Conductivity and Water Purity

816 Words4 Pages
Shane Cronk Biol. Lab 171 Section 029 Conductivity and water purity Introduction The point of this experiment was to figure out if there were any charged particles, also known as TDS (total dissolved solids), in a solution. This helps to determine the purity of the solution as far as ionic particles are concerned. We checked the conductivity of different premixed solutions using a Logger Pro program and Vernier conductivity probe #21. A hypothesis for the experiment states that solutions with charged particles are going to conduct an electrical charge whereas solutions with molecular particles will not. There may be a direct correlation between the number of charged particles and the conductivity of the solution. Results Table 1 Substance | Conductivity (μs/cm) | TDS (mg/L) | Sodium chloride (NaCl) | 5432 | 3259.2 | Calcium chloride (CaCl2) | 9127 | 5476.2 | Methanol (CH4O) | 19.09 | 11.454 | Ethanol (C2H6O) | 19.09 | 11.454 | Sucrose (C12H22O12) | 19.09 | 11.454 | Glucose (C6H12O6) | 19.55 | 11.73 | Freshwater | 2826 | 1695.6 | Saltwater | 13800 | 8280 | Tap water | 429.6 | 257.76 | Bottled water | 19.09 | 11.454 | Distilled water | 19.09 | 11.454 | Sports drink | 2855 | 1713 | Figure 1 Table 2 Substance | Conductivity (μs/cm) | TDS (mg/L) | Methanol | 19.09 | 11.454 | Ethanol | 19.09 | 11.454 | Sucrose | 19.09 | 11.454 | Glucose | 19.55 | 11.73 | Tap water | 429.6 | 257.76 | Bottled water | 19.09 | 11.454 | Distilled water | 19.09 | 11.454 | Figure 2 Discussion and conclusion Checking for the presence of charged particles can test solution purity. Particles, in relation to this experiment, come in two forms: molecular and ionic. Molecular compounds are ones, which have shared electrons between the atoms and do not carry an overall charge for the molecule. Ionic compounds are ones that transfer
Open Document