Investigation Of The Effects Of Acid Rain
Samuel Turner
Mr. Eichbauer
IB Chemistry II – Period 6
16 February 2015
Investigation of the Effects of Acid Rain
Background Information
Acid rain is when there is a mix of wet and dry deposited material in the atmosphere that have higher levels of nitric and sulfuring acid. These chemicals formed can be from natural causes, like volcanoes and the decay of vegetation, or man made causes like fossil fuel combustion. Acid rain can be measured using the pH scale, and will always be on the lower end of the spectrum because of its acidity. Water has a pH of 7, but the acidity of normal rain tends to be slightly more acidic. Acid rain can be very detrimental to the biotic environment that it comes in contact with as well as the non-living matter in the area.
In the following experiment, the student will use a variation of nitric acid solutions with different molarities to see the effects that they have on copper. For the control, the same tests will be done with rainwater with a known pH. After the experiment the concentration of the solutions can be converted to pH using the equation pH = -log[H+]. After converting this the student will show a display of the data using a graph that shows how the solutions affect the corrosion on the metal by using the change in its mass.
Purpose of the Investigation
Observe: How nitric acid with different concentrations can affect the corrosion of copper.
Evaluate: How pH of a solution can affect the corrosion of copper represented in a graphical form.
Variables
Controlled: Volume of acid, the amount of time the copper is exposed to the solution
Independent: The molarities of the acid
Dependent: Change in mass of the copper
Control Group: rain water the copper is exposed to
Materials
12 strips of copper pH meter (+ 0.01)
Digital scale (+ 0.01) graduated cylinder (±0.05 mL) experimental setup diagram
60mL of rain water
60mL of 0.5 M HNO3
60mL of 1.0 M HNO3
60mL of 1.5 M HNO3
4 petri dishes
Experimental Process
1.
Mr. Eichbauer
IB Chemistry II – Period 6
16 February 2015
Investigation of the Effects of Acid Rain
Background Information
Acid rain is when there is a mix of wet and dry deposited material in the atmosphere that have higher levels of nitric and sulfuring acid. These chemicals formed can be from natural causes, like volcanoes and the decay of vegetation, or man made causes like fossil fuel combustion. Acid rain can be measured using the pH scale, and will always be on the lower end of the spectrum because of its acidity. Water has a pH of 7, but the acidity of normal rain tends to be slightly more acidic. Acid rain can be very detrimental to the biotic environment that it comes in contact with as well as the non-living matter in the area.
In the following experiment, the student will use a variation of nitric acid solutions with different molarities to see the effects that they have on copper. For the control, the same tests will be done with rainwater with a known pH. After the experiment the concentration of the solutions can be converted to pH using the equation pH = -log[H+]. After converting this the student will show a display of the data using a graph that shows how the solutions affect the corrosion on the metal by using the change in its mass.
Purpose of the Investigation
Observe: How nitric acid with different concentrations can affect the corrosion of copper.
Evaluate: How pH of a solution can affect the corrosion of copper represented in a graphical form.
Variables
Controlled: Volume of acid, the amount of time the copper is exposed to the solution
Independent: The molarities of the acid
Dependent: Change in mass of the copper
Control Group: rain water the copper is exposed to
Materials
12 strips of copper pH meter (+ 0.01)
Digital scale (+ 0.01) graduated cylinder (±0.05 mL) experimental setup diagram
60mL of rain water
60mL of 0.5 M HNO3
60mL of 1.0 M HNO3
60mL of 1.5 M HNO3
4 petri dishes
Experimental Process
1.