Coefficient d'activité de l'acide sulfurique déterminé par titrage infrarouge

Abstract

The titration of sulphuric acid by infrared spectroscopy using the attenuated total reflection (ATR) technique was made in the 0 to 14 pH range for solutions ranging from 1.89 to 0.01 M. The subtraction of the water spectrum was made using acidic, neutral, and basic waters which exhibit different spectra. The results gave the spectra of mixtures of the HSO–4 and SO2–4 ionic species in solutions. For each concentration, factor analysis (FA) sorted the spectra of the pure ionic species and gave through the multiplying factors (MF) the distribution of the species as a function of pH. This distribution is the same as that obtained from the equilibrium equations. The IR measurements gave directly the ratios of the activity coefficients of HSO–4 and SO2–4 ions. This ratio varies with the total concentration of both ions but is independent of the relative concentration. The fitting of the experimental and theoretical volumetric titration curves in the high and low pH regions gave the mean activity coefficients of the other species present in the solutions. The values obtained are comparable to those obtained by electrochemical measurements. These results show that it is possible to use IR spectroscopy to study aqueous solutions of inorganic acids from low to high concentrations.Key words : IR spectroscopy, sulfuric acid, aqueous solutions, factor analysis, ATR, principal spectra, solvation, activity coefficients, IR titration.