JURUSAN TEKNOLOGI REKAYASA KIMIA INDUSTRI

FAKULTAS VOKASI
INSTITUT TEKNOLOGI SEPULUH NOPEMBER

Dasar-Dasar Proses

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 Module 1
Experiment 1
The Density of Liquids and Solids (1)

Objectives
The objectives of this laboratory are:
a) To determine the density of pure water;
b) To determine the density of aluminum (applying the technique of water displacement) and to
use this value to determine the thickness of a piece of aluminum foil;
c) To measure the mass and volume (via measured dimensions) of several cylinders of an
unknown material, and to determine the density of this material via graphical analysis of the
collected data.

Background

Density
Density is defined as the mass per unit volume of a substance, and it is a physical property of
matter. A physical property can be measured without changing the chemical identity of the
substance. Since pure substances have unique density values, measuring the density of a
substance can help identify that substance. Density is determined by dividing the mass of a
substance by its volume:
Density = Mass/Volume
The units of density are commonly expressed as g/cm3 for solids, g/mL for liquids, and g/L for
gases. Density is also an intensive property of matter. This means that the value of density is
independent of the quantity of matter present. For example, the density of a gold coin and a gold
statue are the same, even though the gold statue consists of the greater quantity of gold. This is
in contrast to extensive properties, like volume (the amount of space occupied by matter), which
depend of the quantity of mater present. The more matter present, the larger the volume.

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In Part A of this lab, the mass and volume of distilled water will be measured in order to
determine the density of water. Measurements will be performed on three samples of water to
improve precision and accuracy. Mass will be measured with an electronic balance, in grams
(g), and volume will be measured directly with a graduated cylinder, in milliliters (mL). Recall
that when measuring liquid volumes, the graduated scale must be read from the lowest point of
the curved surface of the liquid (the meniscus).

The accuracy of the experimentally determined density of water will then be evaluated by
comparison to the true, accepted density of water.

In Part B of this lab, the density of aluminum will be determined using aluminum pellets. Again,
mass will be measured using an electronic balance, in grams (g). However, since the pellets
have irregular shapes, their volume must be measured indirectly using the technique of water
displacement (also known as Archimedes Principle). This is because the volume of water that
the solid displaces when it is immersed in the water is the same as the volume of the solid itself.
The accuracy of this experimentally determined density will also be evaluated by comparison to
the true, accepted density of aluminum.

The density of aluminum will then be used in an applied problem to determine the thickness of a
piece of aluminum foil. The piece of foil used can be considered to be a very flat rectangular
box, where
Volume of foil = length x width x thickness

The foil volume can be obtained from the measured mass of the foil and the density of
aluminum. Thus, if the length and width of the foil rectangle are measured, then the foil’s
thickness may be calculated.

Density and Graphical Analysis

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Laboratory investigations involve collecting data, which is often numeric. One common method
of interpreting data is graphical analysis.

In Part C of this lab, the mass and volume of several cylindrical pieces of an unknown solid
material will be measured. Once again mass will be obtained using an electronic balance, in
grams (g). But since the cylinders are regularly-shaped solids, their volumes (in cubic
centimeters, cm3) will be calculated from their measured dimensions by using the appropriate
volume formula:
Volume of a cylinder = π r2h
h = cylinder height or length
r = cylinder radius = ½ the diameter

Each pair of mass and volume values will then be plotted on graph paper as a scatter plot, with
mass plotted on the y-axis and volume plotted on the x-axis. Since the plotted data generate (or
at least approximate) a straight line, a “best-fit line” can be added to the graph. A best-fit line is
a single line that comes as close as possible to all the plotted points.
The equation of this best-fit line will have the familiar form y = mx + b, where m represents the
slope of the line, and b represents the y-intercept. This is illustrated in the figure below.

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The y-intercept (b) is the point on the y-axis where the line crosses the axis. In this experiment,
the value of b should be equal to zero. This is because if there is no mass, the volume must also
be zero. However, note that your best-fit line might not pass exactly through the origin (0,0) due
to experimental error – but it should be quite close.

The slope of the line (m) is the change in the y-axis values divided by the change in x-axis values
(or, rise over run):
m = Δy/Δx = (y1 – y2)/(x1 – x2)

Since Δy is really the change in mass (Δmass), and Δx is really the change in volume (Δvolume),
this means that the slope of the best-fit line yields the density of the unknown material:

m = Δy/Δx = Δmass/ Δvolume = density

Once the density is determined in this manner, it will be used to identify the unknown material
analyzed.

Procedure

Safety

Be especially careful when adding the aluminum to your graduated cylinder, as the glass could
break. Tilt the graduated cylinder and allow the pellets to gently slide to the bottom.

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Materials and Equipment
100-mL graduated cylinder, metric ruler*, aluminum pellets, small beaker, aluminum foil,
thermometer, electronic balance, distilled water, tube of unknown solid cylinders* and graph
paper.

Part A: The Density of Water

1. Using the electronic balance, obtain the mass of your 100-mL graduated cylinder. Make sure
it is dry before you weigh it.
2. Add 20-25 mL of distilled water to the graduated cylinder. Precisely measure this volume of
water. Then measure the combined mass using the electronic balance.
3. Add another 20-25 mL of distilled water to the graduated cylinder. Again, precisely measure
this volume of water, and then measure the combined mass using the electronic balance.
4. Repeat Step 3 to obtain a third set of mass and volume measurements.
5. Use your thermometer to record the temperature of the water in your graduated cylinder.
6. Analysis: Subtract the mass of the empty cylinder from each combined mass measurement to
obtain three mass measurements of water. Use the three sets of mass and volume measurements
to calculate three density values for water. Then take the average of these three density values.
Finally, look up the true density of water at the temperature used, and evaluate the accuracy of
your average density value by calculating your percent error.

Part B: The Density of Aluminum and the Thickness of Foil

The Density of Aluminum
1. Using the electronic balance, obtain the mass of a clean, dry small beaker.
2. Obtain a sample of aluminum from your instructor. Transfer all the pellets to the beaker, and
measure the mass of the beaker and pellets.
3. Pour 30-35 mL of water into your 100-mL graduated cylinder. Precisely measure this volume.
4. Carefully add all the aluminum pellets to the water, making sure not to lose any water to
splashing. Also make sure that the pellets are all completely immersed in the water. Measure
the new volume of the water plus the pellets.
5. When finished, retrieve and dry the aluminum pellets and return them to your instructor.

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6. Analysis: Use your measured mass and volume (obtained via water displacement) of the
aluminum pellets to calculate the density of aluminum. Then look up the true density of
aluminum and evaluate your accuracy by calculating your percent error.

The Thickness of Aluminum Foil

7. Now obtain a rectangular piece of aluminum foil from your instructor. Use the ruler to
measure the length and width of the piece of foil.
8. Measure the mass of the foil using the electronic balance.
9. When finished, return the foil to your instructor and the ruler to the stockroom.
10. Analysis: Use these measurements along with the density of aluminum to calculate the
thickness of the foil.

Part C: Graphical Analysis of Mass and Volume Data of an Unknown Solid

1. Check out a ruler from the stockroom and obtain a tube containing cylindrical pieces of an
unknown solid material from your instructor. Record the ID Code of the unknown solid on your
report form.
2. Using the ruler, measure the dimensions (diameter and height) of each cylindrical object. Start
with the smallest object first and progress in order of increasing object size.
3. Measure the mass of each cylindrical object using an electronic balance. Again, start with the
smallest object first and progress in order of increasing object size.
4. Replace all the objects in the tube and return the tube to your instructor.
5. Analysis: Use the measured dimensions to calculate the volume of each solid object. Then, on
the graph paper supplied, plot the mass (Y) versus the volume (X) of each measured object. Add
a best fit line to this plot. Calculate the slope of this line, which is the density of the unknown
solid. Then use this density to identify the unknown material analyzed. Your unknown material
is one of the substances listed in the table below.

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 Substance Density (g/cm3)

Polyvinylchloride (PVC) 1.35

Maple 0.77

Acrylic 1.16

Polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) 2.20

Polypropylene 0.90

Aluminum 2.71

Polyurethane 1.23

Experiment 2
The Density of Liquids and Solids (2)

Goal: To accurately determine the density of an unknown liquid and an unknown solid.
To properly measure density, we need a container whose volume is known to a high degree of
accuracy. This container is known as a pychnometer.

Measurements and Calculations:

A. Calibration of the Pychnometer
We will rely on the fact that the density of water has been measured countless times and every
possible temperature. That is to say, we know the density of water and can use its value, and the
mass of water to determine the volume of any container. Thus, we measure the mass of the dry
pychnometer, then fill it completely with water, and measure the mass again.

Measurements:

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 Mass of dry flask and stopper = A g
Mass of flask, stopper and water = B g

Calculations:
Mass of water = (mass of flask, stopper and water) - (mass of flask and stopper)
Mass of water = B – A = C g
Volume of flask = mass of water/ density of water

B. Density of an Unknown Liquid

Here, the only experimental step is to fill the pychnometer completely with the unknown liquid,
then weigh it.

C. Density of an Unknown Solid

The difficulty here is that solids have definite shapes. When a solid is added to the pychnometer,
it will not completely fill the container; hence, we will not know its volume. To determine the
volume of the solid, we will fill the pychnometer about half full of solid, weigh it, then fill the
container the rest of the way with water, and then weigh it again. From the mass of water, we can
determine the volume of water, as in Part A. Since the container is completely full of water and
solid, and we know the volume of the container, we can determine the volume of the solid by the
equation: volume of solid = volume of flask - volume of water.

Experiment 3
Viscosity of Liquids

The viscosity of a fluid is its resistance to flow. It is a quantitative property of a fluid, be it

liquid or gas, and can be used as an index in quality control applications of oils, paints or other
fluids where flow is a critical property. Viscosity arises from the directed motion of molecules
past each other and the transfer of momentum.
Poiseuille (1844) did much work concerning the interpretation of liquid flow through tubes. One
important result of his mass transport analysis is the following equation:

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 η = pr4Pt/8VL
Where η is the viscosity, t is the elapsed time, V is the volume of liquid passing through the tube,
P is the hydrostatic pressure of the liquid and L is the distance traveled by the liquid in time t.
Although not an official SI unit, the unit of viscosity (η), still used by many, is named in his
honor and is called the poise (P). It has units of 1 g/cm-s (or dyne-seconds/cm2). Many liquids
at room temperature have viscosities about 0.002 to 0.04 and the unit of the cP (10-2 P) is used.
The official SI unit has units of kg/m-s (or Pascal-seconds). 1 cP = 103 Pa-s.
This equation above is directly applicable to a device such as the Ostwald viscometer. A liquid
is allowed to flow through a small bore capillary between two etched marked and the time is
measured. Since the distance L will remain the same in all work and since the pressure P
depends on density D it is possible to rearrange the above equation to obtain
η=kDt
where k is a constant that incorporates the constant factors. In practice a liquid of known
viscosity and density is used to calibrate the Ostwald viscometer. Then for any other liquid
η =ηrDt/Drtr
where the subscripted r values refer to the reference sample. In this experiment we will explore
the viscosity of two sets of mixtures, methanol/water and toluene/p-xylene. The viscosity of
water will be our reference and we will compare the influence of mixing on viscosity. The
viscosity of water at 25°C is 0.8904 centipoise (cp).
Temperature also changes viscosity, rather dramatically. Arrhenius (1912) expressed this
dependence as
η = A exp Eη/RT
with A a constant for a given liquid and Eη the activation energy for viscous flow. This is the
energy barrier that must be surmounted in order for a molecule to “squeeze” by its neighbors. A
plot of ln η vs. 1/T should be linear and have a slop equal to Eη/R. We will also want to
investigate and determine the influence of temperature on viscosity and the activation energy of
viscous flow.
Procedure
1. Suspend the viscometer into a large beaker of water that is as close to 25° C as possible.
Pipette 5 ml of deionized water of known density into the Ostwald viscometer and allow time for
the liquid to equilibrate to the temperature of the bath. Then use a pipette bulb to push or pull

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the liquid level up above the upper fiducial mark on the viscometer. Allow the water to run back
down and start the timer exactly as the meniscus passes the upper mark. Stop the timer just as
the meniscus passes the lower mark. Repeat at least twice. Your flow times should agree to
within about 0.4 seconds.
2. Clean and dry the viscometer by running a few milliliters of acetone through it. Drain the
acetone and aspirate for about a minute to evaporate all the acetone.
3. Determine the flow times of each of your methanol/water solutions at 25° C. Repeat each at
least twice. Your flow times should agree to within about 0.4 seconds.
4. Clean and dry the viscometer as before.
5. Determine the flow times of each toluene/p-xylene solution as in step 3. End the
determinations with the pure p-xylene.
6. For our temperature work heat the water bath in roughly 10 to 15 degree increments and
determine the flow time of the pure p-xylene as before at each temperature. Stop at about 65° C.
Calculations
1. Determine the viscosity coefficient of each mixture and for the temperature runs. Compare the
viscosity of the methanol/water mixtures to the toluene/p-xylene mixtures by graphing the value
of the viscosity coefficient (η) versus the volume percentage of each mixture. Comment on the
shape of the graphs.
2. Next look at the dependence of viscosity on temperature. Plot ln η vs. 1/T and determine the
activation energy and the error in the activation energy. (Use Excel to get the error in the slope
and use it in a simple propagated error analysis)
Reference
A. Halpern and J. Reeves, Experimental Physical Chemistry, 1988, Scott and Foresman

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