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JEE Advanced 2020 Paper 1 · Chemistry · Electrochemistry · medium

At 298 K the following concentration cell is set up: Ag(s) | AgCl(s), NaCl(aq, 0.010 M) \| AgNO3(aq, 0.10 M) | Ag(s). The measured emf is 0.413 V.…

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At 298 K298\ \mathrm{K} the following concentration cell is set up: Ag(s) ∣ AgCl(s), NaCl(aq, 0.010 M) ∥ AgNO3(aq, 0.10 M) ∣ Ag(s)\mathrm{Ag(s)\,|\,AgCl(s),\ NaCl(aq,\ 0.010\ M)\,\|\,AgNO_3(aq,\ 0.10\ M)\,|\,Ag(s)}. The measured emf is 0.413 V0.413\ \mathrm{V}. Take 2.303RT/F=0.059 V2.303RT/F=0.059\ \mathrm{V} and neglect the chloride contributed by the dissolution of AgCl\mathrm{AgCl} itself. The solubility product KspK_{sp} of AgCl\mathrm{AgCl} at this temperature is
  1. A. 1.0×10−81.0\times10^{-8}
  2. B. 1.0×10−101.0\times10^{-10}
  3. C. 1.0×10−161.0\times10^{-16}
  4. D. 1.0×10−61.0\times10^{-6}
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Answer: (B) 1.0×10−101.0\times10^{-10}

Both electrodes are silver, so the cell is a concentration cell and only the Ag+\mathrm{Ag^+} activities matter. The left half-cell has the smaller [Ag+][\mathrm{Ag^+}], hence it is the anode, and with one electron transferred E=0.059log⁡[Ag+]R[Ag+]LE=0.059\log\dfrac{[\mathrm{Ag^+}]_{R}}{[\mathrm{Ag^+}]_{L}}. Putting E=0.413E=0.413 gives log⁡0.10[Ag+]L=7\log\dfrac{0.10}{[\mathrm{Ag^+}]_L}=7, so [Ag+]L=1.0×10−8 M[\mathrm{Ag^+}]_L=1.0\times10^{-8}\ \mathrm{M}. This silver ion concentration is fixed by the solubility equilibrium in the presence of 0.010 M Cl−0.010\ \mathrm{M\ Cl^-}, so Ksp=[Ag+][Cl−]=10−8×10−2=1.0×10−10K_{sp}=[\mathrm{Ag^+}][\mathrm{Cl^-}]=10^{-8}\times10^{-2}=1.0\times10^{-10}. Option (A) is the silver ion concentration alone, a common slip when the chloride is forgotten. Option (C) results from treating the solution as saturated in pure water, Ksp=s2=(10−8)2K_{sp}=s^2=(10^{-8})^2, and (D) is not obtainable from the data. The answer is 1.0×10−101.0\times10^{-10}.
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