Alka Seltzer Lab Report

Anne Zhang 3/6/14

BSGE 7-1

Lab Report

Problem Paragraph 1

Question: What is the effect of temperature on the dissolving time of an Alka-Seltzer?

Alka-Seltzer is made up of baking soda, aspirin, and citric acid which gives the tablet the fizz when dropped in any temperature water. “Alka-Seltzer is a medication that works as a pain reliever and an antacid. (Antacids help neutralize stomach acidity, which can cause heartburn.)” (Science Buddies, Carbonation Countdown: The Effect of Temperature on Reaction Time). To take the Alka-Seltzer tablet you have to dissolve it in water causing a chemical reaction to form and the whole solution begins to fizz. The fizz occurs

One thing that needs to be kept constant is the amount of water for each temperature. If the amount of water is varied that means that the data would not be that reliable and easy to look at. This can be kept constant by measuring how much water by looking at the meniscus. Another constant has to be the Alka-Seltzer tablets. This has to be kept constant because there are many different Alka-Seltzer tablets like there are ones that are citrus flavored and there are ones that treat your flu. To keep this constant you have to buy the same kind of Alka-Seltzer tablet. Each of the Alka-Seltzer tablets might have a different kind of reaction for example one might contain more citric acid or might contain less aspirin. Additionally, another constant would be the type of water of used. You could use tap water or drinking water, they both have different properties for example tap water has many things added while normal drinking water lack those. If you use two different kinds of water then your data might be inconsistent and you want reliable data. Another thing that must be kept constant is who much of the Alka-Seltzer tablet you use and what the surface area is. This has to be kept constant since maybe the crushed Alka-Seltzer tablet will dissolve faster because of its surface area, if you use different surface area your data will then again be

Start with the hot water and first measure the temperature. Record it.

8. Then pour 40 ml into the beaker. You can measure how much water was used by looking at the meniscus.

9. Get your stopwatch ready and drop the Alka-Seltzer tablet at the same time you started the timer.

10. When it finishes dissolving (you can see through the water and there is no more fizzing.) stop the timer and record the results.

11. Rinse your beaker thoroughly to wash any excess powder.

12. Repeat steps 7-11 3 more times for reliability. To make sure the temperature still stays hot by continue heating the water a little bit using the hot plate.

13. Next, repeat steps 7-11 4 times however this time you don’t do it with hot water you do it with the cold water. To keep the cold water cold put ice cubes in the water if it starts to become warm.

14. Then, repeat steps 7-11 another 4 times but with the room temperature water. For the room temperature water just leave it in the room but try not to change the room’s temperature.

15. Try to put all your recorded data into a table for organization

16. Repeat the entire experiment for more reliable data.

17. Clean up all your materials and put them all away.

Data