Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Your notes

Chemistry
Identification of Ions & Gases
Contents
Identification of Anions
Identification of Cations
Identification of Gases

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 Identification of Anions
Your notes
Identification of anions
Negatively charged non-metal ions are known as anions
You must be able to describe the tests for the following ions:
Carbonate ions, CO32–
Halide ions, Cl– , Br– , I–
Nitrate ions, NO3–
Sulfate ions, SO42–
Sulfite ions, SO32–

Test for carbonate ions

Carbonate compounds contain the carbonate ion, CO32-
The test for the carbonate ion is:
Add dilute acid
Bubble the gas released through limewater
Limewater turns cloudy if the carbonate ion is present
If a carbonate compound is present then fizzing / effervescence should be seen
as CO2 gas is produced, which forms a white precipitate of calcium carbonate when
bubbled through limewater:
CO32- (aq) + 2H+ (aq) → CO2 (g) + H2O (l)
CO2 (g) + Ca(OH)2 (aq) → CaCO3(s) + H2O(l)
The white precipitate turns limewater cloudy

Testing for carbonate ions

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 Your notes

Limewater turns milky in the presence of carbon dixoide caused by the formation of
insoluble calcium carbonate

Examiner Tips and Tricks

If you are asked to describe the test for carbonate ions, make sure that you say:
Bubble the gas produced through limewater, which turns cloudy if the
carbonate ion is present
Just saying that limewater turns cloudy is not enough
This isn't describing the test, it is stating the result

Test for halide ions

Halide ions are the negative ions / anions formed by the elements in Group 7
The test for the halide ions is:
Acidify the sample with nitric acid
Add silver nitrate solution, AgNO3,
A silver halide precipitate forms if a halide ion is present
The precipitate is indicated by the state symbol (s)
The colour of the silver halide precipitate depends on the halide ion:
The chloride ion forms a white precipitate of silver chloride
potassium chloride + silver nitrate → potassium nitrate + silver chloride

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 KCl (aq) + AgNO3 (aq) → KNO3 (aq) + AgCl (s)
The bromide ion forms a cream precipitate of silver bromide Your notes
potassium bromide + silver nitrate → potassium nitrate + silver bromide
KBr (aq) + AgNO3 (aq) → KNO3 (aq) + AgBr (s)
The iodide ion forms a yellow precipitate of silver iodide
potassium iodide + silver nitrate → potassium nitrate + silver iodide
KI (aq) + AgNO3 (aq) → KNO3 (aq) + AgI (s)
Testing for halide ions

Each silver halide produces a precipitate of a different colour

Examiner Tips and Tricks

The acidification step in the halide ion test must be done with nitric acid rather than
hydrochloric acid.
HCl contains the chloride ion which would interfere with the results.

Test for nitrate ions

Nitrate compounds contain the nitrate ion, NO3–
The test for the nitrate ion is

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 Add aqueous NaOH and aluminium foil
Warm gently and test the gas released Your notes
The gas given off is ammonia, NH3
Ammonia is a gas with a characteristic sharp choking smell that turns damp red litmus
paper blue
Test for sulfate ions
Sulfate compounds contain the sulfate ion, SO42-
The test for the sulfate ion is:
Acidify the sample with dilute nitric acid
Add a few drops of barium chloride solution
A white precipitate of barium sulfate is formed, if the sulfate ion is present
Ba2+ (aq) + SO42- (aq) → BaSO4 (s)
The test can also be carried out with barium nitrate solution

Testing for sulfate ions

A white precipitate of barium sulfate is a positive result for the presence of sulfate ions

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Nitric is added first to remove any carbonates which may be present which would also
produce a precipitate and interfere with the results.

Test for sulfite ions

Sulfite compounds contain the sulfite ion, SO32-

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The test for the sulfite ion is:
Add dilute acid Your notes
Warm the mixture gently
Bubble the gas released through potassium manganate(VII) solution
The potassium manganate(VII) solution changes from purple to colourless if the
sulfite ion is present

Examiner Tips and Tricks

For qualitative inorganic analysis, there will be one test for the metal cation and
another test for the non-metal anion.
If you are an extended level student you may be asked to write balanced ionic
equations for cation and anions tests, so make sure you know the formulae of all the
ions and precipitates formed.

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 Identification of Cations
Your notes
Identification of cations
Test for ammonium ions
Ammonium ions, NH4+, can be identified by gently warming a solution containing the
ions with sodium hydroxide solution
The sodium hydroxide solution is a source of hydroxide ions, OH–, for the test
This releases ammonia gas which turns damp red litmus paper blue

Testing for ammonium ions

Heating ammonium ions with sodium hydroxide solution releases ammonia gas which
turns damp red litmus blue
Metal cations in aqueous solution can be identified by the colour of the precipitate they
form on addition of sodium hydroxide and ammonia
Most transition metals produce hydroxides with distinctive colours

Test for metal ions with sodium hydroxide solution

If a small amount of sodium hydroxide solution is used, the resulting metal hydroxide
normally precipitates out of solution
If excess sodium hydroxide solutionis used, some of the precipitates may re-dissolve
For this reason, just a few drops of sodium hydroxide solutionare added at first
and very slowly

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 The sodium hydroxide test for the metal ion is:
Add a few drops of sodium hydroxide solution Your notes
Record any colour changes or precipitates formed
Add excess sodium hydroxide solution
Record any colour changes or changes to precipitates
Test for metal ions with ammonia solution
If a small amount of ammonia solution is used, the resulting metal hydroxide normally
precipitates out of solution
If excess ammonia solution is used, some of the precipitates may re-dissolve
For this reason, just a few drops of ammonia solution are added at first and very
slowly
The ammonia test for the metal ion is:
Add a few drops of ammonia solution
Record any colour changes or precipitates formed
Add excess ammonia solution
Record any colour changes or changes to precipitates

Metal ion tests summary

Initially, sodium hydroxide solution and ammonia solution give the same results for 2 - 3
drops
This is because they both contain the hydroxide ion, OH–

Metal Addition of 2-3 drops Addition of excess Addition of excess

Ion of NaOH or ammonia NaOH ammonia

Al3+ White precipitate forms Precipitate dissolves to Precipitate does not

form a colourless solution dissolve

Ca2+ White precipitate forms Precipitate does not Precipitate does not
dissolve dissolve

Cr3+ Green precipitate Precipitate dissolves to Precipitate does not

forms form a green solution dissolve

Cu2+ Light blue precipitate Precipitate does not Precipitate dissolves to

forms dissolve form a dark blue solution

Fe2+ Green precipitate Precipitate does not Precipitate does not

forms dissolve dissolve

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 Fe3+ Brown precipitate Precipitate does not Precipitate does not
forms dissolve dissolve
Your notes
Zn2+ White precipitate forms Precipitate dissolves to Precipitate dissolves to
form a colourless solution form a colourless solution

Analysing results
The tables above contain the results for all metal cations included in the syllabus
If a precipitate is formed from either sodium hydroxide or ammonia solution, then the
hydroxide is insoluble in water
For example, zinc chloride:
ZnCl2 (aq) + 2NaOH (aq) → Zn(OH)2 (s) + 2NaCl (aq)
There are 3 metal ions that all form white precipitates:
Aluminium ions, Al3+
Calcium ions, Ca2+
Zinc ions, Zn2+
Calcium ions, Ca2+, can be easily distinguished from Zn2+ and Al3+
The white precipitate of calcium hydroxide does not dissolve in excess sodium
hydroxide solution
The white precipitates of zinc hydroxide and aluminium hydroxide dissolve in excess
sodium hydroxide solution
Zinc ions, Zn2+, can then be distinguished from Al3+ ions as
The white precipitate of zinc hydroxide dissolves in excess ammonia solution
The white precipitate of aluminium hydroxide does not dissolve in excess ammonia
solution

Examiner Tips and Tricks

The ammonia or sodium hydroxide solution must be added very slowly. If it is added
too quickly and the precipitate is soluble in excess, then you run the risk of missing the
formation of the initial precipitate, which dissolves as quickly as it forms if excess
solution is added.
Be sure to distinguish between the term “colourless” and “clear”. A solution that loses
its colour has become colourless. A clear solution is one that you can see through
such as water. Solutions can be clear and have colour eg. dilute copper sulphate.

Flame tests for metal ions

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The flame test is used to identify the metal cations by the colour of the flame they
produce
Your notes
Ions from different metals produce different colours
Dip the loop of an unreactive metal wire such as nichrome or platinum in concentrated
acid and then hold it in the blue flame of a Bunsen burner until there is no colour change
This is an important step as the test will only work if there is just one type of ion
present
Two or more ions means the colours will mix, making identification erroneous
This cleans the wire loop and avoids contamination
A small sample of the compound is placed on an unreactive metal wire loop such as
nichrome or platinum
Dip the loop into the solid sample / solution and place it in the edge of the blue Bunsen
flame
Avoid letting the wire get so hot that it glows red otherwise this can be confused
with a flame colour

Diagram showing the technique for carrying out a flame test

The colour of the flame is observed and used to identify the metal ion present:

Cation Flame Colour

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 Li+ Red
Your notes
Na+ Yellow

K+ Lilac

Ca2+ Orange-red

Ba2+ Light-green

Cu2+ Blue-green

Metal ions form distinctive coloured flames

Examiner Tips and Tricks

The sample needs to be heated strongly, so the Bunsen burner flame should be on a
blue flame.

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 Identification of Gases
Your notes
Identification of gases
Several tests for anions and cations produce gases which then need to be tested
The gases included in the syllabus are:
Ammonia
Carbon dioxide
Chlorine
Hydrogen
Oxygen
Sulfur dioxide

Test for ammonia

Ammonia is a gas with a characteristic sharp choking smell that turns damp red litmus
paper blue
Hold the litmus paper near the mouth of the test tube, but be careful to avoid touching
the sides of the test tube
If you are testing for ammonia produced from ammonium ions and sodium hydroxide,
avoiding touching the sides to prevent traces of sodium hydroxide from also turning the
red litmus paper blue

Testing for ammonia gas

Damp red litmus paper turns blue in the presence of ammonia

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 Your notes
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Make sure you understand the difference between ammonium and ammonia.
Ammonium refers to the aqueous cation, NH4+
Ammonia refers to the gas, NH3.

Test for carbon dioxide

The test for carbon dioxide involves bubbling the gas through an aqueous solution
of limewater (calcium hydoxide)
If the gas is carbon dioxide, the limewater turns cloudy white

Testing for carbon dioxide gas

Limewater turns cloudy white in the presence of carbon dioxide

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Sometimes students think that extinguishing a burning splint indicates carbon dioxide
gas.
However, while it is a property of carbon dioxide, other gases, such as nitrogen, will
also do this.
So, the test is not definitive and should not be given as an exam answer.

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Test for chlorine gas
The test for chlorine makes use of litmus paper Your notes
If chlorine gas is present, damp blue litmus paper will turn red and then be bleached
white
It turns red initially as acids are produced when chlorine comes into contact with
water
Chlorine also has a characteristic sharp, choking smell
Chlorine should always be handled in a fume cupboard due to its toxicity

Testing for chlorine gas

Chlorine bleaches damp blue litmus paper white

Examiner Tips and Tricks

You should distinguish between properties of gases and tests for gases. Chlorine
'smells like swimming pools' is a characteristic, but it is not an acceptable means of
identification.

Test for hydrogen gas

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 The test for hydrogen consists of holding a burning splint at the open end of a test tube
of gas
Your notes
If the gas is hydrogen it burns with a loud “squeaky pop” which is the result of the rapid
combustion of hydrogen with oxygen to produce water
Be sure not to insert the splint right into the tube, just at the mouth, as the gas needs air
to burn

Testing for hydrogen gas

A burning splint gives a 'squeaky pop' sound

Examiner Tips and Tricks

It is easy to confuse the tests for hydrogen and oxygen.
Try to remember that a ligHted splint has an H for Hydrogen, while a glOwing splint has
an O for Oxygen.

Test for oxygen

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 The test for oxygen consists of placing a glowing splint inside a test tube of gas
If the gas is oxygen, the splint will relight Your notes
Testing for oxygen gas

A glowing splint will relight in the presence of oxygen

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Sometimes the splint does not relight, but it glows very brightly, which is also a
positive result. In an exam, however, it is best to state it relights the glowing splint.

Test for sulfur dioxide

Sulfur dioxide is a gas with a characteristic sharp choking smell
The test for sulfur dioxide involves bubbling the gas through an acidified solution of
potassium manganate(VII)
If the gas is sulfur dioxide, the potassium manganate(VII) changes from purple to
colourless
This is similar to the test for the sulfite ion

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