Catherine Laurel March 12, 2010

2ChE-B /Group 10 Ms. Glaiza Tanguilan

OPTICAL METHOD OFANALYSIS

USE OF BEER’S LAW ON KMnO4 SOLUTION

The objective of this experiment was to determine the concentration of the unknown test solution using the
graph plotted from the even groups. The value for absorbance was read from the spectrophotometer and was plotted
against the new concentration from every group. The new concentration was made by using the standard KMnO4
(potassium permanganate) solution diluting with water to reach the given molarity. The standard solution of Group 10
was 0.0216 M and the given molarity given to them was 7.0 x 10-5 M. However, since it was impossible to add 16.2
drops of standard KMnO4 solution to reach the given molarity, 16 drops of it were only used to reach 6.90 x 10-5 M of
the new concentration. The absorbance of the new concentration was 0.058. Plotting it with the other even groups the
molarity of the unknown test solution was 6.28 x 10-5 M while the absorbance of it was 0.216.

I. INTRODUCTION

Solutions of many compounds are colored, a consequence of the absorption of light. It is

possible to measure, quantitatively, the extent of light absorption and to relate this to the
concentration of the dissolved solute. This kind of experiment, called spectrophotometry, is an
important analytical method. It denotes a large group of instrumental techniques that obtain
spectra corresponding to a substance’s atomic and molecular energy levels.
Two types of spectra most often obtained are emission and absorption spectra. An
emission spectrum, is produced when atoms in an excited state emit photons characteristic of
the element as they return to lower energy states.
An absorption spectrum is produced when atoms absorb photons of certain wavelengths
and become excited from lower to high energy states.
In identifying a substance, spectrometer can be used to measure its concentration
because the absorbance, the amount of light of a given wavelength absorbed by a substance, is
proportional to the number of molecules.
If a substance absorbs light the radiant power of a light decreases as it passes through
the substance. The spectrophotometer can be calibrated to record a graph of either the
transmittance(T) or the absorbance(A) versus wavelength is scanned over the range of interest.
The transmittance decreases and the absorbance increases as cell length increases.
Transmittance is also the fraction of incident light that passes through a sample.
T = P / P0
Transmittance lies in the range 0 to 1. If no light is absorbed, the transmittance is 0.
Percent transmittance ranges from 0% to 100%. A transmittance of 30% means that 70% of the
light does not pass through the sample.
The most useful quantity for chemical analysis is absorbance, A, defined as
A = log Po/P = -log P/Po = - log T
When no light is absorbed, P=Po and A=0. If 90% of the light is absorbed, 10% is
transmitted and P = Po/10. This ratio gives A = 1. If 1% of the light was transmitted , A=2.

Absorbance is proportional to the concentration of light –absorbing molecules in the

sample. Absorbance is also proportional to the pathlength of substance through which light
travels. The dependence on concentration and pathlength is expressed in Beer’s Law:
 A=εbc
Where:
A – is absorbance
b – pathlength expressed in centimeters
c – is concentration in units moles per liter (M)
ε – epsilon, this quantity is called the molar absorptivity

– It has the units M-1 cm-1 because product εbc must be dimensionless. It tells how
much light is absorbed at a particular wavelength.

The color intensity increases as the concentration od the absorbing molecule increases.
Absorbance is the measure of the color. The more intense the color, the greater the
absorbance.

According to Gene-Kalbus, Lee Kalbus and Van Lieu(2004) potassium permanganate to

be used in the experiment is often used as the solution to be calibrated because of its high
oxidation potential and because if its intense color that allows it to serve as its own indicator.

The objective of this experiment is to determine the concentration of the unknown

sample of KMnO4 solution by plotting a graph of results found. It is to be graphed absorbance
against concentration and from the equation of the line the unknown concentration can be
calculated with the found absorbance of unknown.

II. METHODOLOGY

The new concentration of KMnO4 solution was prepared by diluting the standard solution
to reach the given molarity. The volume of water added to the standard solution was done by
computation:
(Molarity of standard solution)(Volume of standard solution)=(Given Molarity)(250 ml H2O)
Since the volume of standard solution was so small for the graduated cylinder to be
used, the conversion of 1.0 ml to 20.0 drops was used instead. After computing and changing
the the given molarity due to the volume that cannot be reached (ex.12.3 drops, use 12.0 drops
instead), the computed volume was then added with 250 ml of water into the volumetric flask.
After shaking the solution carefully, part of its content was transferred into the cuvette and was
placed into the spectrophotometer to find its absorbance. A given unknown solution was also
to be measured for its absorbance. The results from the even groups was plotted absorbance
against its concentration to get the molarity of the unknown solution.

III. DISCUSSION OF RESULTS

Table 1. Concentration And Its Absorbance

 Molarity Absorbance
Solution #1 4.12x10-5 0.04
Solution #2 6.90x10-5 0.058
-5
Solution #3 9.94x10 0.097
Solution #4 2.00x10-4 0.33
-5
Unknown 6.28x10 0.216

The equation for finding the unknown concentration can be found by plotting absorbance
against its known concentration of the solution. The equation is y=984.72x -0.0038 and by using
this equation unknown molarity was found which equals to 6.28 x 10-5 M.
If these results were to be arranged from least concentrated to most concentrated it can
be therefore observed that the more concentrated solution has greater absorbance. This is due
to the concentration of light-absorbing molecules letting only lesser light to pass through the
sample. However, comparing the known concentrations with the unknown, the unknown with a
lesser concentration than solution nos. 2 and 3 has greater absorbance than the two so it can
be stated that absorbance is not only dependent on concentration of the solution but also the
intensity of the color and the pathlength of substance through which light travels.

IV. CONCLUSION/ RECOMMENDATION

The use of absorbance using the spectrophotomer was used instead of transmittance
because it is easier to use. From the equation of Beer’s Law it is stated:
A=εbc
Absorbance is directly proportional to pathlength of substance through which the light
passes through and the concentration of the solution.
The most important idea in colorimetry is that color intensity is proportional to the
concentration. However, this is not always true, especially at high concentrations and color
intensities. The color we see is complementary to the color absorbed by the chemical. The
colors are absorbed and how intensely they are absorbed depends on the chemical being used
and how the electrons and energy levels within it are arranged.

It should be aware that potassium permanganate is harmful if swallowed and can be

irritating to the eyes, respiratory tract and skin. If inhaled, avoid from exposure to fresh air. If
breathing is difficult take in oxygen. If ingested, drink large quantities of water; do not induce
vomiting. If in skin contact, flush skin with water for 15 minutes; remove contaminated clothing.
If in eye contact, flush eyes with water for 15 minutes, lifting lower and upper eyelids
occasionally. It is a strong oxidizing agent and can react violently with reducing agents.
In using the spectrophotometer always ask for assistance from a technician, from a
teacher, or the experienced so not to let the instrument get broken or have flaws in the result of
the experiment.

REFERENCES

Books:
Harris, D.C., Exploring Chemical Analysis, 4th ed. W.H. Freeman Company. USA,
(2009).pp.396-398, 400

Kotz, J.C., Treichel, P.M., Townsend, J.R., Chemistry & Chemical Reactivity, 7th ed. Thomson
Brooks/Cole. Canada, (2009,2006).pp.189-192
Funk, W., Damman, V., & Donnevert, G., Quality Assurance in Analytical Chemistry, WILEY
Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA. Germany, (2007).pp.120

Zumdahl, S.S., Chemical Principles, 6th ed. Houghton Mifflin Company. USA, (20009).pp.A-17 –
A-18

Silberberg, M.S., Chemistry: The Molecular Nature of Matter and Change, 4th ed. McGraw-Hill
Companies, Inc. USA, (2006, 2003, 2000).pp.269-270

Oxtoby, D.W., Gillis, H.P., Campion, A., Principles of Modern Chemistry, 6th ed. Thomson
Learning, Inc. USA, (2008).pp.828-829

Timberlake, K.C., An Introduction to General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry, 9th ed.
Pearson Education, Inc. USA, (2006).pp.350

Journal:
Kalbus, Gene, Kalbus, Gene, Lieu, Van.”A Spectrophotometric Study of the Permanganate-
Oxalate Reaction”Journal of Chemical Education Vol. 81 No. 1(January 2004) 100-102

Internet:
Beer’s Law retrieved from http://teaching .shu.ac.uk/hwb/chemistry/tutorials/molspec/beers1.htm

Virtual Chemistry: Spectrophotometry retrieved from

http://www.chm.davidson.edu/vce/Spectrophotometry/index.html

Beer-Lambert Law retrieved from http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Beer-Lambert_law

Beer-Lambert Law retrieved from http://www.chemistry.adelaide.edu.au/external/soc-

rel/content/beerslaw.htm

Principles of Spectrophotometer retrieved from

http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~bioslabs/methods/protein/spectrophotometer.html
Beer’s Law retrieved from http://www.bookrags.com/research/beers-law-woc/

Spectrophotometer Use retrieved from

http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Labs/Microbiology/Growth_Curve/Spectrophotometer.htm

Answers.com: Beer’s Law retrieved from http://www.answers.com/topic/beer-lambert-law

APPENDIX
Known Concentration
Given Molarity: 7 x 10-5 M

(Molarity of standard solution)(Volume of standard solution)=(Given Molarity)(250 ml H2O)

(0.0216 M)(V1) = (7 x 10-5 M)(250 ml)
V1 = 0.81 ml

0.81 ml x 20 drops = 16.2 drops = 16.0 drops

1 ml

16.0 drops x 1.0 ml = 0.8 ml

20.0 drops

(0.0216)(0.8 ml) = (M2)(250 ml)

M2 = 6.90 x 10-5 M

Molarity of Unknown Concentration

y=984.72x – 0.0038
x=6.28 x 10-5 M
Percent Error of Unknown Concentration
True Value = 1.36 x 10-4 M
% error = | True Value – Experimental Value |
True Value
= | 1.36 x 10-4 – 6.28 x 10-5 |
1.36 x 10-4
= 53.82 %

Figure 2. Statistical Treatment of Absorbance Versus Concentration

The equation y=984.72x – 0.0038 is a linear straight line which interprets that for the
known concentration and its absorbance found it can be stated that it is directly proportional to
each other. However, the blue curved line wherein the unknown concentration of solution was
found, it does not follow the trend of the straight line due to the differences in pattern of the
absorbance of unknown solution with its concentration compared with the rest of the solutions.