A technician made some dilute sodium hydroxide solution by carefully adding some solid sodium hydroxide to pure water - Edexcel - GCSE Chemistry - Question 6 - 2013 - Paper 1
Question 6
A technician made some dilute sodium hydroxide solution by carefully adding some solid sodium hydroxide to pure water.
This is the hazard symbol on a bottle of soli... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:A technician made some dilute sodium hydroxide solution by carefully adding some solid sodium hydroxide to pure water - Edexcel - GCSE Chemistry - Question 6 - 2013 - Paper 1
Step 1
State what this symbol shows about sodium hydroxide.
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Answer
The symbol indicates that sodium hydroxide is corrosive. This means it can damage skin and clothing, as well as cause burns.
Step 2
Sodium hydroxide solution reacts with dilute hydrochloric acid. During the reaction heat is released. What type of reaction is this?
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This reaction is classified as a neutralisation reaction, where an acid reacts with a base to produce salt and water, while releasing heat in the process.
Step 3
Explain the meaning of catalyst.
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A catalyst is a substance that increases the rate of a reaction without itself being consumed or changed in the process. It achieves this by lowering the activation energy required for the reaction.
Step 4
Describe what this shows about the effect of the surface area of calcium carbonate on the rate of this reaction.
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The results suggest that smaller pieces of calcium carbonate have a larger surface area, leading to a higher rate of reaction. This means that the smaller pieces produce more carbon dioxide in five minutes compared to larger pieces.
Step 5
Describe how you could use magnesium ribbon and a solution of hydrochloric acid to show that decreasing the concentration of the hydrochloric acid changes the rate of this reaction.
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To demonstrate this, you would prepare several test tubes containing hydrochloric acid at varying concentrations. Then, add equal lengths of magnesium ribbon to each tube.
Observe the time taken for the magnesium to completely react by measuring the volume of hydrogen gas produced at each concentration. You should find that higher concentrations produce gas faster, while lower concentrations slow the reaction down.