A 50 mL of Mercury solution was prepared by mixing 2 45g of Mercury chloride and 4.68g of Mercury sulfate in one container them dissolve and complete to volume with distilled water. What is the final concentration Mercury in the final solution? Express concentration in Molarity to 4 s.f and %(w/v) to 3 s.f.

1 answer

To find the final concentration of mercury in the solution, we will first need to determine the amount of mercury contributed by both mercury chloride (HgCl₂) and mercury sulfate (HgSO₄) in terms of moles, then convert into molarity and percent concentration.

  1. Calculate the Molar Masses:

    • Mercury Chloride (HgCl₂):

      • Molar mass of Hg = 200.59 g/mol
      • Molar mass of Cl = 35.45 g/mol (2 Cl)
      • Molar mass of HgCl₂ = 200.59 g/mol + 2 × 35.45 g/mol = 200.59 + 70.90 = 271.49 g/mol
    • Mercury Sulfate (HgSO₄):

      • Molar mass of S = 32.07 g/mol
      • Molar mass of O = 16.00 g/mol (4 O)
      • Molar mass of HgSO₄ = 200.59 g/mol + 32.07 g/mol + 4 × 16.00 g/mol = 200.59 + 32.07 + 64.00 = 296.66 g/mol
  2. Calculate the moles of each compound:

    • Moles of HgCl₂: \[ \text{Mass} = 2.45 , \text{g} \] \[ \text{Moles} = \frac{\text{Mass}}{\text{Molar mass}} = \frac{2.45 , \text{g}}{271.49 , \text{g/mol}} \approx 0.00903 , \text{mol} \] Each mole of HgCl₂ provides 1 mole of Hg, so moles of Hg from HgCl₂ = 0.00903 mol.

    • Moles of HgSO₄: \[ \text{Mass} = 4.68 , \text{g} \] \[ \text{Moles} = \frac{\text{Mass}}{\text{Molar mass}} = \frac{4.68 , \text{g}}{296.66 , \text{g/mol}} \approx 0.01575 , \text{mol} \] Each mole of HgSO₄ provides 1 mole of Hg, so moles of Hg from HgSO₄ = 0.01575 mol.

  3. Total moles of mercury: \[ \text{Total moles of Hg} = \text{moles from HgCl₂} + \text{moles from HgSO₄} = 0.00903 , \text{mol} + 0.01575 , \text{mol} \approx 0.02478 , \text{mol} \]

  4. Calculate the final concentration in Molarity: The final volume of the solution is 50 mL, which is 0.050 L. \[ \text{Molarity (M)} = \frac{\text{Total moles of Hg}}{\text{Volume in L}} = \frac{0.02478 , \text{mol}}{0.050 , \text{L}} = 0.4956 , \text{M} \]

    Rounded to 4 significant figures: \[ \text{Molarity} = 0.4956 , \text{M} \]

  5. Calculate % (w/v):

    • % (w/v) is calculated as: \[ \text{Percent (w/v)} = \left( \frac{\text{Mass of solute (g)}}{\text{Volume of solution (mL)}} \right) \times 100% \] The total mass of mercury from both sources:
    • From HgCl₂:
      • Mass of Hg from HgCl₂ = \( 2.45 , \text{g} \times \frac{200.59}{271.49} \approx 1.81 , \text{g} \)
    • From HgSO₄:
      • Mass of Hg from HgSO₄ = \( 4.68 , \text{g} \times \frac{200.59}{296.66} \approx 3.16 , \text{g} \)

    The total mass of Mercury is: \[ \text{Total mass of Hg} = 1.81 + 3.16 = 4.97 , \text{g} \]

    Now calculate the % (w/v): \[ \text{Percent (w/v)} = \left( \frac{4.97 , \text{g}}{50 , \text{mL}} \right) \times 100 = 9.94 % \]

    Rounded to 3 significant figures: \[ \text{Percent (w/v)} = 9.94% \]

Final Results:

  • Concentration in Molarity: 0.4956 M
  • Concentration in % (w/v): 9.94%