Thermometric Titration Definition

Chemical analysis can sometimes be a dangerous occupation.

In the sometimes hazardous and difficult process of chemical analysis, accurate knowledge is key. To fully understand a concept like thermometric titration, basic titration must first be defined.

Titration

Titration is a chemical analysis method that determines the quantity of a particular component in a substance by carefully adding known amounts of a titrant (standardized solution) to the mix until a given reaction (endpoint signal) is achieved. Once this endpoint is reached, the amount of the component is calculated from the amount of titrant required for a complete reaction. Common types of reactions include precipitation, a change in conductivity or a change in color.

Thermometric Titration

Thermometric titration is essentially a quantitative chemical analysis of temperature change. The titrant is carefully added to an adiabatic vessel (a vessel where change occurs without heat transference) containing the second substance. The resulting reaction causes a change in temperature that, when compared to (and plotted against) the volume of titrant necessary for the complete reaction, determines the endpoint(s).

Types of Reactions Analyzed

Thermometric titration -- also called thermal titration, enthalpy titration or calorimetric titration -- is commonly used to quantitatively analyze precipitation, oxidation-reduction (redox), organic condensation, neutralization and complex-formation reactions.

References

• Merriam-Webster: Titration
• Encyclopedia Britannica: Titration
• International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) Compendium of Terminology: Thermometric Titration
• McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Chemistry PDF: Thermometric Titration