Investigation into the Factors that Affect the Enthalpy Change During a Displacement Reaction

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Investigation into the Factors that Affect the Enthalpy Change During a Displacement Reaction

The Task

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To investigate the factors affecting the enthalpy change during a

displacement reaction.

Background Knowledge

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In this investigation a displacement reaction will be observed. A

displacement reaction occurs when more reactive metal displaces, (or

removes) a less reactive metal from a solution of its salt. Also known

as chemical bullying because a more reactive metal effectively bullies

the original metal out of its compound.

In this investigation zinc and copper sulphate will be reacted

together. Zinc is the more reactive metal here, so the copper is

displaced from the copper sulphate solution.

Zinc + Copper sulphate à Zinc sulphate + Copper

Zn (s) + CuSO4 (aq) à ZnSO4 (aq) + Cu (s)

After the reaction it will be observed that the solution will change

from blue to clear, colourless. The copper discharged will be observed

as a salmon pink deposit in the base of the vessel the reaction occurs

in.

Reactions like this can be used to purify metals that are low down in

the reactivity series. A more reactive metal can simply be added to

purify the less reactive metal, leaving it in its pure state.

Lead Oxide + Tin à Lead + Tin Oxide

In reality thought this process is hardly ever used, as the more

reactive metal is the left in an impure form, and thus must be reduced

by an even more reactive metal. As this is not economically viable

metals are generally reduced using electrolysis, which leaves them in

a pure state, and requires no expensive more reactive metals, just

...

... middle of paper ...

...pacity of

the solution (assume this equals 4.2 J/g/degrees Celsius), /T =

temperature change (estimated from extrapolation).

The results here show the heat energy in each reaction. To calculate

the enthalpy change one must account for the respective moles involved

in each reaction.

To equal out the number of moles simply multiply the results by the

respective amounts required to make them all amounts of Joules/1 mole.

When this calculation is performed on all the heat energy results

enthalpy change can be compared. In an accurate experiment the

enthalpy change when copper sulphate solution is reacted with zinc

powder should remain constant. By taking into account the number of

moles in each equation when multiplying the results will be brought

into proportion, so the enthalpy changes should be roughly equal.

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