Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

In reading the Got Iron? Variations topic, it said that I could use the test to determine the iron content of various sources of water: tap water, bottled water, distilled water, stream, lake and ocean waters. Do I use a 1:1 ratio of sample water to indicator solution? Is 5ml of sample water to 5ml of indicator solution OK, or should I use 15ml of sample water to 15ml of indicator solution? I'm not sure. Any advice would be most appreciated.

Hello and welcome to the forum:

As I read the experiment, you should add 1 packet of indicator to 5 mL of the test solution. In the original experiment, you made 30 ml of solution and indicator, and added iron to half of this solution.

In the experiment extension, you are testing water other than distilled. You would put 5 mL of the test water in the test tube and then add the indicator "pillow" directly to this test water. You do not make up "indicator solution" separately.

Keith

Thank you so much for your advice. I'll try it and let you know how it went.