How do you prepare 0.3M sodium acetate?

Answer 1

1. Dissolve the sodium acetate tri-hydrate crystals. Dissolve as much sodium acetate as you can in hot, almost boiling water.

   Create sodium acetate by mixing white vinegar and baking soda and boiling until 90% of the water in the vinegar is evaporated. Scoop the sodium acetate and place it in the pan.

   • Scoop the sodium acetate and place it in the pan. Shown here, it is gel-like because it was taken from a warming pad, but in most cases, it's in powder form. About a cup of sodium acetate is a good place to start. Make sure you leave a little bit out of the pan so that you can use it as a seed crystal later.
   • Add water into your pan Add water into your pan. You want to add just enough so that the sodium acetate dissolves. The key is to "pack" or "supersaturate" the water with sodium acetate, so don't add too much water. The less water you add, the more dense the solution will be, and the better the crystals.

   • Heat the mixture until it's almost boiling.

     Heat the mixture until it's almost boiling.

   • Stir the mixture constantly.

     Stir the mixture constantly. This is where you actually dissolve the crystals. All of the powder should dissolve into liquid form until no more sodium acetate will dissolve, so there should be a little extra undissolved powder at the bottom. If there isn't, keep adding powder until the solution gets to that point. Remember, you want to pack as much sodium acetate in the solution as you can. It is very important to keep on stirring at this point of the project.

2. 2

   When dissolved, pour the solution into a glass of any size.

   When dissolved, pour the solution into a glass of any size. Make sure the remaining undissolved sodium acetate stays within the pan. Do not let undissolved material get into the glass.

3. 3

   Cool the glass of the solution in the refrigerator for an hour or even 30 minutes (use your best judgment).

   Cool the glass of the solution in the refrigerator for an hour or even 30 minutes (use your best judgment). What is happening here is that you're bringing the temperature below the temperature at which the solution is saturated. Normally, dissolved crystals crystallize again once you bring them below this point, but in this case, because you have the sodium acetate in a supersaturated solution, it "supercools" meaning that it goes below the normal temperature of crystallization without actually crystallizing.

4. 4

   Pour your solution into a tray or container. Be careful not to spill any, and make sure the solution doesn't come into contact with any solid sodium acetate. This step is optional, but in case you want a better container in which to view the hot ice formation, here's your chance.

5. 5

   Touch the solution with a bit of the solid sodium acetate on a toothpick.

   Touch the solution with a bit of the solid sodium acetate on a toothpick. The solution should turn into a solid as soon as it is touched. By introducing a "seed" crystal, you just created a nucleation center, triggering the process of solidification.

6. 6

   Feel the outside of the container with the newly formed solid.

   Feel the outside of the container with the newly formed solid. It should be warm (the solid is 130°F, 54°C) because the formation of crystals releases energy, and this is why sodium acetate is used in heating pads and hand warmers.

Answer 2

Sodium acetate ( also known as sodium acetate trihydrous ) can easily be converted to sodium acetate trihydrate by adding in enough boiling water to completely dissolve it while hot. It's best to do this part while its on the boiling water bath. The ratio of water is about 2 mL of water for every 3 grams of sodium acetate. If it completely liquefies while on the boiling water bath, then it's converted to sodium acetate trihydrate and it's ready for use.

Answer 3

Butyl cellosolve