drop at a time

o Paper + rings = chromatogram.

 Stationary phase: material on which the separation takes place

 Mobile phase: mixture you want to separate, dissolved in a solvent (water or ethanol)

 Interpreting simple chromatograms:

o Number of rings/dots = number of substances

o If two dots travel the same distance up the paper, they are the same substance.

o The pure substance only shows one dot on the chromatogram.

 You can calculate the Rf value to identify a substance given by the formula:

 Rf Value= Distance moved by solute Distance moved by solvent

 To make colorless substances visible

o Dry chromatogram in an oven

o Spray it with a locating agent

o Heat it for 10 minutes in the oven

Separation Techniques
Filtration and Crystallization
 Filtration

o The mixture goes in a funnel with filter paper into a flask.

o Residue is insoluble, and filtrate goes through

 Crystallization

o Some water in the solution is evaporated, so the solution becomes more concentrated.

o The solution is left to cool and crystallise (solubility decreases as temperature decreases)

o Crystals are filtered to remove solvent.

Common Question: How can we obtain pure dry

crystals from the filtrate?

1. Pour the filtrate into the evaporating basin and heat

2. Leave to evaporate and let it cool to the crystallization point

3. Wash the crystals with distilled water

4. Dry it between the filter paper.

 Simple Distillation
 The impure liquid is heated

 It boils, and steam rises into the condenser

 Impurities are left behind

 The condenser is cold so the steam condenses to pure liquid, and it drops into the beaker

Fractional Distillation
 Removes a liquid from a mixture of liquids because liquids have different b.p.s

 The mixture is heated to evaporate the substance with the lowest b.p.

 Some of the other liquid(s) will evaporate too.

 Beads are heated to the boiling point of the lowest substance so that a substance being

removed cannot condense on beads.

 Other substances continue to condense and will drip back into the flask

 The beaker can be changed after every fraction.

 The thermometer is placed on the top to measure the temperature of the vapour instead of

the liquid

Acid-Base Titration
1. Place known volume of alkali using volumetric pipette into a conical flask

2. Add indicator (e.g. thymolphthalein)

3. Titration: add acid using burette until end point has reached

4. Record volume of acid added

5. Repeat without indicator

6. Transfer to evaporating basin

7. Heat with Bunsen burner

8. Leave to cool to crystallization point

9. Wash crystals with distilled water

10. Dry crystals on filter paper

Method of Separation
Method of Separation Used to separate

Filtration A solid from a liquid

Evaporation A solid from a solution

Crystallization A solid from a solution

Simple Distillation A solvent from a solution

Fractional Distillation Liquids from each other

Chromatography Different substances from a solution

Making Salts
Metal and an Insoluble Base
 Starting with a metal:
1. Warm acid (increases speed of reaction)

2. Add an excess of reactant + stir

3. Filter mixture

4. Transfer to evaporating basin

5. Heat using a Bunsen burner

6. Leave to cool until crystallisation point

7. Wash crystals with distilled water

8. Dry crystals on filter paper

Starting with an insoluble base:

 Add insoluble base to acid and heat gently; it will dissolve

 Keep adding until no more dissolves (reaction is done)

 Filter out the insoluble (excess) base

Precipitation
 Mix the two soluble salts so they react together

 Filter the mixture to separate the products produced (soluble and insoluble salt produced)

 Wash the insoluble salt on the filter paper

 Dry the insoluble salt between the filter paper

 Salts and Indicators

 Solubility of Salts
Soluble Salts Insoluble Salts
All sodium, potassium and ammonium salts None
All nitrates None
Chlorides Except for silver and lead
Except for barium, lead and
Sulfates
calcium
Potassium, sodium and ammonium
All other carbonates
carbonates
Sodium, potassium and ammonium
Nearly all hydroxides
hydroxides

 Indicators
Indicators Color in acid Color in alkaline
Thymolphthalein Colorless Blue
Methyl orange Red Yellow
Litmus Paper Red Blue
Universal Indicator Red Blue
Phenolphthalein Colorless Pink

 pH Scale
 

 Colors of Transition Metal Compound

Metal Compounds Color
Copper (II) Sulfate Blue
Copper (II) Oxide Black
Copper (II) Carbonate Green
Manganese (IV) Oxide Black
Iron (II) Salts Pale Green
Iron (III) Salts Brown or Orange

Test for Anions and Cations

In the 2023-2025 syllabus, the Cation and Anion Test are ONLY given in Paper 5 & 6!

Cations Test
Cation Sodium Hydroxide Ammonia
Aluminum Soluble white ppt, gives
White ppt, insoluble in excess
(Al3+) colorless solution
Ammonium Ammonia gas - damp red
N/A
(NH4+) litmus turns blue
Calcium
White ppt, Insoluble in excess No ppt.
(Ca2+)
Chromium Green ppt, soluble in excess Green ppt, insoluble in excess
 Cation Sodium Hydroxide Ammonia
(Cr3+)
Light blue ppt, Insoluble in Light blue, soluble ppt, giving
Copper (Cu2+)
excess dark blue
Green ppt, Insoluble in
Green ppt, Insoluble in excess,
Iron(II) (Fe2+) excess, turns brown near
turns brown near surface
surface
Iron(III) (Fe3+) Red-brown ppt, insoluble Red-brown ppt, insoluble
White soluble ppt, giving White soluble ppt, giving
Zinc (Zn2+)
colorless solution colorless solution

Anions Test
Anion Test Test result
Carbonate
Add dilute nitric acid Limewater goes cloudy
(CO32-)
Chloride (Cl-) White ppt.
Add nitric acid, then aqueous
Bromide (Br-) Cream ppt.
silver nitrate
Iodide (I-) Yellow ppt.
Add aqueous sodium Ammonia gas produced turns
Nitrate (NO3-)
hydroxide then add aluminum damp red litmus paper blue
Sulfate Add nitric acid, then add
White ppt.
(SO42-) aqueous barium nitrate
Add acidified aqueous
Sulfite (SO32-) Purple to colorless.
potassium manganite (VII)

Harder Ion Testing Question

In this question, even though the Cation and Anion Tests are given at the back of the
paper. Some questions maybe unfamiliar to you. If you have cross checked multiple
times, and still it doesn’t show, it might be a “no reaction” answer.
1. If nothing happens (i.e. there is no reaction), put “No Change”
2. If it says “condensation forms on the side of the test tube”, it is hydrated
3. If a solid is colored, it is a transition metal
4. If it is non-transition metal, it is a white solid OR colorless solution
5. When the liquid was touched with a lighted splint, it burns with a blue flame, it is an organic fuel
(flammable)

Flame Tests
Metals
 Lithium = Red

 Sodium = Yellow

 Potassium = Lilac

 Calcium = Orange-Red

 Barium = Light Green

 Copper (II) = Blue Green

 Process of Flame Testing

 Dip the unreactive metal wire into concentrated acid, and then hold it in the blue flame of a

Bunsen burner until there is no color change.

 Dip the loop into the solid sample and place it on the edge of the blue Bunsen flame.

 Observe the flame color and record it down.

1. How is the Bunsen burner adjusted to give a scorching flame?

By opening the air hole to increase air supply.

Gas & Other Tests

Gas & Other Tests

Gas Test and test result

Ammonia (NH3) Damp red litmus paper turns blue
Carbon dioxide
Bubble gas through limewater - from colorless to cloudy
(CO2)
Chlorine (Cl2) Bleaches red/blue litmus paper
Hydrogen (H2) Place lighted splint, squeaky pop
Oxygen (O2) Place glowing splint, splint relights
Sulfur Dioxide Turns Acidified Aqueous Potassium Manganite (VII) from
(SO2) purple to colorless

Substance Test and test result

White anhydrous copper (II) sulphate turns blue
Water
Anhydrous cobalt (II) chloride turns pink
Alkene Add to bromine water; from orange to colorless
Alkane Add to bromine water; remains orange
Blue litmus paper turns red
Acid
Add a metal carbonate; bubbles of CO2
Base Red litmus paper turns blue

Common Errors and Improvements

Errors and Improvements
Errors Improvements
No Repeats Repeat Three Times
Different Color Changes Use a colorimeter
 Errors Improvements
Use a burette because it is more
The measuring cylinder is inaccurate
accurate
Adding past endpoint Add volume in smaller quantities
Use a thermostatically controlled
Temperature/Heat Loss
water bath
The same measuring cylinder used in multiple
Use different measuring cylinders
investigations

Collecting Gases
Method of Gas Delivery
Downward Upward Collection Gas
Method
Delivery Delivery Overwater syringe
Gas is
Gas is less To
Use Gas more dense sparingly
dense than measure
when... than air soluble in
air the volume
water

Apparatus

Carbon dioxide, Carbon

chlorine, sulfur Ammonia, dioxide,
Examples Any gas
dioxide, hydrogen hydrogen hydrogen,
chloride oxygen
 Drawing Graphs
Rules and Requirements of Drawing Graphs
Drawing Graphs in IGCSE Sciences is such an essential skill that it is worth full of free

marks in these questions. Here are the rules and requirements to earn the full mark.

1. Use a sharp pencil

2. Label both axes with units (IV on the x-axis, DV on the y-axis)

3. Labels should be in the form “quantity/units.”

4. Choose appropriate scale

5. Use crosses “x” to mark the data points (for scatter graphs)

6. The graph should cover at least half the grid

7. Include an appropriate title

8. Include a line of best-fit

9. Circle anomalous results

Common Question: Why does the graph level off?

The reaction is finished, and ALL of the [named reactant] has reacted

Common Question: Why must the graph line pass through (0,0)?

It is because when no [named reactant] is added, there is no reaction

 Information on Tables and Graphs
Tables
• Each table column should have the physical quantity and the appropriate units.

• The table's column headings can be directly transferred to the axes of a constructed

graph.

Graphs
• Unless instructed otherwise, the independent variable should be plotted on the x-

axis (horizontal axis) and the dependent variable plotted on the y-axis (vertical axis).

• Each axis should be labelled with the physical quantity and the appropriate unit, e.g.

time / s.

• Unless otherwise instructed, the scales for the axes should allow more than half of the

graph grid to be used in both directions and be based on sensible ratios, e.g. 2 cm on

the graph grid representing 1, 2 or 5 units of the variable.

• The graph is the diagrammatic presentation, including the best-fit line when

appropriate. It may have one or more sets of data plotted on it.

• Points on the graph should be marked as crosses (×) or encircled dots (⊙).

• Large ‘dots’ are penalized. Each data point should be plotted to an accuracy of over

one-half of each of the smallest squares on the grid.

• A best-fit line (trend line) should be a single, thin, smooth straight line or curve.

The line does not need to coincide exactly with any of the points; where there is scatter

evident in the data, Examiners would expect a roughly even distribution of points on
either side of the line over its entire length. Anomalous points should be ignored when

drawing the best-fit line.

Numerical Results
• Data should be recorded so as to reflect the precision of the measuring instrument.

• The number of significant figures given for calculated quantities should be appropriate

to the least number of significant figures in the raw data used.