What volume of concentrated nitric acid (15.0 M) is needed to prepare 300 mL of a 2.5 M nitric acid solution?

To determine the volume of concentrated nitric acid needed to prepare a diluted solution, you can apply the dilution equation, which states that the product of the concentration and volume of the concentrated solution equals the product of the concentration and volume of the diluted solution. This can be expressed mathematically as:

C1V1 = C2V2

Where:

• C1 is the concentration of the concentrated solution (15.0 M),

• V1 is the volume of the concentrated solution to be determined,

• C2 is the concentration of the diluted solution (2.5 M),

• V2 is the final volume of the diluted solution (300 mL, which is 0.300 L).

Using this information, the equation can be rearranged to solve for V1:

V1 = (C2 * V2) / C1

Substituting the known values:

V1 = (2.5 M * 0.300 L) / 15.0 M

V1 = (0.75) / 15.0

V1 = 0.05 L

To convert this value from liters to milliliters:

V1 = 0.05 L * 1000 mL/L = 50