If silver chloride is not dry when its mass is determined, will the calculated percent of silver in the alloy be too high or too low?
%Ag = (mass AgCl*factor/100)*100 = ??
So if mass AgCl is too high, what does that do to %Ag?
If silver chloride is not dry when its mass is determined, the calculated percent of silver in the alloy will be too low.
To understand why, let's break down the process of determining the percent of silver in the alloy.
First, the sample of silver chloride is weighed to determine its mass. Then, it is heated to decompose the chloride and convert it into silver metal, which is left behind. The mass of the silver metal is then determined, and the percentage of silver in the original silver chloride sample is calculated using the masses of the silver chloride and the silver metal.
Now, if the silver chloride is not dry at the time of weighing, it means that it contains some moisture. As the sample is heated, not only will the chloride decompose, but the moisture will also evaporate. This means that the final mass of the silver metal will include the mass of any moisture present in the silver chloride sample.
Since the mass of the silver chloride is used to calculate the percentage of silver, if moisture is present, it will add to the measured mass, leading to a higher value. However, the moisture does not contribute to the actual amount of silver in the sample. As a result, the calculated percentage of silver in the alloy will be lower than the actual percentage.
Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that the silver chloride is completely dry before determining its mass in order to obtain accurate calculations of the percentage of silver in the alloy.