Rinsing Errors in Back Titration (Finding Nitrogen in Fertiliser)?

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on the impact of rinsing laboratory glassware with water instead of the appropriate solutions during a back titration experiment to determine nitrogen content in fertilizer. Rinsing the burette with water dilutes the hydrochloric acid (HCl), leading to an overestimation of nitrogen due to requiring more HCl to reach the equivalence point. Conversely, rinsing the pipette with water dilutes the sodium hydroxide (NaOH), resulting in an underestimation of nitrogen as less HCl appears necessary. Rinsing the volumetric flask and conical flask with water has no effect on the results since the mass of the fertilizer is already measured and the moles of NaOH remain constant.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of back titration techniques
  • Knowledge of acid-base titration principles
  • Familiarity with laboratory glassware and their proper use
  • Basic chemistry concepts related to moles and concentrations
NEXT STEPS
  • Research proper rinsing techniques for laboratory glassware
  • Learn about the principles of back titration in analytical chemistry
  • Study the effects of dilution on titration results
  • Explore methods for accurately measuring nitrogen content in fertilizers
USEFUL FOR

Chemistry students, laboratory technicians, and educators involved in analytical chemistry and titration experiments will benefit from this discussion.

man0005
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Homework Statement



Just need someone to confirm whether I am right for this
(The prac is using back titration to find the amount of Nitrogen in Fertiliser)

How would the following affect your experiment:
Burette, pipette and volumetric flask are rinsed with the wrong solution i.e water

Burette - HCl will be diluted, thus it will appear that more will be needed to achieve equivalence point. This will mean that you will get a smaller amount for the NaOH reacting initially and subsequently the amount of NH4+. This will mean that you will have an overestimation of the amount of Nitrogen.

Pipette - NaOH will be diluted, thus it will appear that less HCl will be needed to achieve equivalence point. This will mean that you will get a larger amount for the NaOH reacting initially and subsequently the amount of NH4+. This will mean that you will have an underestimation of the amount of Nitrogen.

Volumetric Flask - No effect as the mass of the fertilizer as been weighed already, so the concentration will be same when you measure out 250mL. The water is used to dissolve the fertilizer sample anyway.

Conical Flask - No effect. Fixed number of moles in NaOH therefore even when diluted it will not affect end titration, since titration only involves moles. Fertiliser standard solution has already been diluted by water so will not be affected either.


Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution

 
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Logic looks OK.
 

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