Experiment No.
2
Common Laboratory Techniques
I. Introduction
Basic laboratory techniques in chemistry have an
essential place in the training of a chemist. They provide
a good background for experimental skills and for
subsequent independent research. For this experiment,
it will covers Weighing, Measuring of Volume of liquids,
and Different methods in separating mixtures for
demonstrations of common laboratory techniques.
First is Weighing, it is one of the laboratory techniques
that are used to measure the mass and the weight of
the samples or the objects that are going to be
experimented. Weighing of a samples is an important
part of analytical determinations. The accuracy and
precision of the results, depends on the type of
weighing instrument on how it is reliable in a weighing
system. One of the examples of weighing instruments
are analytical balance and triple beam balance.
Figure No. 1
Triple Beam Balance
The Triple Beam Balance is a typical mechanical balance.
It has a beam which is supported by a fulcrum. On one
Figure No. 4 side is a pan on which the
Meniscus Reading object is placed. On the other
side, the beam is split into
three parallel beams, the
middle beam reads only up to
500 grams, the back beam reads only up to 100 grams,
and the front beam reads only up to 10 grams.
For this experiment, the students will be going to use
the triple beam balance to measure the weight/mass of
one- peso coin, and five pieces of one-peso coin.
Second is the measuring of liquids, there are a lot of
measuring glass wares used to measure substances.
One of the example of these instrument is the pipette
and the graduated cylinder. A pipette is a small tube
that can transfer a measureable amount of liquids from
one container to another. Pipettes, or pipets, are
common pieces of laboratory equipment. While
graduated cylinders is used to measure the volume of a
liquid, it features a narrow cylindrical shape with
markings along the cylinder that represent the amount
of liquid being measured. Graduated cylinders are
considered more accurate and precise for measurement
purposes than flasks and beakers but should not be
used for volumetric
analysis. In some cases,
a portion of the liquid
measured by a
graduated cylinder
always clings to the
glassware after pouring,
meaning that the true
volume dispensed is
never equivalent to the
markings on the cylinder.
In reading the measurements of the Graduated
Cylinder, it depends on the color of the liquid. If the
liquid is transparent, the reading of the measurement
will be the bottom of the meniscus, the curvature that
can be found in the graduated cylinder. And if the liquid
is opaque or colored liquids, the reading of the
measurement will be the upper meniscus.
For this experiment, the pipette will transfer 5 mL of
liquids to the 25mL graduated cylinder, and observe if
there will be a difference in the amount of
measurement. After that, 100mL graduated cylinder will
transfer 300 mL of water to the bottle of 300mL coke, lamp to apply heat to the filtrated mixture, and observe
and observe if there will be a changes to the amount of the experiment.
water.
In general, this experiment teaches the students to the
Lastly, the laboratory techniques that deals with the common laboratory techniques that they can be
separation of mixtures. These techniques includes the encounter to the future experiment. With this, the
filtration, decantation, and evaporation. students will be aware and be knowledgeable to the
methods and processes they can possibly apply in the
For Filtration, it is used to future.
separate a solid from a liquid in
which it is suspended. Filtration II. Objectives
is also used to separate a A. The purpose of this experiment is to learn about
substance from a mixture the common laboratory experiments including,
because one is insoluble in the Weighing, Measuring of Liquids, and Methods
solvent and the other is soluble. of Separating Mixtures.
The separation is due to Figure No. 5 B. For weighing experiment, it aims to understand
particle size. Filtration the triple beam balance, on how to measure the
weight of an object using it.
Decantation allows the C. The hypothesis for the weighing experiment
mixture of solid and liquid are:
or two immiscible liquids to Ho= The weight of the five pieces of one-peso
settle and separate by coins is equal to the multiplied by five of the
gravity. This process can be weight of one-peso coin.
slow and tedious without H1= The weight of the five pieces of one-peso
the aid of a centrifuge. coins is not equal to the multiplied by five of the
Once the mixture weight of one-peso coin .
Figure No. 6 components have separated, D. For measuring of liquid experiment, it aims to
Decantation the lighter liquid is poured understand on how to read a measurements in
off, leaving the heavier liquid or solid behind. Typically, a graduated cylinder, and the effect of number
a small amount of the lighter liquid is left behind. of times it was transfer to the actual
measurement.

And for Evaporation, it is

great in separating a mixture E. The hypothesis for measuring of liquid
or a solution of a soluble experiment are:
solid and a solvent. The Ho= Through visual observation, the
process involves heating the measurement of 5 mL water of pipette that
solution until the solvent transfer to the 25 mL Graduated cylinder is the
turns into gas or until it same.
evaporates leaving behind the solid residue. Figure No. 7 H1= Through visual
Evaporation observation, the
For this experiment, the students will fill 3 mL of measurement of 5 mL
Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) into two separate test tubes, water of pipette that transfer to the 25 mL
and after that, add 3 mL of Sodium Carbonate (Na 2Cl3) Graduated cylinder is not the same.
to the test tube that has Calcium Chloride (CaCl 2). And Ho= Through visual observation, after three
after that, perform filtration to one of the test tube, and times of transferring of 100 mL water using 100
for the left test tube, perform decantation. After that, mL graduated cylinder to the 300 mL coke
observe the test tubes. And for evaporation, use alcohol bottle, the actual measurement of 300 mL coke
bottle is the same to the transferred liquids.
 H1= Through visual observation, after three
times of transferring of 100 mL water using 100
mL graduated cylinder to the 300 mL coke
bottle, the actual measurement of 300 mL coke
bottle is not the same to the transferred liquids.
Ho= In transferring, the liquids are transferred
100%.
H1= In transferring, the liquids are not
transferred 100%.
F. For separating mixture laboratory techniques, it
aims to understand the differences of each
methods, Filtration, Decantation, and
Evaporation.
G. The hypothesis for Filtration and Decantation
experiments are:
Ho= Filtration method is clearer than
Decantation.
H1= Decantation method is clearer than
Filtration.
H. The Hypothesis for Evaporation experiments
are:
Ho= In Evaporating the filtrated substance, there
are still particles left in the evaporating dish.
H1= In Evaporating the filtrated substance, there
are no particles left in the evaporating dish.
III. Materials
For this experiment, the materials that will be going to
use are Triple Beam Balance, Five pieces of one-peso
coin, beaker, pipette, aspirator, 25 mL graduated
cylinder, water, 100 mL graduated Cylinder, 300 mL
Bottle of coke, stirring rod, Calcium Chloride (CaCl 2).
Sodium Carbonate (Na2CO3), Four pieces of test tubes,
test tube holder, filter paper, glass funnel, Wire gauze,
alcohol lamp, a match, ring stand, and evaporating dish.
In this experiment, wearing a laboratory gown, gloves,
and goggles are necessary inside the laboratory.
IV. Procedure
The experiment started in wearing the Personal
Protective Equipment in entering the laboratory. Next is
the preparation of the materials that will be going to
use for all sets of experiments, including weighing,
measuring of liquids, and separation of mixtures.
For weighing experiment, ready and put on the
condition the triple beam balance by adjusting the
knob, to make sure that it is directly aligned to the
measured line. After that, place a one-peso coin to the
center of the pan of the triple beam, and place the
beams correctly to balance and record the grams by
adding the designated measurements of the beams.
After that, add four pieces of one-peso coins to the
center of the pan and record its gram. And after that,
analyze the data gathered.
For measuring Liquid, place some water to the beaker
minimum of 5 mL water, and get a 5 mL of it using a
pipette and an aspirator and transfer the water to the
25 mL of a graduated cylinder. Record and observe the
data gathered. After that, prepare another set of water
at least 300 mL, and transfer 300 mL of water to the 300
mL coke bottle using a 100 mL graduated cylinder. After
transferring, observe the data gathered, and compare it
to the unopened 300 mL coke bottle to identify the
difference.
For separating the mixtures, there will be two parts of
experiments, first part is the filtration and decantation,
and the second part is the evaporation of the filtrated
mixture of test tube A. First, measure 3 mL of calcium
chloride solution and fill it to the two test tubes using a
25 mL graduated cylinder. After that, measure 3 mL of
sodium carbonate and place it to the test tubes that has
calcium carbonate using a pipette and an aspirator.
Label the test tubes with A and B, Label A for Filtration
and B for Decantation. For test tube A, fold a filter
paper and place it to the glass funnel. Put the glass
funnel to the empty test tube placed in the test tube
holder, and pour the test tube A to the funnel. And after
some time, observe the differences. For test tube B,
place it to the test tube holder and wait for some time
until the particles settles at the bottom of the test tube.
After that, pour slowly the test tube B to the last empty
test tube to avoid unwanted particles transfer to the
empty test tube. After that, observe the data gathered.
After the observation, compare the product of test tube
A to the product of test B.
For second part of the experiment, the product of test
tube A will be pour to the evaporating dish. After
preparing the materials that will be going to use for
heating, the alcohol lamp will be light using a match,
and place the evaporating dish to the ring stand, and
wait until the mixture in the evaporating dish is
completely evaporated. After that, observe and analyze
the possible residue of the experiment.
After these experiments, keep and dispose of the 300 mL of a
material that are used respectively. And after that, clean coke bottle
the working area. 3 Times

V. Data
Table No.1 Weighing of a One-Peso Coin
Sample/ Based on the Table no. 2, it shows on how the transfer
Triple Beam Balance Reading
Samples of liquid affects the actual measurement of the liquid.
The first measurement is 5 mL of a pipette that transfer
One
to a 25 mL of a graduated cylinder. With visual
piece of
one-peso observation, the graduated cylinder measures 5 mL of
coin water. And for the second experiment, it uses 300 mL of
5.3 grams coke battle that serves as the basis for actual
Five measurement. And for the transferred measurement, it
pieces of is almost 300 mL of a 300 mL coke bottle.
one-peso
coin Table No. 3 Before and After of the Filtration and
27.5 grams Decantation Process
Methods of Before the After the
The Table above shows the weight of one piece of a Separation Process of Process of
one-peso coin, and five pieces of a one-peso coin. For of Mixture Separation Separation
one piece of a peso coin, it shows that it weights around
5.3 grams. And for five pieces of one peso coin, it
weights around 27.5 grams.
Filtration
(Test Tube A)

Decantation
(Test Tube B)

The Table above presents Filtration and Decantation

processes. Both of the process started with the same
Table No.2 Measuring and Transferring of Liquids amount of mixture. And after the separation, filtration
Number of The Measurement of has transparent appearance, while decantation has a
Actual
Times it the Transferred cloudy appearance.
Measurement
Transfer Liquid

5 mL of a
1 time
pipette
Table No.4 Before and After the Evaporation of
Filtrated Mixture
Before Heating
the
evaporating
dish with the
product of test
tube A.
After Heating
the
evaporating
dish with the
product of test
tube A.
Table No. 4 shows the before and after the evaporating
dish heated by the alcohol lamp. Before, the
evaporating dish’s content is a filtrated mixture with
almost transparent liquid. And after the evaporating
dish heated, the liquid is evaporated and there are
burnt residue left in the evaporating dish.
VI. Discussion of Result
For the weighing experiment, triple beam balance is the
instrument use to obtain the weight of a one piece of a
one-peso coin and five pieces of a one-peso coin.
Throughout the experiment, the data for a one piece of
a one-peso coin is 5.3 grams, and the data for five
pieces of a one-peso coin is 27.5 grams. From this
experiment, the expected grams for the five pieces of a
one-peso coin, is the multiplied by five of the result of
one piece of a one-peso coin which is 26.5 grams. And
from this, there are possible error from measuring its
weight. First, there is a possibility that the gram of the
coin is not equal to each other, that causes for
inequalities to the data. And second is the accuracy and
the precision of the weighing instrument, because it can
affect the measurement of the sample.
For measuring and transferring the volume of the liquid,
the first set up is the 5 mL of pipette transfer to the 25
mL of graduated cylinder. And beyond reading the
transferred measurement, it is around 5 mL of the 25
mL of graduated cylinder. And for the second set up, the
transferred measurement of the 300 mL coke bottle is
almost the same to the actual measurement of an
unopened 300 mL coke bottle. Through visual
observation, both of the transferred measurement is
almost the same to the actual measurement. But, it is
not 100% transferred since some of the particles of the
liquid are still on the previous glassware used to
transfer the liquid.
For separation of mixture experiment, it includes
filtration, decantation, and evaporation. For filtration
and decantation experiment, the table no. 3 shows that
filtration is clearer than decantation in separating
mixtures. Filtration used filter paper to separate the
mixture by the size of the particles. And decantation
used the gravity to settle the particles at the bottom of
the test tube. And from this, it will pour slowly to
prevent unwanted particles to be transfer. From the
experiment, decantation product is not clear like the
filtration product, because it is not guaranteed that
pouring slowly will prevent unwanted particles to be
separated from the supernatant. While Filtration is
much clearer, since there is a barrier that limits the
particle’s size.
Another way of separating of mixture is evaporation,
from the experiment, it uses the filtrated substance to
evaporate, and observe the residue in the evaporating
dish. By observing the data from the table no. 4, it has
burnt crystal left in the evaporating dish, and the liquids
are totally evaporated. These burnt crystal left, since
these are the particles that are not evaporated.
VII. Conclusion
For this experiment entitled common laboratory
techniques, it showcase skills that can be used to the
future experiment. This covers Weighing, Measuring
and Transferring the Volume of Liquids, and different
Methods in Separating Mixtures.
For weighing experiment, the data gathered can be
affected by the capability of the weighing scale to
measure the mass of the object. Also, the data varies to
each sample will be placed to the weighing scale. For
this experiment, the alternative hypothesis is accepted,
and the null hypothesis is rejected stating that the
weight of the five pieces of one-peso coins is not equal
to the multiplied by five of the weight of one-peso coin.
One of the possible reason that affects the unequal data
is the possibility of unequal mass of each one peso coin.
And also there is a possibility that the weighing scale
used, Triple Beam balance, contributes to the unequal
measurement, through its capability to measure
accurate and precise measurement.
For measuring and transferring volume of liquid, it uses
glassware such as pipette and graduated cylinders. The
smaller the mouth of the glassware, the greater and
better its accuracy in measuring. The first experiment is
transferring of 5 mL of pipette to the 25 mL graduated
cylinder. And the hypothesis for this experiment, the
null hypothesis is accepted, and the alternative
hypothesis is rejected, stating that through visual
observation, the measurement of 5 mL water of pipette
that transfer to the 25 mL Graduated cylinder is the
same. And for the second experiment, it is a transfer of
300 mL of water using 100 mL of graduated cylinder to
the unopened 300 mL coke bottle. And for this
experiment, the null hypothesis is accepted and the
alternative hypothesis is rejected stating that through
visual observation, after three times of transferring of
100 mL water using 100 mL graduated cylinder to the
300 mL coke bottle, the actual measurement of 300 mL
coke bottle is the same to the transferred liquids. Both
of the experiment’s transferred measurement is almost
the same to the actual measurement through visual
observation, but in reality it is not 100% transferred
since some microscopic particles are left to the previous
glassware used in transferring the liquid. With this, the
alternative hypothesis is accepted, and the null
hypothesis is rejected stating that in transferring, the
liquids are not transferred 100%.
For Separating of mixture experiment, there are three
separation of mixture techniques used for this
experiment, and these are the filtration, decantation,
and evaporation. For filtration and decantation
experiment, Filtration used filter paper that serves as
the barrier that mostly blocks or limit the particle size
that enters to the test tube. And for decantation, it uses
gravity to settle the particles at the bottom of the test
tube and after that, it slowly pours the liquid. By
concluding the result, filtration is clearer than
decantation since, there are some unwanted particles
that transfer to the test tube that makes the
decantation looks cloudy. Because in pouring the
supernatant, it is not guaranteed that some particle of
the precipitate will be separated completely. With this,
the null hypothesis is accepted, and the alternative
hypothesis is rejected stating that Filtration method is
clearer than Decantation.
Lastly, the use of evaporation as another method of
separation. For this experiment, the filtrated substance
was used to evaporate the liquid and to observe the
possible residue in the evaporating dish. for this
experiment, the null hypothesis is accepted and the
alternative hypothesis is rejected stating that In
Evaporating the filtrated substance, there are still
particles left in the evaporating dish. Despite in filtering
the liquid, there are still particles left to the filtered
substance.
VIII. Reference
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