CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

UNIVERSITY
CHE282
Physical Chemistry for Engineers 1
Laboratory
Experiment No. 1

Name: Course and Year:

Group: Date:

I. TITLE: DETERMINATION OF DENSITY OF A LIQUID

II. OBJECTIVE:
To be able to understand the principles of density measurements of liquids and to
determine the density of liquids using different density measuring apparatus,
namely, Pycnometer, Westphal balance, and Hydrometer.

III. THEORY:
The density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume.
Mathematically, density is expressed as
M
ρ= [1]
V
where r is the density, M is the mass, and V is the volume of the material. It is
frequently expressed in the SI unit of kilogram per cubic meter (kg/m 3) and in the
cgs unit of gram per cubic centimeter (g/cm 3). The cubic centimeter, cc, can be
alternately called a milliliter, and 1,000 kg/m 3 equals one g/cm3.

Due to volumetric thermal expansion of matter, the volume of an object

increases with increasing temperature. Thus, the density of an object depends
on its temperature, with higher temperature resulting in lower density. Exception
is water in temperature range 0-4 °C, for which the density increases with
increasing temperature (see table 1).

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 Table 1. The density of water in kilograms per cubic meter (SI unit) at
various temperatures in degrees Celsiusǂ.

Temp Density
(°C) (g/cm3)
100 0.95838
80 0.97183
60 0.98324
40 0.99225
30 0.99568
25 0.99708
20 0.99823
10 0.99973
4 1.00000
0 0.99987
ǂ
R.H. Perry and C.H. Chilton, Chemical Engineers’ Handbook, 5 th ed. New York,
McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1973.

Although the density of a gaseous substance is dependent on pressure,

its effect on the density of a liquid and/or solid matter is nonetheless negligible.

There are several experimental methods that can be used for density
determination of liquids. In this experiment the densities of liquids are measured
using:

(1) Pycnometer,
(2) Westphal’s balance, and
(3) Hydrometer.

PYCNOMETER

Pycnometer or specific gravity bottle is a device used to determine the

density of a liquid. The pycnometer ( see figure 1) is a glass flask with a close-
fitting ground glass stopper with a capillary hole through it. This fine hole
releases a spare liquid after closing a top-filled pycnometer and allows for
obtaining a given volume of measured and/or working liquid with a high
accuracy. This device enables a liquid's density to be measured accurately by
reference to an appropriate working fluid, such as water or mercury, using an
analytical balance

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 Figure 1. Pycnometer

When the pycnometer is filled with a reference fluid such as water, the
volume of the pycnometer, V, can be calculated according to equation [1]:

, [2]

where MH2O is the mass of water and ρH2O is the density of water at a
given temperature. The mass of water in the pycnometer is obtained from the
net weight of the filled and empty pycnometer.

Emptying the pycnometer and replacing the reference liquid with a

sample with unknown density, the same volume of the pycnometer is measured
following the alternated equation:

, [3]

where MS and ρS are mass and density of the liquid sample with unknown
density, respectively.

Combining equations [2] and [3]

[4]

yields a relation that determines the density of the liquid.

[5]

Note that the result does not depend on the calibration of the balance.
The only requirement on it is that it reads linearly with the weight measurements.
Nor does specific gravity (ρS/ρH2O) depend on the actual volume of the
pycnometer.

WESTPHAL’S BALANCE

Westphal's (or Mohr's) Balance is used to measure the specific gravity (or
density) of liquids. Figure 2 shows a typical Westphal’s balance. This method
makes use of the buoyancy principles of an object immersed in a liquid as a
measure of relative density.

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 D

B
E

F
A

Figure 2. Westphal’s Balance

The arm is first balanced with the plummet totally immersed in water at
25 C. The plummet has a built-in thermometer and has a known volume (equal
o

to about 5 g of water at 25 oC) and mass. A 5 g mass is placed on the hook

holding the plummet, and the screw on the foot is adjusted until the index pointer
on the end of the beam lines up with the point on the frame. The plummet is then
completely immersed in the unknown liquid, and the system is rebalanced, using
a series of riders on the nine equally paced notches on the beam, thus giving the
value of the added mass for each decimal place. Four different weights having
relative values of 1.0, 0.1, 0.01 and 0.001 are supplied. This gives the buoyant
force of the liquid relative to water, and hence the specific gravity, which may be
obtained to four decimal places.

HYDROMETER

A hydrometer is an instrument used to measure the specific gravity (or

relative density) of liquids. As shown in figure 3, a hydrometer is usually made of
glass and consists of a cylindrical stem and a bulb weighted with mercury or lead
shot to make it float upright.

The liquid to be tested is poured into a cylinder, and the hydrometer is

gently lowered into the liquid until it floats freely. The point at which the surface
of the liquid touches the stem of the hydrometer is noted. Hydrometers usually
contain a scale inside the stem, so that the specific gravity can be read directly.
A variety of scales exist, and are used depending on the context.

Hydrometers may be calibrated for different uses, such as a lactometer

for measuring the density (creaminess) of milk, a saccharometer for measuring

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 the density of sugar in a liquid, or an alcoholometer for measuring higher levels
of alcohol in spirits.

Figure 3. Hydrometer

IV. APPARATUS:

Westphal’s balance
Pycnometer
Hydrometer (Specific Gravity ≥ 1)
Victormeyer Flask
Digital Balance
3 x 250 ml Erlenmeyer Flask
2 x 500 ml Erlenmeyer Flask
Water bath

V. MATERIALS:
4 L distilled water*
1 kg refined sucrose or refined sugar*
500 g crushed ice*

* To be provided by students

VI. PROCEDURE:

For the following experiments, prepare 200 ml of distilled water and 4

sucrose solutions by dissolving 25 g, 50 g, 75 g. and 100 g of sucrose in 200 ml
of distilled water in a flask. Immerse the solutions in a water bath (cooled by
intermittent addition of crushed ice) to keep the temperature of the liquid at 25 oC.
Allow the temperature of the solution to stabilize.

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A. PYCNOMETER
1) Clean and dry a pycnometer. Make sure that no contaminants are
present.
2) Weigh the empty pycnometer.
3) Fill the pycnometer with distilled water at the standard temperature of
25°C and record its weight.
Note: Allow the excess liquid to entrain out the capillary tube when
placing the glass stopper of the pycnometer that is equipped with a
standard laboratory thermometer. Clean and dry the filled pycnometer
before weighing.
4) Subtract the weight of the empty pycnometer to get the weight of the
liquid.
5) Repeat the above procedure for the 4 prepared sugar solution
samples.
6) Calculate the specific gravity and density of the liquids.

B. WESTPHAL BALANCE

Calibration of the Westphal Balance

1) Assemble the balance as shown in figure 2 with the plummet, A,
suspended in the air and without any of the riders on the beam or
hook. Adjust the balance, by means of the threaded counterpoise, B,
and the leveling screw, C, until the rest point of the indicator, attached
to the balance arm, coincides with the index pointer, D.
2) Fill the glass cylinder, E, about 2/3 full with the pre-cooled distilled
water at the standard temperature of 25°C.
3) A 5 g mass is placed on the hook holding the plummet, and the
leveling screw, C, in the foot of the balance is adjusted until the index
pointer, D, on the end of the beam lines up with the point on the frame.
Note: The plummet is entirely immersed and is not grazing the wall of
the cylinder of the balance.
4) If the rest point of the indicator does not coincide with the index
pointer, D, adjust the height of the plummet by using the screw, F, until
the balance attains equilibrium. When the balance has been adjusted
in this way, the weight of the large rider is equal to the weight of the
water (at the standard temperature) displaced by the plummet. Water
is now the standard or reference liquid.

Measuring the Density of any Liquid

1) After the Westphal’s balance is calibrated, empty the glass cylinder, E.

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 2) After drying the plummet and cylinder or rinsing ķ with the new liquid
(solution 1), fill the glass cylinder with the liquid whose density is to be
determined. The volume of liquid sample should be the same as the
one used in the calibration.
3) Record the temperature reading of the solution.
4) Place the graded riders in the notched beam so that the indicator
points of the balance coincide. The reading is the specific gravity of
the liquid at standard condition.
5) Repeat the procedurs using the remaining prepared sugar solution.
6) Tabulate the results in the data sheets.

Sample Calculation
The weights of the various sized riders differ by a factor of 10. In addition
to the (large) unit weight, the balance must be equipped with weights of 0.1000,
0.0100, and 0.0010. It is convenient to have duplicates of these weights. The
notches divide the beam in 10 equal parts, so that a weight placed on a notch
nearest to the center has an effect which is only one-tenth of that which it would
have were it hung on the hook, F, at the end of the beam. To obtain the specific
gravity of the liquid, add up the weights, taking into account their positions on the
beam. For example if the 1.000 and 0.0010 weights were on the ninth notch and
the 0.1000 and 0.0100 weights were on the first and seventh notches,
respectively, the specific gravity, S, of the liquid relative to water at the standard
temperature (25°C), is

S = 9/10 * 1.000 + 1/10 * 0.1000 + 7/10 * 0.0100 + 9/10 * 0.0010

= 0.9179

To convert the specific gravity to density, multiply it by the density of

water at standard temperature. The density of water at 25°C is 0.997 g/ml.

C. HYDROMETER
1) Place about 800 mL of distilled water in a 1L graduated cylinder at the
standard temperature of 25°C.
2) Let the liquid stabilize its temperature and remove the air bubbles
present on the walls of the flask/cylinder.
3) Place the hydrometer inside the 1L graduated cylinder and let it sink
into the water to a level of two smallest scale divisions below which it
will float, then release it.
Note: if the hydrometer is out of range (i.e. it either sinks fully or floats
below calibration line, ask the laboratory assistant to replace it with an
appropriate hydrometer with sp.gravity ≥ 1).
4) Read the hydrometer after a few minutes of stabilization.
5) For the hydrometer experiment of the sugar solutions, prepare 3
additional preparations for each sugar solution. Care must be taken
into account during the preparation of the additional sugar solutions to
warrant the consistent concentrations of sugar solutions.

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 6) Repeat the above procedures (1-4) using the 4 prepared sugar
solution samples.
7) Tabulate the results.

VII. TABULATED DATA AND RESULTS:

A. Pycnometer

Liquid Readings Specific Density Temperature

Sample Gravity
[unit] [g/ml] [oC]

Water

Solution 1

Solution 2

Solution 3

Solution 4

B. Westphal Balance:

Liquid Readings Specific Density Temperature

Sample Gravity
[unit] [g/ml] [oC]

Water

Solution 1

Solution 2

Solution 3

Solution 4

C. Hydrometer:

Liquid Readings Specific Density Temperature

Sample Gravity
[unit] [g/ml] [oC]

Water

Solution 1

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 Solution 2

Solution 3

Solution 4

VIII. COMPUTATIONS:

IX. GUIDE QUESTIONS FOR ANALYSIS:

1. What principle or physical law is used in the determination of specific

gravity/density of a liquid using the pycnometer, Westphal’s balance, and
hydrometer? Give a short description and explanation of the principle.

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2. Which apparatus (i.e. pycnometer, Westphal’s balance, and hydrometer) gives a
more accurate result in the measurement of the density of liquids?

3. Refer to guide question 2 and give an explanation to your observation(s).

4. Can you use the pycnometer, Westphal’s balance, and hydrometer apparatus to
determine the densities of solids and gases? Explain your answer.

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X. CONCLUSIONS:

XI. RECOMMENDATIONS:

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