Candidate’s Name: Bibi Fareada Khan, Aaliya Blackman, Brittney Barrington

Shane France, Dominic Alleyne

Candidate No: 090046
School: St. Rose’s High School
School Code: 090046
Teacher’s Name: Miss Chester
Territory: Guyana
Page | 1
Statement of problem

A gardener noticed that his crops were susceptible to root disease, stunted growth and discolored

leaves, which were all effects of calcium deficiency. He decided to add egg shells to the soil to

reduce this problem. However, he was indecisive when choosing the egg shells because he

wanted to select the appropriate egg shell to supply the plants with maximum calcium for better

growth. His grandmother told him brown egg shell contains a larger amount of calcium

carbonate than white egg, while his brother told him both contains the same amount of calcium

carbonate. Plan and design an experiment to investigate the calcium carbonate percentage in

white and brown egg shells.

Title: Back Titration

Hypothesis

Brown egg shells have a higher percentage of calcium carbonate than white egg shells. And will

provide the plants with maximum supply of calcium.

Aim: To determine whether brown egg shell has a higher percentage of calcium carbonate than

white egg shell.

Page | 2
Background Information

Calcium carbonate, more commonly known as calcitic lime or garden lime, has long been a

staple in garden, field, and lawn management. There are four major benefits of adding calcium

carbonate to the soil. These include: correcting soil pH, increasing the efficacy of other nutrients,

adding calcium and reducing toxicity of metals in the soil.

Calcium carbonate is an excellent product for raising the pH of soil. Most plants do best in soils

with a pH between 5.5 and 6.5 (Maximum Yield, 2019). Calcium carbonate can be broadcast

over and incorporated into soils in need of a dose of alkalinity. Also, calcium carbonate is a great

source of calcium (Ca). Calcium is an important nutrient that strengthens a plant’s cellular walls

and is vital in new cell development. Also, one of the many unseen benefits of using calcium

carbonate, as it relates to its ability to adjust soil pH, is its role in making nutrients available to

plants. All of the nutrients that a plant needs may be present in a soil, but they may be

unavailable to plants (Nutrient Lockout, 2010). If the pH is not conducive for the plant to easily

“grab a hold” of then majority of nutrients that a plant needs are most available to plants at the

aforementioned 5.5 to 6.5 pH range.

In order to investigate the concentration of calcium carbonate in egg shells, a back titration is

mandatory to conduct. Back titration is a quantitative chemical analysis where the concentration

of an analyte is determined by reacting the egg shell with 50ml of 1.0 moldm-3 volume of

Hydrochloric acid. The solution is then made up in a 250 ml volumetric flask and then portions

of 20 ml of the made of solution is titrated against 0.1 moldm-3 of Sodium Hydroxide. In this

way, the analyte original concentration is determined.

Some factors that affects this experiment include;

Page | 3
o Determination of the end point; the student conducting the experiment may be uncertain

about the colour change when the reaction is completely neutralized. Thus affecting the

volume reading leading to inaccuracy.

o The presence impurities in the egg shells. These may be reactive species, which may

react with the chemicals leading to inaccurate results.

Page | 4
Variables

Controlled Variable

o The concentration of Hydrochloric acid used

o The concentration of Sodium Hydroxide used

o The Volume of HCl used to dissolve the egg shell

o The mass of egg shell used.

o The volume of water used to dilute the solution

o The indicator used

o The volume of mixture (HCl and egg shell) used

Independent Variable

o The brown egg shells

o The white egg shells

Dependent Variable

o The volume of Sodium Hydroxide used.

o Percentage calcium carbonate present in the egg shell.

Page | 5
Apparatus

o Funnel [1]

o Beaker [3]

o Pipette [3]

o Dropper [3]

o Electronic balance [1]

o Volumetric flask [2]

o Burette [2]

o Wash bottle [1]

o Mortar and pestle [1]

o Conical flasks [8]

Reagents

o Phenolphthalein

o 1.0 M Hydrochloric Acid

o 0.1 M Sodium Hydroxide

Materials

o Tissue

o White Egg [2]

o Brown Egg [2]

Page | 6
 burette: containing
the sodium hydroxide

retord stand

stop cock

conical flask
containing the titre.

THE DIAGRAM ABOVE SHOWS THE APPARATUS SETUP THAT WILL BE USED

TO INVESTIGATE CALCIUM CARBONATE CONCENTRATION IN EGG SHELLS.

Page | 7
Methodology

1. Gather the materials, reagents and apparatus listed.

2. Obtain four brown and four white eggs.

3. Wash and boil the eggs for ten minutes.

4. Peel the eggs and ensure to obtain the shell without the membrane.

5. Dry the egg shell.

6. Grind the brown egg shell with a mortar in a pestle.

7. Weigh 1.0 grams of the egg shell.

8. Measure 50ml of 1.0 moldm-3 hydrochloric acid and transfer it to a beaker.

9. Add the weighed egg shell to the acid and heat it gently.

10.After effervescence stops, transfer the solution to a 250ml volumetric flask and make up to
the mark with distilled water.

11.Pipette 20 ml of the solution into four conical flasks labeling rough, trial 1, 2 and 3.

12.Add two drops of phenolphthalein indicator to each flask.

13.Fill a beaker with about 100 mL of 0.100 M sodium hydroxide. Using a funnel, add the
solution to a clean burette to rinse it. Empty the burette into the sink. Fill the burette with the

sodium hydroxide solution just above the top mark. Run some solution out to remove and

record the volume reading.

14.Titrate the NaOH against the rough, while swirling the conical flask.

15.At the sight of the persistent pink color add the remaining NaOH dropwise until the colour
remains for at least 30 sec.

Page | 8
16. Read and record the final volume to ±0.01 mL.

17.Repeat the titration for trials 1, 2 and 3.

18. Repeat steps 3 to 17 using the white egg shell.

19.Tabulate all volume readings recorded.

20. Then calculate the percent calcium carbonate in each sample.

Page | 9
Expected Results

Table 1

White Egg Shell

BURETTE VOLUME TRIALS

READINGS ROUGH

[cm3] 1 2 3

INITIAL READING a B c d

FINAL READING b C d e

VOLUME OF TITRE [b-a] [c-b] [d-c] [e-d]

A B C D

THE TABLE ABOVE SHOWS THE EXPECTED INITIAL READING, FINAL READING AND VOLUME OF TITRE FOR
THE ROUGH, TRIALS 1,2 AND 3 WHEN THE SODIUM HYDROXIDE WILL BE TIRTRATED AGAINST THE WHITE
EGG SHELL.

Page | 10
Expected Calculations:

For white egg shells

Average Volume of NaOH will be used: (B + C + D) = Q/3 = R cm3
1. Calculating the number of moles of NaOH that will react with HCl
Mol of NaOH = Avg. volume of NaOH * Concentration of NaOH
Rdm3/1000 * 0.1 moldm3 = S mol
2. Calculating the number of moles of HCl that will react with the NaOH
HCl (aq) +NaOH (aq) →H2O (l) + NaCl (aq)
Mol of HCl = Smol (since 1 mol of NaOH will react with 1 mol HCl)
No. of Moles of HCl in 20ml
= Smol x 250/20 =Tmol
3. Calculating the number of moles of HCl that will be initially added (original no. of mol):
Moles of HCl = volume of HCl * concentration of HCl
Moles of HCl = 50dm3/1000 * 1.0moldm3 = 0.05 mol
4. Calculating the number of moles of HCl that will react with the CaCO3
0.05 mol –Tmol = Umol
5. Calculating the number of moles of Calcium carbonated that will react
2HCl (aq) + CaCO3(s) →CaCl2 (aq) + H2O (l) + CO2 (g)
U mol/2 = Vmol
(Since 2 mol of HCl will react with 1 mol CaCO3)
6. The molar mass of CaCO3 = (40 + 12 + 16 + 16 + 16) = 100g/mol

The mass of CaCO3 = No. of mole of CaCO3 * Molar mass of CaCO3

= Vmol X100g = Wg

The percentage of CaCO3 in eggshell (white) = Mass of CaCO3/ mass of shells * 100

= (W/1.0g * 100)

=XCaCO3

Page | 11
Table 2
Brown Egg Shell

BURETTE VOLUME TRIALS

READINGS ROUGH

[cm3] 1 2 3

INITIAL READING F G h i

FINAL READING G H i j

VOLUME OF TITRE [g-f] [h-g] [i-h] [j-i]

E F G H

THE TABLE ABOVE SHOWS THE INITIAL READING, FINAL READING AND VOLUME OF TITRE FOR THE ROUGH,
TRIALS 1,2 AND 3 WHEN THE SODIUM HYDROXIDE WILL BE TITRATED AGAINST THE BROWN EGG SHELL.

For the calculations, the steps above will be repeated using the values for the brown egg shell.

Page | 12
Interpretation of Expected Results

This experiment will deem useful in the determination of the Calcium Carbonate concentration in the

two egg samples, since they’re poorly water soluble. Hence, the acid will be reacted in excess. Also,

CaCO3 is weak base, so the determination of the endpoint using direct titration will be difficult.

When NaOH will be added to the solution, that has the acid in excess, a colour changed from colourless

to pink will be observed. This will indicate that all the excess HCl had reacted with the NaOH and the

solution was a bit alkaline, accounting for the slight pink colour change.

The more NaOH that will be used to react with the HCl and CaCO3 mixture, the less CaCO3 will be

present in the egg shells.

The hypothesis will be proven accurate if the brown egg shell solution requires a smaller volume of

NaOH than the white egg shell solution to neutralize the reaction completely. Otherwise, if the brown egg

shell solution requires a larger volume of NaOH than the white egg shell solution, the hypothesis will be

proven inaccurate.

Page | 13
Sources of Error

o The burette being slanted will result in incorrect volume readings being taken, which will
lead to inaccurate results.

o The apparatus not being dried before using will alter the concentration of the reagents
leading to inaccuracy.

o Uncertainty of the endpoint will result in acid being added even when the reaction will be
completely neutralized leading to inaccurate results.

o The egg membrane not being completely removed will lead to inaccurate results since it
will react with the acid.

Limitation

o The sensitivity of the scale leading to inaccurate mass of egg shell being weighed.
o The size of the last few drops of NaOH added from the burette when the end point will be
near, exceeding the endpoint.

o The presence of reactive impurities in the egg shell samples, will contribute to inaccurate
results.

Page | 14
Precautions

o Ensure caution is taken when the acid will be pipetted.

o Ensure the volume of distilled water that will be added to the volumetric flask doesn’t
exceed the 250 mark when making up the solution as it will contribute to inaccuracy.

o Ensure the burette is upright when the volume readings will be recorded, since inaccurate
volume readings will contribute to inaccuracy.

o Ensure all meniscus are read at EYE LEVEL to reduce parallax error.
o Ensure to rinse all apparatus with distilled water followed by the substance it will be
measuring to avoid contamination.

o Ensure to remove the membrane from the egg shell completely, since it will react with

the acid leading to inaccurate result.

Assumption

It will be assumed that calcium carbonate will be the only specie that will react with the Hydrochloric

acid during this experiment.

Conclusion

It will be concluded that the hypothesis is proven accurate. That is the brown egg shell has a

higher percentage of calcium carbonate and it will provide the plant with the maximum supply of

calcium than the white egg shell.

Page | 15
Page | 16
Title: Back Titration

Aim: To determine whether brown egg shell has a higher percentage of calcium carbonate than

white egg shell.

Theory

Calcium carbonate, more commonly known as calcitic lime or garden lime, has long been a

staple in garden, field, and lawn management. There are four major benefits of adding calcium

carbonate to the soil. These include: correcting soil pH, increasing the efficacy of other nutrients,

adding calcium and reducing toxicity of metals in the soil.

In order to investigate the concentration of calcium carbonate in egg shells, a back titration is

mandatory to conduct. Back titration is a quantitative chemical analysis where the concentration

of an analyte is determined by reacting the egg shell with 50ml of 1.0 moldm-3 volume of

Hydrochloric acid. The solution is then made up in a 250 ml volumetric flask and then portions

of 20 ml of the made of solution is titrated against 0.1 moldm-3 of Sodium Hydroxide. In this

way, the analyte original concentration is determined.

Some factors that affects this experiment include;

o Determination of the end point; the student conducting the experiment may be uncertain

about the colour change when the reaction is completely neutralized. Thus affecting the

volume reading leading to inaccuracy.

o The presence impurities in the egg shells. These may be reactive species, which may

react with the chemicals leading to inaccurate results.

Page | 17
 Apparatus

o Funnel [1]

o Beaker [3]

o Pipette [3]

o Dropper [3]

o Electronic balance [1]

o Volumetric flask [2]

o Burette [2]

o Wash bottle [1]

o Mortar and pestle [1]

o Conical flasks [8]

Reagents

o Phenolphthalein

o 1.0 M Hydrochloric Acid

o 0.1 M Sodium Hydroxide

Materials

o White Egg [2]

o Brown Egg [2]

Page | 18
 burette: containing
the sodium hydroxide

retord stand

stop cock

conical flask
containing the titre.

THE DIAGRAM ABOVE SHOWS THE APPARATUS SETUP USED TO

INVESTIGATE CALCIUM CARBONATE CONCENTRATION IN EGG SHELLS.

Page | 19
Method

1. The materials, reagents and apparatus listed were gathered.

2. Four brown and four white eggs were obtained.

3. The eggs were washed and boiled for ten minutes.

4. The eggs were then peeled, and it was ensured to obtain the shell without the membrane.

5. The egg shells were then dried.

6. The brown egg shell was then pounded with a mortar in a pestle.

7. 1.0 grams of the egg shell was weighed.

8. 50ml of 1.0 moldm-3 hydrochloric acid was measures and transferred into a beaker.

9. The weighed egg shell was added to the acid and heated gently.

10.After effervescence stopped, the solution was transferred to a 250ml volumetric flask and
made up to the mark with distilled water.

11. Then 20 ml of the solution was pipetted into four conical flasks labeling rough, trial 1, 2
and 3.

12. Two drops of phenolphthalein indicator to was added each flasks.

13. A beaker was filled with about 100 mL of 0.100 M sodium hydroxide. A funnel was
used to add the solution to a clean burette to rinse it. The burette was emptied into the

sink and it was filled with the sodium hydroxide solution just above the top mark and the

volume reading was recorded.

14. The NaOH was titrated against the rough, while swirling the conical flask.

Page | 20
15.At the sight of the persistent pink color the remaining NaOH was added dropwise (or by
half drops) until the colour remained for at least 30 sec.

16. The final volume to ±0.01 mL was read and recorded.

17. The titration was repeated for trials 1, 2 and 3.

18.Steps 3 to 17 was repeated using the white egg shell.

19. All volume readings recorded were then tabulated.

20.The percent calcium carbonate in each sample was then calculated.

Page | 21
Results

Table 3

White Egg Shell

BURETTE VOLUME TRIALS

READINGS ROUGH

[cm3] 1 2 3

0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

INITIAL READING

FINAL READING
29.7 29.3 29.3 29.2

VOLUME OF TITRE
29.7 29.3 29.3 29.2

THE TABLE ABOVE SHOWS THE INITIAL READING, FINAL READING AND VOLUME OF TITRE FOR THE ROUGH,
TRIALS 1,2 AND 3 WHEN THE SODIUM HYDROXIDE WAS TITRATED AGAINST THE WHITE EGG SHELL.

Page | 22
Calculations:

For white egg shells

Average Volume of NaOH used: (29.3 + 29.3 + 29.2) =87.8/3 = 29.3cm3
1. Calculating the number of moles of NaOH used to react with HCl
Mol of NaOH = Avg. volume of NaOH * Concentration of NaOH
29.3dm3/1000 * 0.1 moldm3 = 0.00293 mol
2. Calculating the moles of HCl that reacted with the NaOH
HCl (aq) +NaOH (aq) →H2O (l) + NaCl (aq)
Mol of HCl = 0.00293 mol (since 1 mol of NaOH reacts with 1 mol HCl)
No. of Moles of HCl in 20ml
= 0.00293mol x 250/20 =0.036625 mol
3. Calculating the number of moles of HCl initially added (original no. of mol):
Moles of HCl = volume of HCl * concentration of HCl
Moles of HCl = 50dm3/1000 * 1.0moldm3 = 0.05 mol
4. Calculating the number of moles of HCl that reacted with the CaCO3
0.05 mol – 0.036625 mol = 0.013375mol
5. Calculating the number of moles of Calcium carbonated that reacted
2HCl (aq) + CaCO3(s) →CaCl2 (aq) + H2O (l) + CO2 (g)
0.013375 mol/2 = 0.0066875 mol
(Since 2 mol of HCl reacts with 1 mol CaCO3)
6. The molar mass of CaCO3 = (40 + 12 + 16 + 16 + 16) = 100g/mol

The mass of CaCO3 = No. of mole of CaCO3 * Molar mass of CaCO3

= 0.0066875 mol X100g = 0.66875g

The percentage of CaCO3 in eggshell (white) = Mass of CaCO3/ mass of shells * 100

= (0.66875/1.0g * 100)

=67 CaCO3 %

Page | 23
Table 4
Brown Egg Shell
BURETTE VOLUME TRIALS

READINGS ROUGH

[cm3] 1 2 3

0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

INITIAL READING

FINAL READING
29.9 29.0 29.0 28.9

VOLUME OF TITRE
29.9 29.0 29.0 28.9

THE TABLE ABOVE SHOWS THE INITIAL READING, FINAL READING AND VOLUME OF TITRE FOR THE ROUGH,
TRIALS 1,2 AND 3 WHEN THE SODIUM HYDROXIDE WAS TITRATED AGAINST THE BROWN EGG SHELL.

Page | 24
Calculations:

For brown egg shells

Average Volume of NaOH used: (29.0 + 29.0 + 28.9) =
86.9/3 = 28.97cm3
1. Calculating the number of moles of NaOH used to react with HCl
Mol of NaOH = volume of NaOH * concentration of NaOH
28.97dm3/1000 * 0.1 moldm3 = 0.00289 mol
2. Calculating the moles of HCl that reacted with this
HCl (aq) +NaOH (aq) →H2O (l) + NaCl (aq)
Mol of HCl = 0.00289 mol (since 1 mol of NaOH reacts with 1 mol HCl)
No. of mole in 20 ml of HCl
= ( 0.00289 * 250/20 ) = 0.036213
3. Calculating the number of moles of HCl initially added:
Moles of HCl = volume of HCl * concentration of HCl
Moles of HCl = 50dm3/1000 * 1.0moldm3 = 0.05 mol
4. Calculating the number of moles of HCl that reacted with the CaCO3
0.05 mol – 0.036213 mol = 0.013788 mol
5. Calculating the number of moles of Calcium carbonated that reacted
2HCl (aq) + CaCO3(s) →CaCl2 (aq) + H2O (l) + CO2 (g)
0.013788mol/2 = 0.006894 mol
(Since 2 mol of HCl reacts with 1 mol CaCO3)
6. The molar mass of CaCO3 = (40 + 12 + 16 + 16 + 16) = 100g/mol

The mass of CaCO3 = No. of mole of CaCO3 * Molar mass of CaCO3

= 0.006894 mol X100g = 0.6894g

The percentage of CaCO3 in eggshell (white) = Mass of CaCO3/ mass of shells * 100

= (0.6894g/1.0g * 100) = 69 CaCO3%

Page | 25
Discussion

The aim of this experiment conducted was to determine the percentage of calcium carbonate in egg

shells. For this, back titration was deemed useful since egg shells are poorly water soluble. Also, the

calcium carbonate present is a weak base, which would make the determination of the endpoint very

difficult if direct titration method was used.

Firstly, the egg shell was dissolved in excess HCl. Then the solution was diluted and 25cm3 of the made-

up solution was titrated against 0.1 moldm-3 NaOH. A colour changed from colourless to pink was

observed. This indicated that all the excess HCl had reacted with the NaOH and the solution was a bit

alkaline, accounting for the slight pink colour change.

Based on the calculations, the number of moles of HCl in the 20cm3 of acid used was calculated

to be 0.00293 mol in the white egg shell and 0.00289 mol for the brown egg shells. The average

volume of NaOH was calculated to be 28.97 cm3 (0.02897 dm3) for the brown egg shell and 29.3

cm3 (0.0293 dm3) for the white egg shells. The average volume of NaOH was substituted into the

equation number of moles= concentration*Average volume, to calculate the number of moles of

NaOH, 0.00293 mol for the white egg shell and 0.002897 mol for the brown egg shell. The

number of mol of HCl that reacted with the NaOH in the titration was found to be 0.00293mol

for the white egg shell and 0.002897mol for the brown egg shell using the mole ratio.

The number of moles of HCl that reacted with CaCO3 in each egg shell was found by subtracting

the number of moles of HCl that reacted with the NaOH from the total number of moles of HCl

in 20cm3. It was found to be 0.013375 mol for the white egg shell and 0.0137875 mol for the

brown egg shell. This was found by using the mole ratio between HCl and CaCO3. The mass of

CaCO3 in each egg shell was then calculated using the formula; mass = molar mass * number of

Page | 26
moles, in which the mass of CaCO3 in white egg shell was found to be 0.66875g and 0.689375g

for the brown egg shell. From the calculations, it was observed that the more NaOH used to react

with the HCl and CaCO3 mixture, the less CaCO3 was present in the egg shells.

Overall, the results of the experiment were precise and accurate. Multiple trials were performed,

so precision was enhanced. The percent mass of CaCO3 in the white egg was found to be 66.9

%CaCO3 and for the brown egg shell it was 68.9% CaCO3.

Page | 27
Sources of Error

o The burette was slanted when the volume readings were taken. Hence, inaccurate burette
which contributed to the inaccurate results.

o The apparatus was not dried before using, which altered the concentration of the reagents,
contributing to inaccuracy.

o Uncertainty of the endpoint, this resulted in the acid being added even when the reaction
was completely neutralized leading to in accurate results.

o The membrane was not fully removed from the egg shell. This reacted with the acid,
leading to altered results.

o The egg shell didn’t completely react with the HCL because it was not crushed finely,
which resulted in inaccurate results.

Limitation

o The sensitivity of the scale leading to inaccurate mass of egg shell that was weighed.

o The size of the last few drops of NaOH added from the burette when the end point was
near exceeding the endpoint.

o The presences reactive impurities in the egg shell samples contributed to the overall
percentage being a bit off.

Page | 28
Precautions

o Caution was taken when pipetting the acid.

o Caution was taken when the distilled water was added to the volumetric flask, so that the
water didn’t exceed the 250 mark when the solution was made up.

o All meniscus was read at EYE LEVEL, in order to reduce parallax error.
o All apparatus was rinsed with distilled water followed by the substance it measures to
avoid contamination.

Page | 29
Reflection

This experiment is beneficial to the researchers since knowledge was gained on how to use the

various apparatus and how to conduct a back titration. After the completion of this project, the

researchers noted that the white egg shell contained 67 percentage of CaCO3, while the brown

egg shell contained 69 percentage of CaCO3. This was a difference of two percent. However,

the researchers was expecting a higher CaCO3 content for each egg shell. Since previous

researchers stated the composition of egg shells are approximately 90-95 percentage of CaCO3

and the remaining 5 percentage being magnesium, phosphorous iron, etc. This huge difference of

the CaCO3 can be accounted by laboratory misconducts, not removing the egg membrane

completely from the egg shell, and the presence of disturbances while using the scale, which

resulted in inaccurate massed being obtained. Thus, affecting the results. Also, the egg shell was

not crushed finely, in which it didn’t react completely with the acid. The researchers

recommends to leave the HCl and egg shell overnight in order to ensure that the reaction was

completed.

However, with all that being said, this experiment is also deemed useful for the society and

environment since the farmers will now be abe to choose the appropriate egg shells. That is the

brown egg shells, which has a higher calcium carbonate content. This means, the famer will be

able provide his crops with a maximum supply of calcium which will enhance the growth and

yielding of the crops and reduces the susceptibility of root diseases. Also, the farmers will be

able to get fresher looking crops at the market selling, since the appropriate egg shell will be

chosen, which reduces the discolouration of leafy crops. And in this way, they will be able to get

maximum sale on the market.

Page | 30
Lastly, the researcher would recommend investigating which type of egg shell has a higher iron,

magnesium and phosphate content, since this will also be useful to gardeners.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it was found that brown egg shells contain 69 percentage of CaCO3 while White

egg shell contains 67 percentage of CaCO3.

Page | 31
Page | 32