IChO 1976 · Theory problem 2

Formula of a crystallohydrate

A sample of 2.3793 g of crystallohydrate of the type \(\ce{M_xA_y . zH2O}\), where M is a metal, reacted with an excess of \(\ce{SOCl2}\). Gaseous products formed by the reaction were introduced into a barium chloride solution containing hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide. Small quantities of \(\ce{SOCl2}\) carried by the gaseous products were removed by freezing out. The mass of the precipitate that is deposited from the solution, was 14.004 g. It was found to contain 13.74 mass % of sulphur.

In another experiment, 1.1896 g of the initial substance were dissolved in water and the solution was diluted to a volume of 100 \(\mathrm{cm^3}\). One fifth of this solution required to react with 10 \(\mathrm{cm^3}\) of a 0.2-molar \(\ce{AgNO3}\) solution. The mass of the precipitate formed by the titration was 0.28664 g. (The end point of the titration was determined by the conductometric method.)

Problems:

2.1 Calculate the summary formula of the crystallohydrate. (Use the relative atomic mass values given in the attached Periodical Table of Elements.)

2.2 If you know that the sample can contain a maximum of seven moles of water per one mole of the crystallohydrate, give an example of another possible hydrate that cannot come into consideration due to the given limitation.

Official English text of the problem.

Answers

  • 2.1 \(\boxed{\ce{CoCl2 . 6H2O}}\), cobalt(II) chloride hexahydrate. Compositional SMILES: [Co+2].[Cl-].[Cl-].O.O.O.O.O.O.
  • 2.2 A formal different-metal candidate is \(\boxed{\ce{SnCl4 . 12H2O}}\), tin(IV) chloride dodecahydrate, which exceeds the limit because \(12>7\). Compositional SMILES: [Sn+4].[Cl-].[Cl-].[Cl-].[Cl-].O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O. However, this is only a near-candidate: it does not match all the numerical data at their stated precision. That discrepancy is quantified below.

These disconnected SMILES express composition; they do not specify metal coordination, water positions, or crystal structure.

Solution

2.1 — Identification of the anion

The amount of silver nitrate in the titration is

\[ n(\ce{AgNO3}) =(0.2\ \mathrm{mol\,dm^{-3}}) (0.010\ \mathrm{dm^3}) =0.0020\ \mathrm{mol}. \]

Silver nitrate, [Ag+].[O-][N+](=O)[O-], supplies silver(I) ions, [Ag+]. The precipitate mass per mole of silver supplied is

\[ \frac{0.28664\ \mathrm g}{0.0020\ \mathrm{mol}} =143.32\ \mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}. \]

Subtracting the molar mass of silver gives

\[ 143.32-107.87=35.45\ \mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}, \]

which identifies chloride, \(\ce{Cl^-}\), [Cl-]. The precipitate is therefore silver chloride, \(\ce{AgCl}\), [Ag+].[Cl-]:

\[ \ce{Ag+ + Cl- -> AgCl(s)}. \]

The entire 1.1896 g sample contains

\[ n(\ce{Cl^-})=5(0.0020)=0.0100\ \mathrm{mol}. \]

Consequently, the 2.3793 g sample contains

\[ n(\ce{Cl^-}) =0.0100\frac{2.3793}{1.1896} =0.02000084\ \mathrm{mol} \simeq0.02000\ \mathrm{mol}. \]

Determination of the water

The barium precipitate is barium sulfate, \(\ce{BaSO4}\), [Ba+2].[O-]S(=O)(=O)[O-]. Its calculated sulfur content is

\[ w(\ce S) =\frac{32.06}{137.34+32.06+4(16.00)} =\frac{32.06}{233.40} =0.13736, \]

or \(13.736\%\), agreeing with the reported \(13.74\%\).

Thionyl chloride consumes the water of crystallization:

\[ \ce{SOCl2 + H2O -> SO2 + 2HCl}. \]

Hydrogen peroxide oxidizes the sulfur dioxide, and barium sulfate precipitates. The combined absorption reaction is

\[ \ce{SO2 + H2O2 + BaCl2 -> BaSO4(s) + 2HCl}. \]

The molecular species and reagent compositions in these equations are:

Name Formula SMILES
Thionyl chloride \(\ce{SOCl2}\) O=S(Cl)Cl
Water \(\ce{H2O}\) O
Sulfur dioxide \(\ce{SO2}\) O=S=O
Hydrogen chloride \(\ce{HCl}\) Cl
Hydrogen peroxide \(\ce{H2O2}\) OO
Barium chloride \(\ce{BaCl2}\) [Ba+2].[Cl-].[Cl-]

Thus, one mole of crystal water produces one mole of sulfur dioxide and ultimately one mole of barium sulfate:

\[ n(\ce{H2O})=n(\ce{BaSO4}) =\frac{14.004\ \mathrm g}{233.40\ \mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}} =0.06000\ \mathrm{mol}. \]

Removing entrained thionyl chloride is essential: otherwise its hydrolysis in the absorbing solution would produce additional sulfate and overestimate the crystal water.

The water-to-chloride ratio is therefore

\[ \frac{n(\ce{H2O})}{n(\ce{Cl^-})} =\frac{0.06000}{0.02000084} =2.99987\simeq3. \]

Hence there are three water molecules per chloride ion.

Identification of the metal

Using \(M(\ce{H2O})=18.016\ \mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}\), the masses in the 2.3793 g sample are

\[ m(\ce{H2O}) =0.06000(18.016) =1.08096\ \mathrm g, \]

\[ m(\ce{Cl}) =0.02000084(35.45) =0.70903\ \mathrm g, \]

and therefore

\[ m_M=2.3793-1.08096-0.70903 =0.58931\ \mathrm g. \]

The metal mass per mole of chloride is

\[ E_M=\frac{0.58931\ \mathrm g}{0.02000084\ \mathrm{mol}} =29.464\ \mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}. \]

For an ordinary metal chloride \(\ce{MCl_q}\), where the metal has oxidation state \(+q\),

\[ A_{\mathrm r}(M)\simeq29.464q, \qquad z=3q. \]

For \(q=2\),

\[ A_{\mathrm r}(M)\simeq58.929, \]

which identifies cobalt, \(A_{\mathrm r}(\ce{Co})\simeq58.93\), present as the cobalt(II) ion, [Co+2]. The number of waters is then

\[ z=3(2)=6. \]

Therefore,

\[ \boxed{\ce{CoCl2 . 6H2O}}. \]

Its calculated molar mass provides a check:

\[ M=58.93+2(35.45)+6(18.016) =237.926\ \mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}, \]

so 2.3793 g is approximately \(0.01000\) mol, containing \(0.02000\) mol chloride and \(0.06000\) mol water, as required.

2.2 — A different metal and higher valence

The analytical relations are

\[ A_{\mathrm r}(M)\simeq29.464q, \qquad z=3q. \]

The seven-water restriction therefore permits only \(q=1\) or \(q=2\) for a simple chloride hydrate. A tetravalent metal would require twelve waters:

\[ \ce{MCl4 . 12H2O}. \]

A formal different-metal example is tin(IV) chloride dodecahydrate, \(\ce{SnCl4 . 12H2O}\). Its twelve waters exclude it under the stated restriction.

There is, however, a numerical inconsistency if this is claimed to satisfy the original analyses exactly. The inferred atomic mass for a tetravalent metal is

\[ A_{\mathrm r}(M)=4(29.464)=117.857, \]

whereas tin has \(A_{\mathrm r}(\ce{Sn})\simeq118.69\).

For the measured \(0.0100\) mol chloride in the second experiment, the proposed tin hydrate would have mass

\[ \begin{aligned} m &=\frac{0.0100}{4} \left[118.69+4(35.45)+12(18.016)\right]\\ &=1.191705\ \mathrm g, \end{aligned} \]

rather than \(1.1896\ \mathrm g\). The difference, approximately \(2.1\) mg, exceeds rounding of the reported sample mass.

Thus \(\ce{SnCl4 . 12H2O}\) supplies a formal higher-valence example excluded by the hydration limit, but cannot honestly be described as an exact second solution of all the supplied measurements.

The solution was checked against the official solution.