Name: Shela Mae M.

Dindin Date Performed: June 23, 2017

Group No: 1 Date Submitted: June 30, 2017
Experiment no. 2
PURITY OF ASPIRIN: MELTING POINT
Objectives:
1. To determine the melting point of Aspirin.
2. To estimate the purity of Aspirin from determining its melting point.
Procedure:
Assemble apparatus use large oil-filled test tube as heating bath

Crush some Aspirin

Form mound from powder
Push open end capillary tube into mound
Hold capillary vertically
Allow to drop against table top
Repeat process ¾ to 1cm long
Attach capillary to thermometer w/ rubber band
Immerse in oil bath
Δ bath rapidly
Report melting point
DATA AND RESULTS
Table 1. Recorded Melting point of Aspirin
Samp Sample Treat- Observation Theoreti Percent
le (inside ment Temperature reading every 2 Average cal value Error
capillar mins interval Melting (melting
y tube) point point)

1
Aspirin Oil 137.6°C 135°C 1.93%
131°C 138.2°C 143.5°C
bath

2 129.4°C 134°C 139.1°C

Aspirin Oil 134.2°C 135°C 0.59%
bath

Determining the melting point of a compound is one way to test if the substance is pure. A
pure substance generally has a melting range (the difference between the temperature where the
sample starts to melt and the temperature where melting is complete) of one or two degrees.
Impurities tend to depress and broaden the melting range so the purified sample should have a
higher and smaller melting range than the original, impure sample.
In our experiment, pure aspirin was obtained by filtering out impurities and excess reagent
through filter paper and Buchner funnel. After re-crystallization, a method of determining its
melting point will determine the purity of a solid compound. Impurities will always lower the
melting point of a sample. In our first sample, the range of the temperature obtained was 131°C-
143.5°C. The percent error was calculated to be 1.93%. In our second sample, the range of
temperature obtained was 129.4°C-139.1°C and the percent error calculated was 0.59%.
The aspirin collected from filtering out and re-crystallized was pure because the melting
points of the sample collected was very close to the expected melting point of a pure aspirin. The
method was successfully performed because of the percent error calculated.
` Sample calculation:
𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒−𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒
Percent error = / /x 100
𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒
135°C−137.6°C
= x100= 1.93%
135°C