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Beer Lambert Law

Beer Lambert Law - Definition

Last updated date: 16th Mar 2023
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Beer Lambert law is one of the popular topics in analytical chemistry. It relates the weakening of the intensity of the light to the characteristics of the medium through which it is travelling.

Let’s say, we have a clear sample of a drug with a polished surface around its container.

Now, passing electromagnetic radiation (incident radiation or we may use UV rays) to the drug sample, some of the light may get absorbed, and the rest of it gets transmitted.

Here, the intensity of incident radiation = Io, and

The intensity of transmitted radiation = It

So, the absorbance $A=log(\frac{I_{o}}{I_{t}})$

∴ It is a unitless quantity.

What will we Study in the Beer Lambert Law?

Here, we will focus on the factors which influence absorption. So, the factors are:

• The concentration of the sample.

• The thickness of the medium.

• The temperature at which we will measure the absorbance.

• The wavelength of the EM radiation.

Point to Remember:

Here, the absorbance of the material will be measured at the wavelength at which we would observe the maximum absorption, and the temperature will be kept at a uniform level.

This is how we will use Beer Lambert law to determine the absorbance of any number of samples. This article will explain Beer Lambert law most simply.  So, let’s get started.

Beer Lambert Law Definition

Beer Lambert law consists of the following two laws:

• Lambert’s Law

This law is concerned with the thickness of the medium.

• Beer’s Law

This law is concerned with the concentration of the solution via which monochromatic radiation passes.

Lambert’s Law

When monochromatic radiation (it can be UV rays) is passed through a medium, the intensity of the transmitted radiation decreases with the increase in the thickness of the absorbing medium, and it varies directly with the incident radiation.

Mathematically, we can express this statement as:

$-\frac{dI_{o}}{dc}$= k’Io (Here, the negative sign indicates the decrease in the intensity of the transmitted radiations)...(1)

Equation (1) says that the rate of decrease in the intensity to the thickness is directly proportional to the incident radiation.

Now, equation  (1) can be rewritten as:

It = Io 10-k'b ….(2)

Here,  It = Intensity of transmitted radiation

k’ = Proportionality constant

We can write the equation (1) in the following way as well:

$A=log(\frac{I_{o}}{I_{t}})$α b

This expression says that the absorbance of light in a homogenous material/medium is directly proportional to the thickness of the material/medium.

So, A = εb….(p)

Beer’s Law

When monochromatic light passes through a ‘transparent medium’, the rate of decrease of transmitted radiation with the increase in the concentration of the medium is directly proportional to the intensity of the incident light.

We can express this statement mathematically as;

$-\frac{dI_{o}}{dc}$= kIo ….(3)

We can rewrite this equation as:

It = Io 10-k''c ….(4)

Another form of writing equation (3) is:

$A=log(\frac{I_{o}}{I_{t}})$ α b

This expression says that the absorbance of light in a homogenous material/medium is directly proportional to the concentration of the sample.

Now, we get our simplified expression as:

A =  εb….(q)

Beer Lambert Law Derivation

For determining the Beer Lambert law equation, let’s combine equation (2) & (4), and take the log of these, we get:

$log(\frac{I_{o}}{It})$= k’k’’bc….(5)

We can express equation (5) as:

A = εbc…(6)

Equation (6) is the required Beer Lambert Law Formula.

Where,

A = Absorption

ε = Molar absorption coefficient or molar absorptivity in m-1cm-1 = k’ x k’’

b = Thickness of the medium in cm

c = Molar concentration in M

So, the final Beer Lambert law statement is:

When monochromatic radiation passes through a homogeneous medium, then the rate of decrease in the intensity of the transmitted radiation with the increase in the thickness of the medium and the concentration of the solution varies directly with the intensity of incident radiation.

Beer Lambert’s Law Graph

The graphical method is used to determine the value of the Molar Extinction Coefficient (ε). This value is determined by plotting the values of absorbance (on the y-axis) against various values of concentrations (on the x-axis) and determining the slope of the line.

It is observed that a straight line passing through the origin is obtained. We know that,

A=εbc

Where,

A:  absorbance of the solution

C: concentration of the solution

ε: Molar extinction coefficient

b: Thickness of the medium

Thus, the slope of the graph is given by εb. We know the value of b, thus we can determine the value of ε easily.

Beer Lambert Law Applications

The important use of the Beer Lambert law is found in electromagnetic spectroscopy.

Now, let’s understand the applications of Beer Lambert law:

• To analyze the drugs, for that, let’s take an example of a tablet:

Let’s suppose we have a tablet and we don’t know which drug is present in it. Though we may know the drug, then the question arises about what its molar concentration is.

In electromagnetic spectroscopy, we use electromagnetic radiation (we may take UV rays), which scans the tablet and determines the qualitative (drug present) and the quantitative (concentration) property of the tablet.

• The same method can be used in determining the molar absorbance of bilirubin in blood plasma samples.

• We use Beer Lambert Law to conduct a qualitative and quantitative analysis of biological and dosimetric materials that may contain organic or inorganic materials.

• We can determine the concentration of various substances in cell structures by measuring their absorbing spectra in the cell.

• Very often many scientists are given credits for the discovery of this law which are as follows:

• In 1729, Pierre Bouguer discovered this law initially.

• Lambert’s law was proposed by Johann Heinrich Lambert in 1760 after quoting Pierre Bouger’s discovery.

• Beer’s Law was proposed by a scientist named August Beer in 1652.

Conclusion

Beer Lambert’s Law is a very important topic in Physics as well as in Chemistry. It has a very wide array of applications in many fields. Therefore Vedantu has brought this article for you.

After reading this article you will get all the information related to Beer Lambert’s Law. to make this topic more interesting for you many applications and fun facts have been added towards the end.

This topic will not only help students preparing for Class 11 and Class 12 examination but also to learners studying in degree and master courses. It can also help technicians and scholars to revise this topic in a very short period.

FAQs on Beer Lambert Law

1. How do you calculate the Absorbance?

We calculate the absorbance by using the following formula:

$Ay=-log(\frac{Io}{It})$ of a light with the wavelength ‘y’.

Here, $\frac{Io}{It}$ = Transmittance of the testing material/sample. We need to understand that  absorbance is a pure number having no unit.

2. How the Absorbance helps determine the concentration of a solution?

The value of the absorbance lies between 0.1 and 1. If the absorbance of material is greater than or equal to 1.0 (too high), then we can say that the solution has a higher concentration.

3. What is the slope of Beer’s Law Graph?

We can determine the absorbance of a chemical or biological molecule in a given sample by using Beer-Lambert’s law. Below is the graph of the absorbance versus concentration of the solution:

The slope of this graph is ε x c; this product is the molar absorptivity coefficient.

4. What is the Beer-Lambert Law for absorption spectroscopy?

In electromagnetic spectroscopy, we find many applications on Beer-Lambert’s law. This law states the linear relationship between the absorbance and the concentration of a solution sample, which enables us to determine the molar concentration of any number of solutions.

5. What is the significance of Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs in spectroscopy?

Spectroscopy is used in determining the concentration of a given solution using a device named an Ultraviolet (UV) Spectrophotometer. Many a time researchers are needed to determine the unknown concentration for solutions and they use spectroscopy because it provides very accurate results. The device measures the absorbance of the solution and reports it to the observer. These data of absorbance, the thickness of the cuvette, intensity of the emitted and the transmitted light together help in determining the unknown concentration of a solution. All of the mentioned entities are related to each other using Beer-Lambert Law.

6. How relevant is the topic of Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs for Applied Chemistry?

Applied Chemistry is an application-based subject wherein whatever is being taught in Chemistry is directly applied in the labs during carrying out various experiments. The topic of Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs is extremely significant for studying as well as applying Applied Chemistry. It is used to determine the concentration of a given solution, both mathematically and graphically using a UV Spectrophotometer. Such experiments are carried out by Applied Chemistry students daily thus the topic of Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs is taught to them in the initial semesters itself.

7. How long does it take to study Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs?

Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs is an extremely easy topic of very high significance and has a wide variety of applications. It should not take more than 4-5 hours to complete this topic even if you are starting from scratch. While studying this topic you will learn about Beer’s law, Lambert’s law, Beer Lambert’s law, its derivation, graphs related to this law, applications of Beer Lambert’s law, the role of Beer Lambert’s Law in spectroscopy, and a little more. 4-5 hours are more than sufficient for you to cover these topics in and out.

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You can study Beer Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs very easily from Vedantu’s website. All the information given on the website is prepared by subject matter experts of Vedantu through research and analysis. Reading this topic from Vedantu’s website will be very easy for you because all the content is segregated into various sub-topics. You can refer to Vedantu’s website to learn about many other topics of Physics which are covered very comprehensively and in a student-friendly manner. All the free study materials provided by Vedantu are very reliable and accessible to all users.

9. What is the role of absorbance in Beer-Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs?

Absorbance plays a very important role in Beer Lambert Law – Definition, Derivation, Applications and FAQs. This law states that there is a linear relationship between the concentration of the solution and the absorbance of the solution. This facilitates the calculation of the concentration of a solution. The complete process is carried out using a UV Spectrophotometer. A spectrophotometer gives the absorbance value which enables you to calculate the value of the concentrations using a mathematical calculation based on Beer Lambert Law or by plotting the graphs associated with the same.