Spectroscopy of Iron Tablets

588 Words3 Pages
Problem statement: Mary noticed one day that her symptoms of anaemia had appeared. She took some iron supplements which she had at home, but her symptoms did not go away. On closer inspection of the label, she found that her tablets were expired. She went to her local pharmacy and bought a new package of tablets of the same brand. She used it as prescribed and her symptoms disappeared. Plan and design an experiment based on this observation by proposing a suitable hypothesis. Hypothesis: The iron content of the expired tablets is less than that of the non-expired tablets. Aim: To determine the iron content of expired and non-expired iron supplement tablets using UV-vis spectroscopy. Apparatus and Materials: samples of expired and non expired tablets; mortar and pestle, conical flasks, electronic balance, spatulas, measuring cylinder, 1M H2SO4, Bunsen burner, matches, tripod stand, heat gauze, beakers, filter paper, filter funnel, glass rod, 250cm volumetric flask, distilled water, pipette, ammonium iron(II) sulphate, spectrometer, Possible method: Sample preparation: 1. Using mortar and pestle, crush 10 of the expired tablets finely. Place conical flask on electronic balance, tare. Using spatula, measure out 5g of crushed tablets. 2. Add 15cm³ 1M H2SO4 and 10cm distilled water. Swirl to dissolve. If particles remain, heat gently until dissolved. Filter any further undissolved particles, transferring solution into a 100cm beaker. 3. pipette 25cm of solution into beaker; quantitatively transfer to 250cm volumetric flask; make up to the mark with distilled water. Invert flask several times to ensure homogeneous mixing. 4. Repeat steps 1-4 using clean apparatus and non-expired tablets. Ensure to label both volumetric flasks appropriately to avoid confusion. Standards preparation: 1. Place 100cm beaker on electronic balance, tare. Using spatula, add
Open Document