How Hard Water can be Softened

Let’s perform this activity for softening hard water by boiling, addition of washing soda and distilling.

Activity: How hard water can be softened.

Materials: Sea water, measuring cylinder, Bunsen burner, bath of cold water, 3 test tubes/beakers, washing soda (sodium carbonate), liquid soap, stirrer, dropper.

Method:

1. Boil 100cm³ of sea water in a beaker for about 10 minutes. Allow it to cool to room temperature by leaving the beaker in a bath of cold water for some few minutes.
2. Measure 25cm³ of this boiled sea water into a test tube and label it A.
3. Put about 100cm³ of the same sample of hard water in a beaker. Add a small amount of washing soda (sodium carbonate) and stir well with the stirrer to dissolve the washing soda. Continue stirring until all the washing soda has dissolved. Put 20 cm³ of the washing soda solution in a test tube and label it B.
4. Distil about 100cm³ of the same sample of hard water and collect 20cm³ of the distillate into another beaker and label it C. allow it to cool.
5. Add liquid soap to the samples A,B, and C. a drop at a time.
6. Tabulate your records in the table below.