Experiment 4

Determining Molecule Weight by Freezing Point Depression Method

Objectives:
To be able to determine the freezing point of a substance from its cooling curve.
To study the effect of the foreign substance content on the freezing point of a
solvent.
To determine the molecular weight by using the freezing point depression method.
To compare the freezing point of the solution and the pure solvent.
Introduction:
Freezing Point Depression is the phenomenon that occurs when the freezing point
of a liquid or a solvent is lowered by adding another foreign substance to it. At the end of
the experiment, we will find that the solution has a lower freezing point than the pure
solvent. One of the best examples of this phenomenon is the freezing point of salt water
is lower than the freezing point of pure water.
The liquid components tend to get closer until they are packed to form a solid as a
result of the freezing process. A liquid that undergoes the freezing point depression has
dissolved particles that make them harder to pack themselves into the solid state.
Therefore, in order to overcome this situation, the liquid has no choice but to lower the
temperature. As the temperature is lowered, the liquid can pack themselves to be in the
solid state. Ultimately, freezing point depression depends on the colligative properties or
the concentration of the solute particles present in the solution. Colligative properties are
properties of solutions that depend upon the ratio of the number of solute particles to the
number of solvent molecules in a solution, and not on the type of chemical species
present.
Dissolution of a substance in a solvent suppresses the freezing point of the
solution formed. The freezing depression depends on the amount of the material
dissolved in the solvent according to the following equation.

Apparatus and Materials:
Naphthalene, Substance X, Test Tubes, Beaker (500cm3), thermometer, glass rod, water
bath
Procedures:
Part 1: Determination of the freezing point of the naphthalene.
1. A clean and dry test tube is weighed.
2. 5g of naphthalene is weighed and it is added into the test tube.
3. The test tube is weighed again.
4. The test tube is placed in a water bath to melt the naphthalene.
5. When all of the naphthalene is melted, the test tube is removed and is quickly
clamped on a retort stand.
6. The temperature of the naphthalene is recorded for every 15 seconds for 5
minutes and then, every 30 seconds until the temperature dropped to below than
60 Celsius.
7. The liquid naphthalene is stirred continuously so that no temperature gradient is
developed as we are recording the temperature.
Part 2: Determination of freezing point and molecular weight of a structure.
1. 0.5g of substance X is weighed as accurately as possible.
2. The substance X is then added to the naphthalene in a test tube which is used in
part 1.
3. The melting and cooling steps (step 4 to step 7) in part 1 are repeated.
4. 0.2g of substance X is weighed and it is added to the test tube containing both
naphthalene and substance X.
5. The melting and cooling steps (step 4 to step 7) in part 1 are repeated again.
6. The molecular weight of substance X is calculated as an average of two
determinations.
Discussion:
According the results obtained, the pure solution of naphthalene has a higher
freezing point compared to the mixture of substance X and naphthalene. The mixture has
a lower melting point than that in the pure naphthalene solution. This phenomenon occurs
because the concentration of the dissolved substance X increases steadily while the
solvent freezes. This is the why the freezing point of the mixture experienced a
continuous drop even after the constant temperature. The molar mass of substance X can
be simply calculated when the change of freezing point and the value of Kf are obtained.
By analyzing the graph, we can see a stair-case-like shape. This is happening
because during this period, the temperature does not drop until all the liquid has been
solidified. Furthermore, our group purposely heated the pure solvent and the mixture to
the temperature ranging from 85 celcius to 87 celsius. This is to ensure that we can see
the staircase graph significantly. The freezing point of the naphthalene is 80.26 celsius.
Therefore, we can see the temperature remains constant at 80 celsius in the naphthalene
solvent. Similarly, we can also observe the stair-case-like shape on the graph of the
solution of naphthalene and substance X. But however, the constant temperature is no
longer 80 celsius but, 79 celsius. This means that they followed the theory of freezing
point depression as there is a slight drop in the freezing point.
Some of the precautionary steps should be taken in order to obtain a more precise
reading and result. First of all, we need to prevent contamination. We need to use distilled
water to rinse every single apparatus that we used thoroughly. Secondly, during the
melting process, we need to stir the solution in order to maintain the thermal equilibrium.
Therefore, we use the thermometer to stir the mixture or solvent gently. Moreover, during
the freezing process, we also need to stir the mixture gently to maintain the thermal
equilibrium. An uneven distribution of heat to the solution will affect the results and the
reading. Besides stirring, we have to use the water bath to melt the naphthalene. Water
bath is a good choice to melt the solution as heat can be distributed evenly to every part
of the test tube. Thirdly, we shall not close the cover case of the water bath. Closing the
case will also lead to contamination. These are the precautionary steps, but as a good
scientist, we shall not harm the environment as a result of our wastage. Therefore, we can
only dispose the substances into the fume chamber after we melted them in the water bath.
Last but not least, acetone is used to remove the remaining solidified naphthalene and
substance x in the test tube.