An experiment was developed for the general chemistry laboratory curriculum where students explore the kinetics of the reaction between typical food dyes (Blue Dye #1 and Allura� Red) and household bleach, NaClO. The purpose of the experiment was to introduce the concept of pseudo-first order kinetics. Students also learned to develop a rate law for a pseudo-first order kinetics reaction. A spectrophotometer was used to measure the decrease in absorbance throughout the reaction. Pseudo-first order conditions were maintained by using a bleach concentration approximately 1,000 times higher than the concentration of the dye in the reaction. Students found the rate constant for either dye and confirmed the order with respect to the bleach and the dye.

Pseudo-first order kinetics for the general chemistry laboratory

243rd National Meeting (2012)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.