Any labs that use potassium permanganate (KMnO4)?

[wombat123]

After a very long, convoluted series of events, I ended up making a looot of reeaally concentrated KMnO4. I have way more KMnO4 than I'll need for the two labs I was going to use it for. Do you guys have any idea for yet another lab I could use the rest of the solution for? I'm not expecting you to give me the entire procedure or tell me anything in too much detail, but I just seriously have way too much solution and I really don't want to waste it (lest face the wrath of my chem teacher) and am just looking for any ideas in general. It doesn't even have to be a good design - I'm also currently trying to think of some total crappy fail lab to do so I can do a really detailed and rich conclusion/evaluation on it.

I was thinking of doing a kinetics lab in which I measured the time intervals it takes for the KMnO4 to react with a base (since it'll turn green after being reduced) at different temperatures, but I'm still looking for more ideas. (It'll take more than one lab to use up all that KMnO4.......)

[Summer Glau]

My class did a lab with KMnO₄ (not an IA lab) where we mixed KMnO₄ with oxalic acid and sulphuric acid and measured the time taken for the colour to change from purple to clear (the reaction time). So it's bretty much the same as the lab you were thinking of except with acids.

For independent variables we altered temperature by placing the test tube in a cold water bath with ice cubes, in a hot water bath on a hot plate, and at room temperature. We also used manganese (II) sulphate crystal as a catalyst. Also, we tried using different concentrations of the acids by diluting them with different amounts of distilled water.

Hope this helps you with ideas!

[wombat123]

Thanks =)! Do you think it might not be complicated enough for an actual IA though?

Edited November 18, 2011 by wombat123

[dessskris]

is this for your design or just DCP and CE?

if it's not for your design, I could show you a lab that I did for DCP and CE.

[wombat123]

Definitely interested in a DCP and CE lab =)!

[dessskris]

now how do I send it to you :/

[wombat123]

Um....should I pm you my email?

[wombat123]

Thanks guys! Summer Glau, I often find with KMnO4 labs that the reaction (and thus colour change) tends to happen too fast for me to time since KMnO4 is such a strong oxidizing agent. When I was doing my first KMnO4 lab a couple of weeks ago, I tried to use around 0.01M or 0.002M KMnO4, then equal volume and concentration of the other reactant. Especially because i put the two solutions in a cuvette, of course the whole thing just turned dark pink or just became a slightly lighter purple (the other reactant was an alcohol) right away. Since then I've just used around the same concentrations, but just used a much larger volume ratio of KMnO4 to the other reactant. What I haven't tried yet is using more like, 0.0001M KMnO4 or something around that, and having the other reactant at a higher concentration, but in equal volume to the KMnO4. Has something like that worked for you?