ST. MARY’S COLLEGE OF BANSALAN, INC.

(Formerly: Holy Cross of Bansalan College, Inc.)

Dahlia St., Poblacion Uno, Bansalan, Davao del Sur
Telefax No.: (082) 553-9246

BACHELOR OF SECONDARY EDUCATION MAJOR IN GENERAL SCIENCE

LEARNING MODULE FOR SCI 310

MODULE NO.2 – BASIC TOOLS OF MEASUREMENT

Week 2 Learning Content:

Lesson 3: Measurement

____________________________
Name of Student

____MR. LEXTER GOMEZ GABICA, RN, LPT___

Instructor
 HOW TO USE THIS LEARNING MODULE

Dear Students,

WELCOME TO SUMMER CLASS OF 2021!

This module entitled “BASIC TOOLS OF MEASUREMENT”

contains ideas/topics/contents, activities and assessment tasks
which comprises the basic tools in measurement in Analytical
Chemistry.

In this module, you are required to go through a series of activities

in order to complete each learning outcome. Follow and perform
the activities on your own. If you have questions, do not hesitate to
ask assistance from your Instructor.

Remember to work through all the information and complete the

teaching-learning activities (TLAs). Read all information given in
each learning content and complete the assessment tasks.
Suggested references are included to supplement the materials
provided in this learning module.

Most probably, your Instructor will also be your supervisor or

manager. A person who is certainly there to support you and show
you the correct way to do things.

You will be given plenty of opportunities to ask questions and

practice on the job. Make sure you practice your new skills during
actual laboratory practices. This way, you will improve your speed,
memory and your confidence.

You need to complete this module before you can proceed to

the next step. That is, getting yourself ready to excel in your
chosen field.

Good luck!

Truly Yours,

MR. LEXTER GOMEZ GABICA, RN, LPT

Instructor

BSEd- General Science ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY SUMMER 2021 Page 2 of 17

 In the Name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Venerable Ignacia Del Espiritu Santo, Pray for Us.

In the Name of the Father,

and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

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Course Code : SCI 310
Course Title : ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
Course Units : TBA
Class/Lab Schedule : TBA

Course Description : A subject course concerned with the chemical characterization of

matter both quantitatively and qualitatively. It includes the
introduction to analytical chemistry, stoichiometric calculations
with the general concepts and applications of chemical equilibria.
This course is also designed to give students an understanding of
the principles and practice of sampling and preparation, analytical
measurements and data analysis.

Course Outcomes
At the end of the course, the student should be able to:
1. Learn the basic analytical concepts and theories with focus on data analysis and
interpretation
2. Understand the techniques involved in chemical analysis from sampling to data analysis
3. Apply statistics in evaluating the quality of analytical data
4. Develop critical thinking needed to solve analytical problems

Course Outline
Weeks Module Title Topics

1 I. Introduction to Lesson 1: What is Analytical Chemistry?;

Analytical Chemistry Branches and Applications

Lesson 2: Basic Laboratory Equipment in

Analytical Chemistry

2-4 II. Basic Tools of Lesson 3: Measurement

Measurement
Lesson 4: Concentrations

Lesson 5: Stoichiometry

5-6 III. Data Treatment Lesson 6: Errors in Chemical Analyses and

Propagation of Uncertainty

Lesson 7: Confidence Intervals, Significance

Testing and Normal Distribution

7-8 IV. Sampling and Lesson 8: Sampling and Separation Methods

Sample Preparation
Lesson 9: Preparing Samples

END OF MODULE / CONGRATULATIONS

Course Evaluation
The course evaluation follows the 50-30-20 format.
 50% – Quizzes, Recitations, Projects, TLAs,
Assessments and Assignments
 30% – Exams
 20% – Online Submissions and Requirements

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 MODULE 2

BASIC TOOLS OF MEASUREMENT

In this module we will explore many aspects of analytical chemistry. In the process
we will consider important questions such as “How do we treat experimental data?”,
“How do we ensure that our results are accurate?”, “How do we obtain a
representative sample?”, and “How do we select an appropriate analytical
technique?” Before we look more closely at these and other questions, we will first
review some basic tools of importance to analytical chemists.

The learners can:

1. Equipped knowledge in measuring and analyzing data as a basic tool in
Analytical Chemistry

Lesson Content: Page

Lesson 3: Measurement…….…………………………………………..…6
Lesson 4: Concentrations……………………………………………..….WEEK 3
Lesson 5: Stoichiometry………………………………………...……….WEEK 4

By: Prof. Lexter Gomez Gabica, RN, LPT

Instructor

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 LESSON 3

MEASUREMENT

Analytical chemistry is a quantitative science. Whether determining the

concentration of a species, evaluating an equilibrium constant, measuring a
reaction rate, or drawing a correlation between a compound’s structure and
its reactivity, analytical chemists engage in “measuring important chemical
things.”1 In this section we briefly review the use of units and significant
figures in analytical chemistry

The learners can:

1. Differentiate quantitative versus qualitative data in analytical

chemistry
2. Recognized and solve standardized unit of measurement in
analytical chemistry
3. Analyzed significant figures and write it in correct scientific
notation applied in all aspect of measurement in analytical
chemistry

I want you to measure your height in iches. After measuring

your height in inches please convert your height
measurement in inches to the following;

1. Centimeters
2. Feet
3. Meter

Write your answer and solutions to your Lesson Plan

Notebook.

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 Questions:

1. How important measurement in the study of Analytical Chemistry?

_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

2. Give at least 5 instances that we used measurement in Chemistry.

_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

WEEK 2

FOR YOUR GUIDE IN STUDYING THIS MODULE, PLEASE OPEN

THE FOLLOWING VIDEO LINKS;

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2yuDvwYq5g (significant figures)

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmeImtwhfj8 (mathematical
operations of significant figures)
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rUVYWfZOb8 (quantitative versus
qualitative data in science)
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TlCcW_mugs (metric system)

BSEd- General Science ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY SUMMER 2021 Page 7 of 17

 QUANTITATIVE VS. QUALITATIVE OBSERVATIONS IN
CHEMISTRY DEFINED

There are two types of observations: quantitative and qualitative.

Quantitative observations involve measurements or estimates that yield
meaningful, numerical results. Qualitative observations yield descriptive,
nonnumerical results. Although all the observations we can make on a phenomenon are valuable,
quantitative observations are often more helpful than qualitative ones. Qualitative observations are
somewhat vague because they involve comparative terms. Quantitative observations, on the other
hand, have numbers and units associated with them and therefore convey more information. Even an
estimated number is more valuable than no number at all.
A qualitative observation would be, for example, “The attendance clerk is a small woman.”
If the observer is 6 feet 4 inches tall, he might find a woman who is 5 feet 8 inches tall to be
“small.” If the observer reported this to someone who is 5 feet 2 inches tall, however, the listener
would not acquire a good idea of the attendance clerk’s height because he would not think a woman
who is 5 feet 8 inches tall is small. The description “a small woman” could refer to any woman
whose height was between 3 feet and 6 feet, depending on who made the observation, as illustrated
in the image below.

Similarly, “a small car” could refer to anything from a compact car to a child’s toy car. The
word “small” is a comparative term. The same is true for all words like tall, short, fast, slow, hot,
cold, and so forth. These words do not have exact meanings. Under various circumstances,
temperatures of 90◦F, 110◦F, 212◦F, and 5000◦F could all be described as “hot.” The word “hot” does
not convey as much information as the numerical description. Even observations of colors are not
exact because there are many shades of each color. Two people may both be wearing red shirts, but
the colors of the shirts may not be exactly the same. Exact descriptions of colors would require
reporting the frequency or wavelength of the color.

Quantitative and Qualitative Observations Compared

TABLE 2.0: Comparison of Qualitative and Quantitative Observations

Qualitative (words only) Quantitative (words and numbers)

The girl has very little money. The girl has 85 cents.
The man is short. The man is 5 feet 2 inches tall.
Use a small test tube. Use a test tube that is 12 centimeters long.
It is a short walk to my house. It is about 1 mile to my house.

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 You can see from the last example in Table 2.0 that even if the number is an estimate, a
quantitative observation contains more information because of the number associated with the
observation. Some people might think that a 1-mile walk is short, while others may not. If an actual
measuring device is not available, the observer should always try to estimate a measurement so that
the observation will have a number associated with it.
While estimated measurements may not be accurate, they are valuable because they establish
an approximate numerical description for the observation. “The car is small” is an observation that
provides us with certain information. We know that the object is some kind of car (perhaps real or
perhaps a toy), and we know that it is probably smaller than a limousine because almost no one
would describe a limousine as small. Suppose instead that the observation is: “The car is about 3
feet tall, 3 feet long, and 2 feet wide.” While these estimated measurements are not accurate, we
now know that are not dealing with a compact automobile, nor are we dealing with a toy car. With
these estimated measurements, we know that we are dealing with a car about the size of a tricycle. It
is not a problem if we discover later that the car was actually 2 feet tall instead of 3 feet tall, because
we knew the original measurement was an estimate. Estimates are excellent observations if we do
not have the ability to measure the object accurately and still qualify as quantitative observations.

Example Questions:

Pick out the quantitative and qualitative observations from each phrase.

a. 3.0 grams of NaCl dissolve in 10 milliliters of H2O to produce a clear solution.

b. The spider on the wall has only seven legs remaining but is still big and hairy.
c. When 0.50 milliliter of a solution is put into a flame, the flame turns a brilliant green.

Solutions:
a. Quantitative: 3.0 grams and 10 milliliters; Qualitative: clear solution
b. Quantitative: seven legs; Qualitative: big and hairy
c. Quantitative: 0.50 milliliter; Qualitative: brilliant green

UNITS IN MEASUREMENT

A measurement usually consists of a unit and a number expressing the quantity of that unit.
We may express the same physical measurement with different units, which can create confusion.
For example, the mass of a sample weighing 1.5 g also may be written as 0.0033 lb or 0.053 oz. To
ensure consistency, and to avoid problems, scientists use a common set of fundamental units,
several of which are listed in Table 2.1. These units are called SI units after the Système
International d’Unités.
We define other measurements using these fundamental SI units. For example, we measure
the quantity of heat produced during a chemical reaction in joules, (J), where

1 J = 1 m2 kg
s2

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 Chemists frequently work with measurements that are very large or very small. A mole
contains 602 213 670 000 000 000 000 000 particles and some analytical techniques can detect as
little as 0.000 000 000 000 001 g of a compound. For simplicity, we express these measurements
using scientific notation; thus, a mole contains 6.022 136 7×1023 particles, and the detected mass is
1×10–15 g. Sometimes it is preferable to express measurements without the exponential term,
replacing it with a prefix (Table 2.3). A mass of 1×10–15 g, for example, is the same as 1 fg, or
femtogram.

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Sample Computations

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BSEd- General Science ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY SUMMER 2021 Page 12 of 17
UNCERTAINTY IN MEASUREMENTS AND SIGNIFICANT FIGURES

A measurement provides information about its magnitude and its

uncertainty. Consider, for example, the balance in Figure 2.1, which is
recording the mass of a cylinder. Assuming that the balance is properly
calibrated, we can be certain that the cylinder’s mass is more than 1.263 g and
less than 1.264 g. We are uncertain, however, about the cylinder’s mass in the
last decimal place since its value fluctuates between 6, 7, and 8. The best we
can do is to report the cylinder’s mass as 1.2637 g ± 0.0001 g, indicating both
its magnitude and its absolute uncertainty.

Significant Figures

Significant figures are a reflection of a measurement’s magnitude and uncertainty. The

number of significant figures in a measurement is the number of digits known exactly plus one digit
whose value is uncertain. The mass shown in Figure 2.1, for example, has five significant figures,
four which we know exactly and one, the last, which is uncertain.
Suppose we weigh a second cylinder, using the same balance, obtaining a mass of 0.0990 g.
Does this measurement have 3, 4, or 5 significant figures? The zero in the last decimal place is the
one uncertain digit and is significant. The other two zero, however, serve to show us the decimal
point’s location. Writing the measurement in scientific notation (9.90×10–2) clarifies that there are
but three significant figures in 0.0990.

There are two special cases when determining the number of significant figures. For a
measurement given as a logarithm, such as pH, the number of significant figures is equal to the
number of digits to the right of the decimal point. Digits to the left of the decimal point are not
significant figures since they only indicate the power of 10. A pH of 2.45, therefore, contains two
significant figures.
An exact number has an infinite number of significant figures. Stoichiometric coefficients
are one example of an exact number. A mole of CaCl2, for example, contains exactly two moles of
chloride and one mole of calcium. Another example of an exact number is the relationship between
some units. There are, for example, exactly 1000 mL in 1 L. Both the 1 and the 1000 have an
infinite number of significant figures.
Using the correct number of significant figures is important because it tells other scientists
about the uncertainty of your measurements. Suppose you weigh a sample on a balance that
measures mass to the nearest ±0.1 mg. Reporting the sample’s mass as 1.762 g instead of 1.7623 g
BSEd- General Science ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY SUMMER 2021 Page 13 of 17
is incorrect because it does not properly convey the measurement’s uncertainty. Reporting the
sample’s mass as 1.76231 g also is incorrect because it falsely suggest an uncertainty of ±0.01 mg.

Significant Figures in Calculation

Significant figures are also important because they guide us when reporting the result of an
analysis. In calculating a result, the answer can never be more certain than the least certain
measurement in the analysis. Rounding answers to the correct number of significant figures is
important.
For addition and subtraction round the answer to the last decimal place that is significant for
each measurement in the calculation. The exact sum of 135.621, 97.33, and 21.2163 is 254.1673.
Since the last digit that is significant for all three numbers is in the hundredth’s place

we round the result to 254.17. When working with scientific notation, convert each measurement to
a common exponent before determining the number of significant figures. For example, the sum of
4.3×105 , 6.17×107 , and 3.23×104 is 622×105 , or 6.22×107 .

For multiplication and division round the answer to the same number of significant figures
as the measurement with the fewest significant figures. For example, dividing the product of 22.91
and 0.152 by 16.302 gives an answer of 0.214 because 0.152 has the fewest significant figures.

There is no need to convert measurements in scientific notation to a common exponent when

multiplying or dividing.
Finally, to avoid “round-off” errors it is a good idea to retain at least one extra significant
figure throughout any calculation. Better yet, invest in a good scientific calculator that allows you to
perform lengthy calculations without recording intermediate values. When your calculation is
complete, round the answer to the correct number of significant figures using the following simple
rules.

1. Retain the least significant figure if it and the digits that follow are less than half way to the next
higher digit. For example, rounding 12.442 to the nearest tenth gives 12.4 since 0.442 is less than
half way between 0.400 and 0.500.
2. Increase the least significant figure by 1 if it and the digits that follow are more than half way to
the next higher digit. For example, rounding 12.476 to the nearest tenth gives 12.5 since 0.476 is
more than half way between 0.400 and 0.500.
3. If the least significant figure and the digits that follow are exactly halfway to the next higher digit,
then round the least significant figure to the nearest even number. For example, rounding 12.450 to
the nearest tenth gives 12.4, while rounding 12.550 to the nearest tenth gives 12.6. Rounding in this
manner ensures that we round up as often as we round down.

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BSEd- General Science ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY SUMMER 2021 Page 15 of 17
 Instruction:
Please performed what is being asked. Show your solutions. Answers
without solutions is considered wrong answer. Write your answer and
solution in your Lesson Plan Notebook.

A. Label each observation as qualitative or quantitative.

1. The temperature of this room is 25◦C.
2. It is comfortably warm in this room.
3. Most people have removed their coats.
4. The building is 25 stories high.
5. It is a very tall building.

B. Indicate how many significant figures are in each of the following numbers.
1. 903
2. 0.903
3. 1.0903
4. 0.0903
5. 0.09030

C. Round each of the following to three significant figures.

1. 0.89377 2. 0.89328 3. 0.89350 4. 0.8997 5. 0.08907

D. Round each to the stated number of significant figures. Search for the figure in the internet
1. the atomic weight of carbon to 4 significant figures
2. the atomic weight of oxygen to 3 significant figures
3. Avogadro’s number to 4 significant figures
4. Faraday’s constant to 3 significant figures

E. Report results for the following calculations to the correct number of significant figures.
1. 4.591 + 0.2309 + 67.1 =
2. 313 – 273.15 =
3. 712 × 8.6 = d
4. 1.43/0.026 =
5. (8.314 × 298)/96485 =

F. Convert the following

1. 80 oF to oC =
2. 323 oK to oC =
3. 2.5 meters to mm =
4. 7 meters to centimeters =
5. 25 kilometers to meters =

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 This is just the beginning in your series of quantitative data
analysis in Analytical Chemistry. But I would like to
congratulate you in understanding this Lesson.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

END OF LESSON 3

REFERENCES
1. Freeman, R. D. “SI for Chemists: Persistent Problems, Solid Solutions,” J. Chem. Educ. 2003,
80, 16-20.
2. Gorin, G. “Mole, Mole per Liter, and Molar: A Primer on SI and Related Units for Chemistry
Students,” J. Chem. Educ. 2003, 80, 103-104.
3. Coghill, A. M.; Garson, L. M. (eds) The ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of
Scientific Information, 3rd Edition, American Chemical Society: Washington, D. C.; 2006.
4. Kanare, H. M. Writing the Laboratory Notebook, American Chemical Society: Washington, D.
C.; 1985.
5. http://www.bipm.org/en/home/
6. http://physics.nist.gov/cuu/Units/index.html

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