A student uses visible spectrophotometry to determine the co…
A student uses visible spectrophotometry to determine the concentration of CoCl2(aq) in a sample solution. First the student prepares a set of CoCl2(aq) solutions of known concentration. Then the student uses a spectrophotometer to determine the absorbance of each of the standard solutions at a wavelength of 510 nm and constructs a standard curve. Finally, the student determines the absorbance of the sample of unknown concentration. The figure presents a graph in the first quadrant of a coordinate plane. The horizontal axis is labeled “Molar Concentration of C o with a positive 2 charge, aqueous,” and the numbers 0 through 0.100, in increments of 0.020, are indicated. The vertical axis is labeled “Absorbance,” and the numbers 0.10 through 0.60, in increments of 0.10, are indicated. The line of best fit is drawn. The line begins where the axes meet. It moves steadily upward and to the right passing through the points 0.020 Molar and 0.11 absorbance, 0.040 Molar and 0.22 absorbance, 0.060 Molar and 0.33 absorbance, 0.080 Molar and 0.44 absorbance, and 0.100 Molar and 55 absorbance. There are 5 data points along the line. The data points at 0 Molar, 0.020 Molar, 0.065 Molar, and 0.100 Molar are on the line. The data point at 0.050 Molar is just below the line. The student made the standard curve above. Which of the following most likely caused the error in the point the student plotted at 0.050 M Co2+ (aq)?
Read Details