Determining x in CuSO4●xH2O

Background Information
Copper (II) sulfate is abundant in different hydrated forms. In this case, the number of
molecules that belong to copper (II) sulfate can vary from compound to compound as they are
formed under different temperatures or humidities. In the experiment, the process of
dehydration will be used, as the water will leave the compound, making the remaining copper
(II) sulfate measurable, thus making the mass of water deducible. The process of dehydration
involves the usage of a burner such as an alcohol burner, evaporating the water by heating the
compound, making use of the massive boiling point difference between copper (II) sulfate and
water. While maintaining the process of dehydration, it is crucial to keep the environment
controlled as water vapour in the air may be absorbed by copper (II) sulfate, making our results
unreliable. However, as a place for water vapour to escape is required, it is crucial to leave a
small amount of lid open. After gaining data through experiments, it is now possible to analyze
it by using different methods in stoichiometry, a crucial data analysis field in chemistry.
To check, if the process is done, looking at the compound is the most concrete way, as it
turns slowly from light blue to white as it dehydrates. Adding after the dehydration process will
turn it back to blue, proving that water has left the compound. Throughout the process, every
crucible and lid were measured before the experiment, as well as after the experiment after the
cooling process. The cooling process is done with the help of a desiccator. While making
calculations, it is crucial to assume that no reaction happened. It is also substantial to
remember that our process is a physical process involving evaporation rather than a chemical
process where bonds are broken.

Safety Precautions
1)Hydrated copper (II) sulfate, CuSO4.xH2 O(s), (HARMFUL, DANGEROUS FOR ENVIRONMENT).
Usage of latex gloves, lab coats, and goggles is essential to prevent any misfortunate outcomes.
2)Usage of burner of any kind is dangerous, and supervision by a professional is strongly
advised. While working with them usage of tongs is a must.
3)

Variables
Controlled variable: amount of hydrated salt
Dependent variable: the mass of the evaporated compound
Independent variables: air, burning of the crucible and the lid

Apparatus and materials

crucible with lid
crucible tongs
spatula
balance
alcohol burner
matches
lab stand with ring
clay triangle
hydrated salt CuSO4●xH2O
desiccator

Methodology
A clean and dry crucible and lid were weighed using an electronic balance. After
recording the mass, the balance was tared and the desired amount of copper (II) sulfate (in our
case 3.4g) was added to the crucible with the help of a spatula. The crucible closed with the lid,
was placed on the ring with a clay triangle by the help of crucible tongs. The crucible was placed
at a height where it could receive enough heat, but the crucible itself would burn much. After
the system was set up, it was heated with an alcohol burner which was activated using matches
until copper (II) sulfate changed its colour to white. During the process, it is crucial to leave the
lid open a little amount as it will allow water vapour to escape the crucible. Also, cleaning the
lid with the help of tissue paper may be useful to prevent any water molecules from escaping
back to the compound. The crucible and the lid (including the copper (II) sulfate) were left in a
desiccator to cool down before any measurements were made. After the cooling process, the
mass measurement of the crucible, lid and the substance was made. The experiment was done
twice to make the results more accurate.

Raw Data
Trial No. mass of crucible + mass of crucible + lid mass of crucible + lid
lid(±0.1)/g + copper (II) sulfate + copper(II) sulfate
before after heating (±0.1)/g
heating(±0.1)/g
1 51.5 54.9 53.8
2 50.6 54 52.8

Data Analysis
Trial No. mass of water (±0.1)/g moles of water
1 1.1 0.0611
2 1.2 0.0666

Where:
Mass of water = (mass of crucible + mass of lid + mass of copper (II) sulfate before heating) –
(mass of crucible + mass of lid + mass of copper (II) sulfate after heating)
 m
Moles of water = where m is mass, and M is molar mass.
M

Trial No. mass of anhydrous copper (II) moles of anhydrous copper

sulfate (±0.1)/g (II) sulfate
1 2.3 0.0144
2 2.2 0.0137

Where:
Mass of anhydrous copper (II) sulfate = (mass of crucible + copper (II) sulfate after heating) –
mass of crucible

Trial No. moles of water in one mole of hydrated

copper (II) sulfate
1 4.243
2 4.861

Where:
Moles of water in one mole of hydrated copper (II) sulfate =
moles of water
moles ofanhydrous copper ( II ) sulfate

calculation answer
average moles of water 4.243+ 4.861 4.552
2
percentage error
| 4.552−5
5 | ∗100 %
8.96%

Evaluation
Strengths:
1. The measurements were taken when the system was cool.

Weaknesses:
1. The amount of the experiments carried out was too low. For this reason, the amount of
random errors were too much.
2. Copper (II) sulfate wasnt fully in dust form there were some uncrushed pieces in the heating
process.
3. Due to several reactions happening, crucible changed colors which mean that they
underwent mass changes. Indicating that mass of the water was not that accurate.
4. Presicion of electronic balance was too low, precision can be increased.
5. To calculate the amount of moles, there were many assumptions made, which made our
process less credible.

Conclusion
It is possible to deduce that the result somehow deviates from the real value of 5. This
inaccuracy is mostly caused due to random errors because there were no systematic errors, and
it was possible to remove errors by simply repeating the steps.

References

Hoang, Q.A. ... EXPERIMENT 4: DEGREE OF HYDRATION OF COPPER (II) SULFATE

https://www.academia.edu/36352054/Identifying_the_Degree_of_Hydration_for_CuSO4_xH2O