Experiment 4 – The Iodine Clock Experiment:

Determination of Reaction Rates

Purpose:
1. Using the oxidation-reduction of peroxysufate ion (S2O82-) and Iodide ion (I-) [Equation 1] as
a basic reaction with the oxidation-reduction of thiosulfate (S2O32-) and iodine (I2) [Equation
2] as a detection mechanism to determine the factors that alter reaction rates. Simultaneously,
the experiment will allow the determination of the initial reaction rate and order.
S2O82- + 2 I- -> 2 SO42- + I2……………………………(1)
2 S2O32- + I2 -> 2 I- + S4O62-………………….………..(2)
2. Determine the reaction rate of S2O82- + 2 I- -> 2 SO42- + I2 at different temperatures, and
determine the rate constant and activation energy for the reaction.
Background:
In general, the rate of a reaction can be expressed in a mathematical equation as follows:
Rate = k [S2O82-]x[I-]y……………………………………….(3)
Where:
k is the reaction constant, related to characteristics such as activation energy and the frequency of
molecular collisions.
[S2O82-] and [I-] are the concentrations of the reagents.
x and y are the reaction orders of each reagent. These are related to the reaction mechanism.

We can determine the values for k, x, and y with three experiments. We can use the reaction rate
from the first experiment as a reference, then increase the initial concentration of S 2O82- while
keeping all other properties the same in the second experiment, and increase the concentration of
I- while maintaining other factors in the third experiment. We can determine the values for k, x,
and y by comparing the reaction rates from these three experiments.
(4)
(5)
The initial rate for reaction (1) can be expressed in terms of the amount of S2O82- disappearing
over a unit of time:
Rate = -[S2O82-]/Δt……………………………………(6)
If we can determine the rate at which the concentration of S2O82- changes in a short period at the
beginning of the reaction, we can calculate the reaction rate, which is known as the initial rate
method.
We can use reaction (2) to determine the rate of reaction (1). Reaction (2) is extremely rapid, and
happens almost immediately, so if we add S2O32- into the reaction mixture of reaction (1), the I2
formed from reaction (1) will immediately be consumed so reaction (1) can continue to happen.
We can think of the situation as I2 not being present as long as there is S2O32-. Once all of the
S2O32- has been depleted, the I2 in the mixture will react with the starch already present and
change color. At this point:
Δ[S2O32-] = 2Δ[S2O82-]
And reaction (6) can be re-written as:
(7)
When we measure the time at which the change in color occurs, we can use equation (7) to
determine the reaction rate. If [S2O32-] is small, the reaction rate obtained will be the initial
reaction rate, which can be used to determine the k of the reaction with equation (3).
Equipment/Reagents:
Equipment:
Pipette filler bulb, timer, large test tube (1.5X20cm) X 2, test tube holder, 1L beaker,
thermometer, 5mL volumetric pipette, 3mL dropping pipette, 50mL Erlenmeyer flask X 12
Reagents:
0.2M NaI, 0.1M K2S2O8, 0.2M NaCl, 0.01M Na2S2O3, 1% starch solution, 0.1M K2SO4
Procedure:
1. Obtain 7 clean Erleneyer flasks and label them No. 1-1, No. 1-2, No. 2-1, No. 2-2, etc.
as listed in table 3-1.
2. Place the appropriate amounts of each solution [NaI(aq)+NaCl(aq)+starch
solution+K2SO4(aq)] in Erlenmeyer flasks.
3. Measure the appropriate amount of Na2S2O3(aq) into each Erlenmeyer flask using a
volumetric pipette.
4. Place the appropriate amount of K2S2O8 in a clean test tube.
5. Note that once you add the K2S2O8 into the reaction mixture, the reaction will begin;
therefore, it is important that you record the time while adding the reagent, cap the
flask and continuously swirl the mixture to achieve a homogenous mixture.
 6. Record the time point at which a blue-black color appears in the flask.
Also note that the entire mixture will change color at the same time. If only part of the
mixture changes color, then the mixture was not fully homogenized. The color change
should be observed within 4 minutes.
7. If the time difference between experiments No. 1-3 exceeds 15-20 seconds after each
has been performed twice, the experiments need to be performed again.
8. Calculate the k, x, and y values from the reactions.
9. Clean the Erlenmeyer flasks with brushes, then dry the flasks and return the flasks to
the appropriate place.
Results:
Initial concentration in reaction mixture Time
Experiment Rate
[S2O32-] [S2O82-] [I-] (Δt)

No. 1

No. 2

No. 3

(a) Calculate the initial reaction rates of experiments No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3 (use the average
time for the overall reaction, and give correct units).

(b) Calculate the reaction order for this experiment.

(c) Calculate the reaction constant for this experiment.

(d) Please write the correct reaction rate equation for this experiment:

Questions:
1. In this experiment, which reagents did not participate in the reaction? Can we substitute these
reagents with water? What was the purpose of the starch solution?