University of South Carolina

CHEM 141 Fall 2021

Laboratory 8 – Intermolecular Forces (IMFs)

Table 1. Materials Provided in Addition to Lab Station Equipment
Reagents: C2H5OH (l) (ethanol) & C6H12 (l) (cyclohexane)
C8H10N4O2 (s) (caffeine) & KMnO4(s) (potassium permanganate)
Equipment: LabQuest 2 and thermistor

Objectives:
The student should be able to:
1. Depict molecules with Lewis Structures.
2. Determine dipole moments in molecules and classify molecules as polar or nonpolar.
3. Identify all of the intermolecular forces present in a substance and determine which is
strongest.
4. Predict relative physical properties of substances based on their intermolecular forces.

References:
Tro, N.; Chemistry: Structure and Properties, 5th ed., Pearson Education, Inc, 2020.

Introduction:
The purpose of this lab is to explore the effects of intermolecular forces on the physical
properties of substances, such as boiling point and solubility. In order to do this, you will
experimentally determine the boiling points of polar and nonpolar liquids. You will apply your
knowledge of Lewis structures, molecular shapes, bond polarity, dipole moments, and
intermolecular forces to explain what you anticipate and what you observe.

Solids that dissolve in certain liquids are referred to as being soluble in those liquids. Those
that do not dissolve are said to be insoluble. Similarly, two liquids that mix in any proportion
with each other are referred to as miscible. Those that separate are immiscible. The polarity of
the solvents and solutes will dictate these physical properties. Solvents and solutes that share
similar intermolecular forces will tend to mix while those that do not tend to remain separate.
This concept is frequently referred to as “like-dissolves-like”. This is why water is good for
cleaning sugary substances (water and sugar both exhibit hydrogen bonding) while gasoline
does a far better job solvating tar (as both predominantly exhibit dispersion forces).

Procedure:

Part I– Solubility and Miscibility

1. Eight 30-mL test tubes will be needed for this part of the laboratory, the test tubes
containing the hexane and methanol from Part I will be two of them (1 and 2
respectively). Use tape to label the other six test tubes 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.

Solubility

2. To a test tube rack add 8 test tubes. Label these 1-8 using a marker.

3. Add 5 mL of Ethanol to tubes 1, 4, and 7.

4. Add 5 mL of Cyclohexane to tubes 2, 5, and 8.

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University of South Carolina
CHEM 141 Fall 2021

5. Add 5 mL of DI water to tubes 3 and 6.

6. Add a few grains of KMnO4 to tubes 1, 2, and 3.

7. Add a small amount of caffeine powder to tubes 4, 5, and 6.

8. At the end of the lab, check these tubes and assess the solubility of each solid in the
differing solvents. Note any interesting color changes.

Miscibility

9. Add roughly a similar volume of DI water to tubes 7 and 8 as the amounts remaining after
the boiling point determination.

10. Record observations and note whether the solvents are either miscible or not miscible
with water.

Figure 1: Boiling point apparatus

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University of South Carolina
CHEM 141 Fall 2021

Part II – Boiling Point Determination

1. Set up your LabQuest2TM: Plug the thermistor into the LabQuest2 device and power it
on.

2. Heating the water bath. Add 140 mL of DI water to a 150 mL beaker on a hot plate.

3. Add a small stir bead to tube 1. Using Figure 1 below as a guide, construct the beaker
heating apparatus. The thermistor and the test tube should each be clamped with a
small prong clamp with rubber grips. Using a ring stand and a clamp, clap test tube 7
and insert into the beaker so that the lower portion of the test tube is submerged without
touching the sides of the beaker.

4. Connect a temperature probe to the Lab Quest 2 meter. Set the sample collection to 1
sample/ second and the time to 600 seconds.

5. Using another ring stand and clamp, clamp the temperature probe and insert the probe
into tube 7 without letting the probe come in contact with the sides of the glass, or the
stir bead.

6. Turn on the stirring to settings 6 or 7. It is important that the stirring is regular and
uninterrupted.

7. Turn on the heat to setting 5.

8. When the temperature on the meter reads 65 degrees Celsius, begin data collection.

9. Once the temperature readings have plateaued for at least 30 seconds, you may stop
data collection and record the boiling point.

10. Carefully remove the temperature probe and tube 7 from the beaker.

11. Place the tube back in the test tube rack.

12. Carefully dump the hot water in the sink. You may need to let the beaker cool on the
bench top briefly.

13. Repeat steps 1-12 using tube 8, starting data collection once the temperature reaches
75 degrees Celsius.

14. Turn off your hot plate to let it cool.

Clean Up:

1. DO NOT pour any solutions down the drain. The contents of tube 3 may be added to the
Aqueous Waste Beaker.

2. The contents of all other tubes need added to the Organic Waste Carboy.

3. Tubes may be disposed of in the broken glass bin.

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University of South Carolina
CHEM 141 Fall 2021

Report Requirements:

1. Draw the Lewis Structure for the permanganate ion. Based on its Lewis dot structure can
you explain its solubility in water, ethanol, and cyclohexane?
2. Look up the chemical structure of caffeine on the internet or in another reference and draw
it. What types of bonds are in caffeine? What can you deduce about the molecule’s
electronic structure based on its solubility?
3. Determine if the solvents and molecules used in this experiment have dipole moments and
classify them as polar or nonpolar.
4. In each experiment identify all of the intermolecular forces present in a substance. Based on
the solubility, miscibility, and boiling point experiments which intermolecular forces are the
strongest?
5. Provide a copy of the boiling point curves for ethanol and cyclohexane.