SALTS ASSUME SALTS ARE SOLUBLE AND LEARN THE EXCEPTIONS

The common salts are chlorides, sulphates and nitrates.

ALL sodium and potassium salts are soluble.
ALL ammonium salts are soluble.
ALL nitrates are soluble.
ALL chlorides/halides are soluble except silver and lead (PbCl2 dissolves in hot water)
ALL sulphates are soluble except barium, lead and calcium (although calcium sulphate is very sparingly soluble rather borderline!)

Dr. Mohammad Salleh Abid

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Methods of Preparing Salts

Soluble salts
Salts from soluble metals and bases
(sodium, potassium and ammonium)

Titration method using an

indicator
Measure a known volume of acid into a
flask or beaker.
Add a suitable indicator.
Add alkali a little at a time from a
burette until the indicator just
changes colour.
Note the volume of alkali used.

Mix the known volumes of acid and alkali

BUT with NO indicator
(indicator would make the salt impure)

Salts from insoluble metals and bases

(magnesium, copper, zinc)

Measure out some of the appropriate acid into

a beaker.
Add the solid base (metal oxide, metal
hydroxide or metal carbonate) a little at a time
until no more will dissolve. (This tells you
that all the acid has been neutralised)
Warm if necessary to speed up the reaction

Filter the mixture to remove the unreacted

base.
Collect the filtrate (solution of the desired salt)

HYDRATED ---Concentrate the solution by heating over a Bunsen, tripod and gauze or over
a hot water bath to evaporate some water and make the solution saturated.
Allow it to cool and crystallise slowly at room temperature forms Crystal with water of
crystallisation
ANHYDROUS --Evaporate all the water to get dry, anhydrous powder instead of
crystals

Dr. Mohammad Salleh Abid

Insoluble salts
e.g. Barium Sulphate

Take samples of solutions of two

compounds each containing one of
the halves (ions) in the required salt
and
Mix together(two soluble salts)
e.g. Barium nitrate Ba2+ and
potassium sulphate SO42-

Filter the mixture to separate the solid

precipitate of the required salt from the
solution. The precipitate is the residue in
the filter paper

Wash the solid with distilled water to

remove any traces of the other substance
left in solution.
(Dry )Spread the filter paper out to allow the
solid to dry, either in the open lab. or in a
warm oven

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