Solubility Calculation Correcting for Ionic Strength

1. Enter precipitate equilibrium as MaXb <==> aM + bX:

(m+ is charge on the cation and x- is charge on the anion.)
MaXb
a
M
m+
Ba(IO3)2
<==>
1
Ba
2
2. Enter Ksp:

1.50E-09

Approximate s using Ksp =

3. Enter initial guess of ion concentrations:

Ion
C (M)
alpha
Ba
0.0008
0.5
IO3
0.0016
0.4

z
4
1

4. Enter any additional ions and concentrations:

Ion
C (M)
alpha
z
ca
no3

0.01
0.02

0.6
0.3

4
1

Ionic Strength:
5. Results:
Ksp' = 4.05E-09
Iterative s using Ksp' =

1.00E-03

b
2

X
IO3

7.21E-04

zC
0.0032
0.0016

Activity Coeff.
0.521
0.843

zC

Activity Coeff.

0.04
0.02

3.24E-02

0.536
0.836

x-1

Notes:

Copyright 2002 Brian M. Tissue, all rights reserved.

solubility.xls
ver. 03/17/02
Enter data in the gray boxes. Do not change the yellow boxes, they contain formulas.
The Lookup Table worksheet contains the list of ions for which data is available to find activity coefficients.
The calculation is only valid for solubility of a precipitate in the absence of common ions or competing equilibria.
1. Enter the solid and the ions.
2. Enter value for Ksp.
3. Enter initial guesses for the ion concentrations based on approximate s.
4. Enter any additional ions and concentrations that will affect the ionic strength.
5. After getting one result for s, re-enter the ion concentrations for a second iteration.
Solubility is calculated from:

Ionic strength is:

where z is charge and C is concentration.

Activity coefficients are calculated from the Debye-Huckel equation:

where gamma is the activity coefficient, z is the ion charge, S is ionic strength, and alpha is the hydrated ion radius.
This equation is valid for aqueous solutions at 25C.

Lookup Table
Ion
Charge
Ag
1
Al
3
Ba
2
Be
2
Br
-1
BrO3
-1
CO3
-2
HCO3
-1
HCOO
-1
C2O4
-2
CH3COO
-1
CHCl2COO
-1
C6H5COO
-1
Ca
2
Cd
2
Ce
3
Ce
4
Cl
-1
ClO3
-1
ClO4
-1
CN
-1
Co
2
Cr
3
CrO4
-2
Cu
2
F
-1
Fe
2
Fe
3
H
1
Hg
2
Hg2
2
I
-1
IO3
-1
IO4
-1
K
1
La
3
Li
1
Mg
2
Mn
2
MnO4
-1
Na
1
NH4
1
Ni
2
NO2
-1
NO3
-1
OH
-1
Pb
2
PO4
-3
HPO4
-2
H2PO4
-1
Rb
1
S
-2

alpha (nm)
0.25
0.9
0.5
0.8
0.3
0.35
0.45
carbonate
0.45
bicarbonate
0.3
formate
0.45
oxalate
0.45
acetate
0.5
dichloroacetate
0.6
benzoate
0.6
0.5
0.9
1.1
0.3
0.35
0.35
0.3
0.6
0.9
0.4
0.6
0.35
0.6
0.9
0.9
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.4
0.35
0.3
0.9
0.6
0.8
0.6
0.35
0.4
0.25
0.6
0.3
0.3
0.35
0.45
0.4
0.4
0.4
0.25
0.5

From J. Kielland, J. Amer. Chem. Soc. 1937,

(As tabulated in many analytical chemistry texts.)
(alpha is the radius of the hydrated ion.)

HS
SCN
SO3
HSO3
SO4
Sn
Sn
Sr
Th
Tl
Zn
Zr

-1
-1
-2
-1
-2
2
4
2
4
1
2
4

0.35
0.35
0.45
0.4
0.4
0.6
1.1
0.5
1.1
0.25
0.6
1.1

. Soc. 1937, 59, 1675.

chemistry texts.)