Studies on the kinetics of hydrolysis of methyl acetate

Aim:
Study of hydrolysis of ester in presence of hydrochloric acid.
Principle:
Hydrolysis of methyl aceatate ester in aqueous medium is too slow to be studied.
Therefore the reaction is catalyzed by using 0.5 N HCl. The concentration of acid remains
unchanged throughout the reaction. Hydrolysis of methyl acetate in presence of hydrochloric
acid is a first order reaction because water is present in great excess, which means that the rate of
the reaction is dependent on one molecule i.e. methyl acetate.
The kinetics of this reaction can be represented as
-dx/dt = k[CH3COOH][H2O]
The rate constant is given as k = (2.303/t) x log (a/a-x)
For graphical method the following formula can be used
Log (a-x) = (-kt /2.303) + log a
The concentration of acetic acid so formed by hydrolysis increases with time. The liberated
acetic acid is then titrated against standard NaOH. The titre reading is proportional to the
decomposition of the methyl acetate.
Chemicals and apparatus:
Glass bottles with stoppers, beakers, stopwatch, microburette, beral pipettes, methyl acetate
ester, 0.5N HCl, 0.1N NaOH, phenolphthalein indicator, ice.
Procedure:
1. Place 2 mL of methyl acetate ester and 20 mL of 0.5N HCl in two separate bottles in
thermostat to attain the required temperature.
2. Take 5 mL of ice cold water in each of 5 small titration containers and add a drop of
phenolphthalein to it.
3. After attaining the temperature mix 10 mL of acid and 1 mL of methyl acetate Start
the stop watch, shake the solution and immediately take out 1 mL of it and titrate
against 0.1 M NaOH. Let this reading be V0.
4. Similarly titrate the reaction mixture at 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 min. Let it be Vt.
5. For infinite reading pipette out 5 mL of the reaction mixture in a separate container
and keep it at high temperature for 45 min. After 45 min take out 1 mL of this
solution and titrate it against standard NaOH. Note this reading as V∞. Plot a graph
between log(a-x) against time, t.
Observation tables:
 S.No. Time in Volume a = (V∞ - x = (Vt – (a-x) k
minutes of 0.1N V0) V0) log(a-x)
NaOH
1. 0 V0 =
2. 10 Vt =
3. 20 Vt =
4. 30 Vt =
5. 40 Vt =
6. 50 Vt =
7. ∞ V∞ =

Calculations:
a = V ∞ - V0
Let x mole are consumed in time t
x = [Vt – V0]
Therefore
(a-x) = [V∞ - V0] – [Vt – V0] = [V∞ - Vt]
OR
K = (2.303/t) x {log[V∞ - V0]/ [V∞ - Vt]}
Graphical method:
The above formula can be employed to plot graphical values. The rate constants can be
determined by graph as follows
Slope = -k/2.303
K = -2.303x slope
Result:
The rate constant, K = _____________________moles per unit time by graphically
= ______________________moles per unit time by calculation.
Data:
Acid A
S.No. Time in Volume a = (V∞ - x = (Vt – (a-x) k
minutes of 0.1N V0) V0) log(a-x)
NaOH
1. 0 V0 = 2.3
2. 10 Vt = 2.5
3. 20 Vt =2.7
4. 30 Vt =2.9
5. 40 Vt =3.1
6. 50 Vt = 3.3
7. ∞ V∞ = 3.5

Acid B
S.No. Time in Volume a = (V∞ - x = (Vt – (a-x) k
minutes of 0.1N V0) V0) log(a-x)
NaOH
1. 0 V0 = 1.9
2. 10 Vt = 1.7
3. 20 Vt = 1.9
4. 30 Vt = 2.1
5. 40 Vt =2.3
6. 50 Vt =2.5
7. ∞ V∞ =2.7