Karl Rollason, 11RLE

Science, Mr. Davenport

Reaction of sodium thiosulphate and hydrochloric acid

GCSE Investigation.

The Reaction….
.
•Sodium thiosulphate, Na2S2O3 reacts with HCl to give a reaction mixture that gets
cloudier as yellow sulphur is formed.

•Na2S2O3(aq)+2HCl >2NaCl(aq)+S(s)+SO2(g)+H2O(l)

When hydrochloric acid is added to the sodium

thiosulphate a reaction occurs which produces a
cloudy suspension of solid sulphur.

The time it takes for the cross to disappear

can be used to investigate rate of reaction

Equipment:

•Laminated paper with X on it

•Beaker/test tube
•1m, Hydrochloric acid
•0.2m, Sodium Thiosulphate solution
•Conical Flask/Beaker
•Stopwatch
Method

We will measure the time taken for a cross beneath a reaction flask to disappear due to
the liquid in the reaction becoming cloudy. We will do the reaction with several
concentrations of thiosulphate and try to work out the rate of reaction.

Normally the reaction that we are trying to change is done in a flask. First of all you stir
50cm3 of sodium thiosulphate and 10cm3 of hydrochloric acid into a flask and when the
two are mixed together you start the stopwatch. After making sure the chemicals are
properly mixed together I will place the flask over a piece of card with an x on it and
time how long it takes for the x to be no longer visible. The independent variable will be
the amount of sodium Thiosulphate I use each time which will decrease by 10 cm3 each
time. When I repeat the experiment I will identify

I will change the concentration of Sodium Thiosulphate (decreasing the concentration of

the substance in solution means that there will be fewer particles per cm3.) The fewer
particles that there are in the same volume the further away from each other the particles
will be, therefore the reaction would be slower.
Karl Rollason, 11RLE
Science, Mr. Davenport

The investigation.
In this investigation we will be looking at how concentration can affect the rate of this
reaction
We can control concentration by diluting solutions of known strengths

HCl (ml) Na2S2O3 (cm3) Water(cm3)

50cm3 0cm3
10ml

40cm3 10cm3
10ml

30cm3 20cm3
10ml

20cm3 30cm3
10ml

10cm3 40cm3
10ml

We attempt to repeat this reaction 5 or 6 times, we do this because the more times we
repeat it, the results will become more reliable than if we had done it only twice or three
times, also if we wanted a lot more accurate results, we would repeat the reaction a lot
more times as there will be a better average.

We would like to do this because to get more accurate, not clear conclusions

Errors

There are several possible errors that could have gone wrong in this experiment, for
instance, there could be errors in the measurements or possibly faulty equipment. There
can also be errors as there is a low temperature and when it gets to the end of the
experiment it is not easy to judge.

The devices for measuring volume are at best accurate to 0.2 ml.

The result of having too much or too little of each reagent is……. A
Karl Rollason, 11RLE
Science, Mr. Davenport

The Effect of Concentration Is:

•The concentration of a solution is how strong the solution is. For example, if we
consider the reaction between marble chips (calcium carbonate) and hydrochloric acid:

•calcium carbonate + hydrochloric acid —> calcium chloride + water + carbon dioxide

•Then a stronger acid contains more acid particles and less water particles than a weaker
acid.

•Increasing the concentration of a solution leads to more collisions (greater frequency of

collisions) so the rate of the reaction goes up.

•In a less concentrated acid, the number of collisions is low, so the rate of the reaction is
slower. (The water particles aren't shown):

•The effect of temperature

•When we increase the temperature at which a reaction is taking place, the particles move
more quickly. This has two effects:

1) More collisions take place

2) When a collision occurs, there is more chance that the collision will lead to a reaction,
because the amount of energy is more likely to be greater than the minimum amount of
energy needed (the activation energy)

At a lower temperature, the number of collisions is lower because the particles are
moving more slowly. Also when a collision occurs, there is less chance of a reaction
taking place because the movement energy in the particles is less (in the animation
successful collisions flash yellow, unsuccessful collisions flash blue):

The effect of particle size

Solids with a smaller particle size (e.g. powders or small chips) react more quickly than
solids with a larger particle size (e.g. large chips). Here is why:

Look at this diagram

Karl Rollason, 11RLE
Science, Mr. Davenport

The perimeter of the large chip is 12 units. The acid particles can only collide with the
edge of the chip. However, if we break up the large chip into 9 smaller chips:

Then the perimeter around each chip is 4 units, but there are 9 of them so the total
perimeter is 4 x 9 = 36 units. Notice how the acid in the second diagram can reach what
used to be the centre of the large chip.

Adding a catalyst:

A catalyst is a substance that speeds up a reaction without being used up itself. Some
reactions have catalysts that can speed them up, but for many reactions there is no
catalyst that works.

Here is an example of a reaction with a catalyst. Hydrogen peroxide decomposes (falls

apart) to form water and oxygen gas:

Hydrogen peroxide —> water + oxygen

This reaction only occurs very slowly unless we add the compound manganese oxide that
acts as a catalyst for this reaction. When the catalyst is added the reaction speeds up
greatly but the manganese oxide never runs out

Background Information
Ref. =

CHANGING CONCENTRATION
Karl Rollason, 11RLE
Science, Mr. Davenport

ANALYSIS OF RESULTS

The basic pattern of the results shows that the more water that was added to the formula

HCl (ml) Na2S2O3 (cm3) Water (cm3) Ex. Time Taken (secs)
1st
2 2nd
3rd
Av.
1st
4 2nd
3rd
Av.
1st
6 2nd
3rd
Av.
1st
2nd
8 3rd
Av.
1st
10 2nd
3rd
Av.