Commercial Product Chromatography

Introduction The purpose of this experiment was to test for quality control and analysis of a commercial product, in this case vinegar. The experiment performed determined the actual molarity of a specific brand of vinegar as compared to information provided on the bottle. The standardization of HCl and NaOH was also performed in order to understand the process of titrations. The importance of testing for quality control to be sure the product being sold holds up to its commercial value and is authentic in what it advertises to be. Quality control is a way to test the standards of a commercial product by testing a sample of the output against original specifications. Quality control is also used to protect public health and ensure the safety

Some examples of primary standards include Sodium Carbonate, Potassium Dichromate and Sodium Oxalate. A secondary standard, however, is a standard that is prepared in the laboratory for a specific analysis and is usually standardized against a primary standard2. These standards are used in titrations which is a form of quantitative analysis used to determine unknown concentrations of known substances3. Indicators are used in these titrations in order to tell when the reaction is completed or when a specific pH is reached within the reaction. The indicators will change color to signify the changes. The formed hypothesis was that if the titrations were performed correctly they should yield similar numbers and results to the information provided to us from the commercial packaging of the product, in this case

The third titration was performed by making a solution of Sodium Bicarbonate with 0.336 grams of Sodium Bicarbonate and 50 mL of deionized water. Three drops of methyl orange indicator were added to 10 mL of HCl inside of a flask in which the Sodium Bicarbonate solution was added to. Three trials were performed and averaged to calculate the molarity of the baking soda along with the percent yield of the reaction. In the final titration of the experiment commercially purchased vinegar was used with NaOH. 10 mL of the vinegar was added with 40 mL of deionized water as the original bottle solution was too acidic to be neutralized with small amounts of NaOH. Four drops of the phenolphthalein indicator was added to 10 mL of the now further diluted acetic acid solution which was also titrated with NaOH. Three trials of this titration was performed to determine the actual molarity of the commercial vinegar compared to its advertised