DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SCIENCES

SCHOOL OF SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, AND HEALTH

REPORT ON EFFECTS OF BUFFER ON pH

STUDENT’S NAME: CHRISTELLE OUEDRAOGO

REGISTRATION NUMBER: 21-0607

BMS 202: CLINICAL CHEMISTRY AND HAEMATOLOGY

SUBMITTED TO
DR. OPIYO MONICA
EXPERIMENT FOUR: EFFECTS OF BUFFER ON PH
INTRODUCTION
A buffer is an aqueous solution that can withstand considerable changes in pH levels when a
modest amount of acid or alkali is added. Each buffer has a fixed 'capacity,' which is defined
as the amount of strong acid or base required to adjust the pH of one liter of solution by one
pH unit. In other words, buffer capacity is the quantity of acid or base that can be introduced
before the pH dramatically changes. A buffer range is the pH range in which a buffer
efficiently neutralizes the additional acid or base while keeping a virtually constant pH. The
capacity and range of a specific buffer guarantee that the additional little amount of acid/base
is neutralized, and the chemical reaction continues without producing an incorrect result for
the experiment/process. A buffer is just a combination of a weak acid and its conjugate base
or a weak base and its conjugate acid.

AIMS
 To analyse the effects of buffer on pH
 To understand how the pH of water is behaving on addition of HCL or
NaoH, in comparison to the buffer
 To underline the importance of buffers in biological system

MATERIALS REQUIRED
1. Test-tubes
2. Distilled water
3. Sodium acetate
4. Sodium Hydroxide
5. Acetic Acid
6. Sulphuric Acid
7. pH paper

PROCEDURE
1. Obtain 4 large test tubes. Label the test tubes A, B, C, and D.
2. Add 10-mL of distilled water to tubes A and C.
3. Add a 5-mL quantity of both 0.1 M H C2H3O2 (acetic acid) and 0.1 M NaC2H3O2
(sodium acetate) to tubes B and D. This mixture of acetic acid and sodium acetate is a
buffer solution. Stir to mix completely.
4. Using pH paper, determine the pH of the contents of each test tube (A-D). Use the
stirring rod to dab a small drop of the solution to be tested onto a piece of pH paper.
Then compare the color obtained to the pH scale on the instructor’s desk to determine
the pH value. Record these pH values to 0.1
5. Add 5 drops of 0.1 M (\ce{HCl}\) (hydrochloric acid) to test tubes A and B. Record
the pH using pH paper.
6. Add 5 drops of 0.1 M NaOH (sodium hydroxide) to test tubes C and D. Record the
pH using pH paper.

TUBES CONTENTS INITIAL pH CHEMICAL NEW pH pH

ADDED CHANGE
A Water HCL

B Buffer HCL
solution( Ac
etic acid and
Sodium
acetate)
C Water NaOH

D Buffer NaOH
solution( Ac
etic acid and
Sodium
acetate)

Your result section should have diagrams tables and pictures

5. In your discussion describe and discuss the
 What is a buffer and why are they necessary in biological systems?
 Why do you think we are adding HCL and NaoH solutions to the buffers and how and
why is the pH of the buffer behaving the way it is?
 In comparison to the buffer how is the pH of water behaving on addition of HCL or
NaoH?
 Why do you think we used water specifically in this experiment?
6. Write a report using the REPORT WRITING SHEET FORMAT as it will be used for
grading
7. Upload work as PDF document onto eLEARNING platform on due date

RESULTS

TUBES CONTENTS INITIAL pH CHEMICAL NEW pH pH

ADDED CHANGE
A Water 7.3 HCL 3.3 4.0

B Buffer 4.3 HCL 4.4 0.1

solution( Ac
etic acid and
Sodium
acetate)
C Water 7.0 NaOH 9.6 2.3

D Buffer 4.3 NaOH 4.3 0.0

solution( Ac
etic acid and
Sodium
acetate)

DISCUSSION
A biological buffer is an organic substance that has a neutralizing effect on hydrogen ions.
The purpose of a buffer in a biological system is to maintain intracellular and extracellular
pH within a very narrow range and resist changes in pH in the presence of internal and
external influences. In this way, a biological buffer helps maintain the body at the correct pH
so that biochemical processes continue to run optimally. Most buffers consist of a weak acid
and a weak base.
Buffers work by neutralizing any added acid (H+ ions) or base (OH- ions) to maintain the
moderate pH, making them a weaker acid or base. When HCl and NaOH are added to a
buffer solution it will simply neutralize the acid with the base and obtain a neutral salt, not a
buffer. Therefore, a buffer must consist of a mixture of a weak conjugate acid-base pair.
If we add a strong acid or strong base to water, the pH will change dramatically. For instance,
adding a strong acid such as HCl to water results in the reaction HCl + H2O → H3O+ + Cl-.
In other words, the proton (H+) from the acid binds to neutral water molecules to form H3O+
raising the concentration of H+. The resulting large concentration of (H+) makes the solution
more acidic and leads to a dramatic drop in the pH.
Adding water to an acidic system does two things: first, it dilutes the buffer, reducing its
buffering ability, and secondly, in this experiment, it introduces a comparable basic liquid (as
water usually is at pH 7 or higher). As a result, it is pretty evident that the pH of your solution
will rise slightly. A pH buffer does not change pH upon dilution because it contains
relatively large reservoirs of both acid and base, and these together keep the pH constant
under moderate changes of the solution, such as dilution and even small additions of other
acids or bases.
Adding water to a buffer or allowing water to evaporate from the buffer does not change the
pH of a buffer significantly.

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES
 Salis, A., & Monduzzi, M. (2016). Not only pH. Specific buffer effects in biological
systems. Current Opinion in Colloid & Interface Science, 23, 1-9.
