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# Acid Dissociation Constant, Ka

## Introduction

Acetic Acid, HC2H3O2, is a weak acid that dissociates according to this equation:

${\text{H}}{{\text{C}}_{\text{2}}}{{\text{H}}_{\text{3}}}{{\text{O}}_{\text{2}}}{\text{(aq)}} \to {{\text{H}}^{\text{ + }}}{\text{(aq) + }}{{\text{C}}_{\text{2}}}{{\text{H}}_{\text{3}}}{{\text{O}}_{\text{2}}}^{\text{ - }}{\text{(aq)}}$

In this experiment, you will experimentally determine the dissociation constant, Ka, for acetic acid, starting with solutions of different initial concentrations.

## Objectives

In this experiment, you will

• Gain experience mixing solutions of specified concentration.
• Experimentally determine the dissociation constant, Ka, of an acid.
• Investigate the effect of initial solution concentration on the equilibrium constant.

## Sensors and Equipment

This experiment features the following Vernier sensors and equipment.

### Option 2

You may also need an interface and software for data collection. What do I need for data collection?

## Chemistry with Vernier

See other experiments from the lab book.

 1 Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions 2 Freezing and Melting of Water 3 Another Look at Freezing Temperature 4 Heat of Fusion of Ice 5 Find the Relationship: An Exercise in Graphing Analysis 6 Boyle's Law: Pressure-Volume Relationship in Gases 7 Pressure-Temperature Relationship in Gases 8 Fractional Distillation 9 Evaporation and Intermolecular Attractions 10 Vapor Pressure of Liquids 11 Determining the Concentration of a Solution: Beer's Law 12 Effect of Temperature on Solubility of a Salt 13 Properties of Solutions: Electrolytes and Non-Electrolytes 14 Conductivity of Solutions: The Effect of Concentration 15 Using Freezing Point Depression to Find Molecular Weight 16 Energy Content of Foods 17 Energy Content of Fuels 18 Additivity of Heats of Reaction: Hess's Law 19 Heat of Combustion: Magnesium 20 Chemical Equilibrium: Finding a Constant, Kc 21 Household Acids and Bases 22 Acid Rain 23 Titration Curves of Strong and Weak Acids and Bases 24 Acid-Base Titration 25 Titration of a Diprotic Acid: Identifying an Unknown 26 Using Conductivity to Find an Equivalence Point 27 Acid Dissociation Constant, Ka 28 Establishing a Table of Reduction Potentials: Micro-Voltaic Cells 29 Lead Storage Batteries 30 Rate Law Determination of the Crystal Violet Reaction 31 Time-Release Vitamin C Tablets 32 The Buffer in Lemonade 33 Determining the Free Chlorine Content of Swimming Pool Water 34 Determining the Quantity of Iron in a Vitamin Tablet 35 Determining the Phosphoric Acid Content in Soft Drinks 36 Microscale Acid-Base Titration

### Experiment 27 from Chemistry with Vernier Lab Book

#### Included in the Lab Book

Vernier lab books include word-processing files of the student instructions, essential teacher information, suggested answers, sample data and graphs, and more.