Copper & Silver Nitrate
Lab #4
OBJECTIVE
In this experiment, you will determine the number of moles of reactants and products present in the reaction of copper and silver nitrate, and calculate their mole-to-mole ratio. The mole-to-mole ratio relating to the disappearance of copper and the formation of silver metal will be used to write the balanced equation for the reaction.
The reaction of copper metal with silver nitrate solution is a single replacement reaction, represented by the following unbalanced equation:
Cu(s) + AgNO3(aq) → Cu(NO3)2(aq) + Ag(s)
The values of the coefficients can be determined experimentally by measuring the mass of copper wire that reacts with the mass of silver that is produced in the above reaction.
BACKGROUND
MATERIALS NEEDED
The reaction of copper and silver nitrate in aqueous solution provides an interesting display of chemistry in action – delicate silver crystals begin to grow on the wire surface and the colour of copper(II) ions gradually appears in the solution.
Stoichiometry is the area of chemistry that deals with the numerical relationships and mathematical proportions of reactants and products in a chemical reaction. One of the most important lessons of stoichiometry is that the amounts of reactants and products in a chemical reaction are related to one another on a mole basis. Chemical reactions are normally represented by balanced chemical equations. The coefficients in a balanced chemical equation summarize the relative number of moles of each reactant and product involved in a chemical reaction. The ratios of these coefficients represent the mole-to-mole (or simply mole) ratios that govern the disappearance of reactants and the appearance of products. Knowing the mole ratios in a balanced chemical equation is essential to solving stoichiometry problems.
General Chemistry 1 Lab
Acetone
Copper wire
3