Laboratory Procedure
Work with 2 partners; each partner will conduct the experiment at a
different temperature, then share data with the group.
I. Pre-lab Data
MW aspirin = __________
MW salicylic acid = __________
1 mg salicylic acid represents _____ mg ASA degraded
II. Experimental Data and Results
(Show calculations and include all units)
- Standard Curve
Determine the UV absorbance of salicylic acid standards at 310
nm using UV grade cuvettes. Use water as a blank. Construct a Beer's Law
plot of absorbance vs. concentration. Determine the slope, intercept, and
R2 value. Remember, [0,0] is a valid point.
A 2.0 mg/ml stock solution of salicylic acid will be supplied. Follow
the dilution scheme to make a series of salicylic acid standards as indicated
in test tubes. Use water as the diluent.
| Standard (mg/ml) |
Serial Dilution Scheme |
| 2.0 |
stock |
| 1.5 |
3 ml of 2.0 mg/ml qs 4 mls |
| 1.0 |
5 ml of 2.0 mg/ml qs 10 mls |
| 0.5 |
5 ml of 1.0 mg/ml qs 10 mls |
| 0.2 |
2 ml of 1.0 mg/ml qs 10 mls |
| 0.1 |
1 ml of 1.0 mg/ml qs 10 ml |
To make a Beer's Law plot for today's experiment, take 1 ml of the salicylic
acid standards and add 14 mls of water, and read with a spectrophotometer
at 310 nm. Such a dilution will result in the following concentrations:
| Standard (mg/ml) |
Conc. After Dilution (mg/ml) |
Absorbance |
| 2.0 |
0.133 |
|
| 1.5 |
0.100 |
|
| 1.0 |
0.0667 |
|
| 0.5 |
0.0333 |
|
| 0.2 |
0.0133 |
|
| 0.1 |
0.00667 |
|
- Hydrolysis of Aspirin (ASA)
- Place approximately 120 ml of buffer solution (0.067 M phosphate
buffer, pH = 7.5) into a covered flask and put the flask into the constant
temperature bath. Allow the contents to come to the specified temperature
(about 20 - 30 minutes).

- Weigh exactly 200 mg of aspirin and transfer the powder to a 100
ml volumetric flasks. Add 2.0 ml of Alcohol, USP to dissolve the aspirin,
and q.s. to 100 ml with hot buffer solution. Mix this solution well by
inverting the covered volumetric flask several times. Immediately pipet
a 1 ml sample and place the volumetric flask in the water bath. Empty the
contents of the pipet into a test tube. This sample allows the determination
of the amount of aspirin which has already hydrolyzed by the time the flask
is placed in the water bath. This sample will correspond to time zero.
- Add 14 ml of distilled water to the 1.0 ml sample in the test tube
and mix well by inverting the covered test tube several times. Read the
absorbance of the solution at 310 nm. A blank of distilled water is also
needed.
- Continue to pipet and analyze 1 ml samples from the buffer solution
in the water bath every 15 minutes for 75 minutes. Do not remove the flask
from the bath when sampling so that temperature can remain stable.
- Determine the concentration of salicylic acid (SA) in each sample using
values from your Beer's Law plot, and the following equation rearrangement:
- Calculate the amount (in mg) of ASA degraded at each sample time
(mg ASA degraded = Conc SA in mg/ml × Dilution Factor × 100 ml × 1.30)
- Calculate the amount of ASA remaining at each sample time (mg ASA
remaining = initial wt. ASA - wt. ASA degraded)
Temperature 1 =_____
| Time |
Abs |
Conc of SA (mg/ml) |
ASA degraded (mg) |
ASA remaining (mg) |
| 0 |
|
|
|
|
| 15 |
|
|
|
|
| 30 |
|
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| 45 |
|
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| 60 |
|
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| 75 |
|
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Temperature 2 =______
| Time |
Abs |
Conc of SA (mg/ml) |
ASA degraded (mg) |
ASA remaining (mg) |
| 0 |
|
|
|
|
| 15 |
|
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|
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| 30 |
|
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| 45 |
|
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| 60 |
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| 75 |
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Temperature 3 = _____
| Time |
Abs |
Conc of SA (mg/ml) |
ASA degraded (mg) |
ASA remaining (mg) |
| 0 |
|
|
|
|
| 15 |
|
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| 30 |
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| 45 |
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| 60 |
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| 75 |
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III. Calculation of Kapp and K at Elevated Temperatures:
- Plot ln ASA remaining vs. time for each temperature.
- Determine the slope of the line at each temperature.
- Calculate Kapp at each temperature: -Kapp = slope
- Calculate K for each temperature: K = Kapp/[OH-]
| Temp (°C) |
Temp (°K) |
1/T°K |
Kapp (min-1) |
K (min-1) |
| |
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IV. Determination of Kapp and K at Room Temperature.
Construct an Arrhenius plot.
- Plot ln Kapp vs. 1/T (°K) and determine the slope and the
activation energy for the hydrolysis of ASA. (Ea = -slope × R)
- Determine the Kapp and K at room temperature.
From Arrenhius plot:
Slope ______________ Ea ________________
At room temperature:
Kapp __________________ K ___________________