Driving question : What is the nitrate concentration in a water sample?
In this activity, students investigate the nitrate content in, for example, pond or aquarium water. The nitrite formed is subsequently determined using the Griess reaction. The intensity of the color is proportional to the amount of nitrite, and thus indirectly to the original amount of nitrate. As a result, the nitrate content can be determined using a colorimeter.
Concepts learned:
- Extinction
- Spectrophotometry
- Calibration curve
- Lambert-Beer Law
Topic: Ecology,
Concepts: Ecology, Water quality,
Grade level: High School (14-18 years),
Activity type: Data logging, Process & Analysis,
Sensors: Colorimeter,
Interface requirements: Single analog sensor input,
The Student Worksheet gives investigation instructions for students.
The Teacher Notes includes teacher commentaries such as didactical approach, exemplary questions, assignments and data analysis.
The Science Background describes the scientific principles that underlie the activity.
Coach Activity/Result file can be opened in the Coach 7 Program. This requires Coach 7 to be installed on your computer.
Download activity Nitrate concentration in water (.cma7) Download result Nitrate concentration in water (.cmr7)
