Simple Titration
Purpose
To titrate an acid with a
base and use the titration
data to determine the
concentration of the acid
Materials
goggles, apron,
2 beakers (100 mL or 150
mL), 250 mL waste
beaker, 125 mL
Erlenmeyer flask,
25 mL buret, 50 mL
buret, phenolphthalein
indicator, ring stand,
double buret clamp,
wash bottle, hydrochloric
acid (HCl) of unknown
concentration, 100 mL of
0.10 M sodium hydroxide
(NaOH) solution, sheet of
white paper, magnetic
stirrer and stir bar
(optional)
C.1.19 / Curriculum Framework / How Can You Determine the Concentration of an Acid?
Indiana Chemistry Standards Resource, November 2003
Procedure
Note: Hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide are caustic and
will cause serious tissue damage. Wear goggles at all times.
1. Attach the double buret clamp to the ring stand.
2. Place 80 to 100 mL each of HCl and NaOH solutions in separate,
labeled 100 mL beakers.
3. Close the valve on the 25 mL buret. Rinse the buret with acid from
the acid beaker, making sure to completely rinse the inside wall of
the buret with acid as you pour out of the top of the buret into the
waste beaker or the sink. Repeat.
4. Place this buret on the left side of the buret clamp.
5. Rinse the 50 mL buret with base. Repeat. Put the NaOH buret on
the right side of the buret clamp. If using a magnetic stirrer, place
the buret high enough so that the Erlenmeyer flask on the stirrer
will fit below the buret.
6. Fill the acid buret on the left with acid; fill above the zero mark. Fill
the base buret on the right with base; fill above the zero mark.
7. Drain enough solution from each buret into the waste beaker to
remove the air from the buret tip, to rinse the buret tip, and to bring
the liquid level into the graduated region of the buret.
8. In the data table, record the initial reading of both burets,
estimating to the nearest 0.01 mL. Record the concentration of the
NaOH solution in the data table.
9. Into the Erlenmeyer flask, draw off 10 to 15 mL of the acid. Add
distilled water to the flask to bring the volume up to about 25 mL.
Add two drops phenolphthalein indicator. If using a magnetic stirrer,
put a stir bar into the flask.
10. Place the flask underneath the base buret. Make sure the base buret
tip extends slightly down into flask. Slowly release the NaOH from
the buret into the flask while constantly swirling the contents of the
flask. Stop occasionally to wash down the inside surfaces of the flask
frequently with a little distilled water from the wash bottle. If using
a magnetic stirrer it should be on a slow to medium setting.
11. When a pink color begins to appear at the point of contact with the
base, add the base drop by drop. When the last drop added causes
the color to just appear and it does not disappear, stop the titration.
A sheet of white paper under the flask makes it easier to detect the
color change.
( continued )
Simple Titration
12. If you overshoot the end point, add enough acid from the acid buret on the left to make
the solution clear. Try again to get the very light pink color again by adding NaOH drop
by drop and swirling in between drops.
13. Read the burets to the nearest 0.01 mL and record these final readings in the data table.
14. Discard the liquid from the flask and rinse it with tap water a few times and then with
distilled water a few times. Refill the burets with acid and base and run a second and third
trial using the same procedure.
15. Dispose of all solutions as directed by your teacher. Clean all glassware as instructed
by your teacher.

Data

Data Table Trial

Molarity of NaOH _______ 1 2 3
Final volume HCl
Initial volume HCl
Volume HCl used
Final volume NaOH
Initial volume NaOH
Volume NaOH used
Moles NaOH
Moles HCl
Molarity of HCl

Average Molarity of HCl

Calculations
1. Write a balanced equation for the reaction between HCl and NaOH.

2. What is the mole ratio of NaOH to HCl?

3. Calculate the volumes of HCl and NaOH used for each trial and record in the data table.

4. Calculate the number of moles of HCl and NaOH used for each trial and record in the data table.

5. Calculate the molarity of the HCl for each trial and the average of the three trials.
Record in the data table.

C.1.19 / Curriculum Framework / How Can You Determine the Concentration of an Acid?
Indiana Chemistry Standards Resource, November 2003
Simple Titration

Analysis and Conclusions

1. What is the purpose of the phenolphthalein? Why are indicators used in titrations?

2. What should the relationship be between H3O+ and OH – concentrations when the
end point is reached?

3. Hydrochloric acid is monoprotic. What adjustments would have to be made in your

calculations if you were titrating a diprotic acid?

4. Why is it necessary to remove all the air bubbles from the buret?

C.1.19 / Curriculum Framework / How Can You Determine the Concentration of an Acid?
Indiana Chemistry Standards Resource, November 2003
Simple Titration

Teacher Directions
Pre-lab preparation and discussion:
• Prepare the unknown HCl solution as 0.15 M so that the titration can be made
with less than 50 mL of 0.10 M NaOH.
• When students are doing their second and third trials they should watch the buret level closely.
If liquid is dispensed below the buret scale the titration must be repeated.
• Instruct students that they should label the beakers “A” for acid and “B” for base.
• The acid buret should be on the left and the base buret should be on the right.
• If the burets are going to be used multiple times in a single day, they only need to
be rinsed prior to the day’s first use, assuming that all students use the smaller buret
for the acid and the larger buret for the base.
• Take special care in instructing students how to use the awkward and fragile burets.
Explain that the buret scale corresponds to the liquid in the buret, not how much liquid
has been dispensed.
• Instruct students how to properly swirl the flask during titration to facilitate mixing
and eliminate spilling or splashing.
• Make sure students understand the importance of adding the NaOH slowly to avoid
going beyond the end point. Instruct students to use white paper as a background to
help find the end point.
• Color-blind students will have difficulty judging the end point. Make sure that
color-blind students have someone to help them determine the end point.

Answer Key
1. Phenolphthalein is an indicator, a compound whose color changes as the pH of a
solution changes. Indicators are used to determine the equivalence point, the point
at which the two solutions in the titration are present in chemically equivalent amounts.
2. They should be equal to each other.
3. A diprotic acid of the same concentration would have required twice as
much 0.10 M NaOH to neutralize it. The calculated molarity of the acid would
have to be divided by 2 to account for the mole ratio of 2 moles base per 1 mol acid.
4. The air bubbles take up volume that is mistakenly attributed to the solution.
The volume of solution used would be less than what the buret reads and would
throw off all calculations.

C.1.19 / Curriculum Framework / How Can You Determine the Concentration of an Acid?
Indiana Chemistry Standards Resource, November 2003