The data generally supported the hypothesis. It can be clearly seen that higher molarities of t-BuCl gave faster reaction rates, and it is an even clearer trend between the temperature of the system and the reaction rates. Higher temperatures gave noticeably faster reaction rates. The indicator, as hypothesised, turned from blue to yellow. Each variable was experimented on twice so the average of …show more content…
For the second concentration test, where 0.2mL of t-BuCl was used, that reaction time seemed to be the extent of how quick the reactions became. After that, they only seemed to stay the same or become slower. This could be because of the Acetone’s role as a catalyst for the reaction. In order to keep the tert-Butyl Chloride and Acetone’s collective volume at a steady 7.5mL, as the amount of the t-BuCl increased with each test, the Acetone’s volume had to go down by the same amount. Therefore, the reduced amount of Acetone in the final reaction would have slowed the reaction down. Another reason the reaction did not speed up is because there is only so much of one reactant you can increase the concentration (amount) of before it becomes a limiting reagent and it is a possibility that this is the case for …show more content…
In regards to the three mentioned definitions of acids and bases, this experiment’s reaction of acids and bases satisfies all three definitions. The reason the reaction turned acidic is because it is only up to the liquid outside the organic molecules to balance out the pH of the NaOH. When the NaOH is diluted in water, this is unable to balance out the pH. However, with the addition of Acetone to the tert-Butyl Chloride and its reaction with water, the Acetone acts as a catalyst to bring down the activation complex. Now that t-BuCl and water are able to react, HCl is formed, which is able to counter the NaOH and bring the reaction over to the acidic side, turning the indicator