JC Collado

Jenevieve Yao
Use of Mole Ratios of Electrolytics Products of Water for the Analysis of
Household Vinegar
This experiment is an integration of concepts in titration with
electrolysis and applications of the gas laws. The objective is to determine
the percentage of acetic acid in household vinegar. An electrolysis titration
cell, which is directly powered by a 9 V battery will be constructed. The cell
will not involve any electronic circuit or ammeter.
Only few electrolysis techniques that involve quantitative assessment
of the gases produced at the respective electrodes exist. One example is
silver-based coulometry, which played an important role in the early
development of electrolytic chemical analysis. This method used the mass of
silver metal deposited on the electrode in order to determine the quantities
of the electrolytic products, and involved expensive metal electrodes. On the
other hand, coulometric titration, which is a relatively new method used in
quantitative assessment, utilizes a constant current source and an ammeter.
Both methods, due to their stringent and costly requirements, are clearly
impractical for undergraduate experimentation.
The method suggested in this experiment makes use of the perfect gas
equation and relates it with quantitative analysis. Using equation 1 below,
the amount of oxygen gas produced at the anode can be monitored. In
addition, Faradays Law will be of importance from its indication that in an
electrolysis process, the same quantity of electrical charge is responsible for
producing the anode and cathode compartment products. Combining
equation 1 with equation 2 below shows the mole ratio of the amount of
oxygen and hydroxide produced.
(1)
(2)
Having determined the amount of the gases that had been produced,
equation 3 can be used to determine the percentage of acetic acid present in
household vinegar.
(3)

Schematic diagram of electrolysis cell:

a) PTFE beakers as cell compartments, b) 0.2
M KNO3 as electrolyte, c) platinum cathode,
d) hydrogen gas bubbles produced at
cathode, e) agar-KNO3 salt bridge, f) parafilm
seal covering the tip, g) graduated pipet, h)
oxygen gas bubbles produced at anode, i)
platinum wire anode, j) 9 V battery, k)
magnetic stirrer bar, l) switch

Procedure
After the elextrolysis cell and the solutions mentioned in the schematic
diagram above have been prepared, a known volume of vinegar is placed in
the cathode compartment. The contents of the compartment are
magnetically stirred. A direct current is passed from the 9 V battery.
Phenolphthalein is used as a visual indicator to determine the end point of
the titration. The inverted gas pipet is used to measure the volume of oxygen
gas produces at the anode.
Results
A plot of the volume of oxygen produced at the anode vs. the volume
of vinegar added to the cathode compartment is constructed. The slope of
the plot signifies the volume of oxygen gas produced per unit volume of
vinegar. The amount of oxygen and hydroxide produced in the cathode can
then be calculated. From the amount of hydroxide, the percentage of acetic
acid can be determined. The pH of the electrolyte containing a known
volume of vinegar may also be monitored as a function of the volume of
oxygen gas produced, and the stoichiometric end point of the titration can be
determined from this.

Reference:
"Using Mole Ratios of Electrolytic Products of Water for Analysis of Household
Vinegar: An Experiment for the Undergraduate Physical Chemistry
Laboratory." Journal of Chemical Education (n.d.): 1198-200. Web.
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