Titration Experiment

Backgrounds

Our A-level center organized an event to let Grade 9 students who wanted to study in our center learn more about our center. During this event, our teachers set different lessons and Grade 9 students could choose what they were interested in. In order to let them have better experience during the lessons, our A-level center also asked its students to take part in the lessons and help them.

What I did

I was proud of taking part in the Chemistry lessons because our Chemistry teacher chose students by herself instead of choosing students randomly. (Actually, all teachers except Chemistry teacher chose students to take part in their classes randomly.) During the Chemistry lessons(actually, we had three same lessons at that time), I needed to help students do an experiment called titration.

Introduction: what is titration

Titration is used to indicate the concentration of an unknown solution, which is usually used in acid-base titration.

The actual end point of the titration usually adds slightly more amount of solution than it need to ensure the other solution is fully reacted.

In acid-base titration, we often use litmus, methyl orange and phenolphthalein as indicator.

My preparation

Truth to be told, titration is an experiment in the A-level Chemistry practical paper syllabus. In other words, students in Grade 11 had already did it in their A-level examinations. But thing is that, as Grade 10 IGCSE students, I only knew the theoretical knowledge about this experiment. In addition, I was not good at doing experiments on my own. I even felt scared of using a burner! In other words, it must be a challenge for me to do this experiment.

Practicing it in advance

Our teacher found the spare time and let us do the titration experiment in the school laboratory in advance. She taught us the theoretical knowledge first (and I had acquired it before), then she let us do the experiment step by step and guided students.

Here is a photo from our Class Advisor.

Review and improve the experiment

It was hard for us to use the burette and pipette. We hadn’t used it before and the way to use them was a little bit complex. I practiced the way to use them for three times in order to master it.

My feelings

I was proud of getting the opportunity to do this titration experiment. Firstly, titration is an experiment in the A-level Chemistry examination syllabus. I practiced it for my A-level Chemistry examination in advance. Secondly, I am poor in doing the experiment on my own. (It is not my fault but the problem the majority of Chinese students have. In Chinese, Chemistry exams don’t involve practical experiments, leading to a fact that most of us are poor in it.) However, if you want to study Chemistry in the universities all around the world, it’s important to develop skills of doing the practical experiment. But we cannot access the chemical laboratory to practice them in our daily life. In other words, today’s titration experiment was a valuable experience for me.