Lab Experiment 3: Having Fun With Chemicals

September 17, 2008 Having Fun With Chemicals Julie Anne A.
Day 1, Period 4


Purpose: To play and have fun with chemicals by combining them. Also, to determine whether a physical or chemical changes have occurred.

Materials:
5 sets of 3 mL dilute sulphuric acid
1/2 spatula copper carbonate
3 mL sodium hydroxide solution
3 mL vinegar
1/2 spatula bicarbonate of soda
1/2 spatula copper oxide
3 mL potassium iodide solution
copper foil
iron nail
2 cm magnesium ribbon
1 spatula iron fillings

Procedure: Combine the chemicals as written on the sheet that was given.



Data and Observations:

1.) 3 mL dilute sulphuric acid + 1/2 spatula copper carbonate
Before: The sulphuric acid was very clear and wasn’t very viscous. It had no odour and it was as clear as water. Copper carbonate was a green powder that looked like flour except for the colour of it. When one of my classmates was pouring it into the test tube, it wouldn't just flow gracefully, he had to give it a little shake in order for it to fall.

After: Sulphuric acid became a cloudy green mixture. The copper carbonate dissolved in the sulphuric acid and it looked like it had been liquified. Also, it stayed at the bottom. I saw like a water and oil effect between these two chemicals. The sulphuric acid was at the top of the mixture but the liquefied copper carbonate stayed at the bottom of the test tube. It still didn’t have odour.

***This is the result of the combination of sulphuric acid and copper carbonate.

Is new substance made? Yes, considering that the mixture turned cloudish green.
Type of Change: Chemical

2.) 3 mL dilute sulphuric acid + 3 mL sodium hydroxide solution
Before: For the description of the sulphuric acid, refer to number 1. The sodium hydroxide solution was not viscous. It looked like water but it had a brownish tint to it. However, you can still look through it. It had no odour.
After: Nothing interesting happened but if you look at the mixture, you wouldn't be able to recognize the sulphuric acid. The mixture had this brownish tint and it had no odor and it was not very viscous.

***You can't really see the brownish tint here because it's too faint and even if the camera is on burst, it still gave off light so maybe, that contributed to why the brownish tint cannot be seen.
Is a new substance made? Yes
Type of Change: Chemical

3.) 3 mL vinegar + 1/2 spatula of bicarbonate soda
Before: The vinegar flows very well and it was almost as clear as water except for these microscopic things floating it in. It's probably pulps of something. It had a very strong smell. Baking soda was a white powder and it had no odour. Also, it looked rough to me.
After: The mixture fizzed and rose out the test tube. The vinegar looked cloudy due to some dissolved baking soda and the fizzing effect. It also lost its odour. The baking soda settled at the bottom of the test tube and some dissolved.

***My lab partner and I didn't have the time to discuss what was happening because the battery of the camera was dieing and I didn't expect that the mixture will actually rise that high. I expected it to rise but I didn't expect it to rise above the test tube. Maybe, it's because of the amount of baking soda that my lab partner put in. (I really hope that we're not breaking any lab safety rules here.)

Is a new substance made? Yes
Type of Change: Chemical due to bubbles

4.) 3 mL sulphuric acid + 1/2 spatula copper oxide
Before: Refer to #1 for the description of sulphuric acid. Copper oxide is a black powder with fine grains but not as fine as copper carbonate. It had no odour and it looked rough to me.
After: The mixture turned black and some of the copper oxide dissolved while some settled at the bottom and I think I saw some of it on top of the mixture. The mixture had no odour you can see bits of grains in it.
***This is the result of sulphuric acid and copper oxide. I suppose that the black lining on top of the mixture is some copper oxide.
Is a new substance made?Yes
Type of Change: Chemical



5.) 3 mL lead nitrate solution + 3 mL potassium iodide solution
Before: The lead nitrate solution was a clear fluid and it was not viscous. It was as clear as water and it had no odour. The potassium iodide had a very faint color and it had no odour. It flows well too.
After: The mixture turned very bright yellow, brighter than potassium iodide and brighter than I have expected. It also thickened. It was as if powder had been added to it. It had no odour.
***This is the result of the mixture of lead nitrate and potassium iodide. I didn't think that it would look that thick.
Is a new substance made? Yes
Type of Change: Chemical



6.) 3 mL sulphuric acid + copper foil
Before: Refer to #1 for the description of sulphuric acid. The copper foil looked flimsy. It was coloured bronze and it had no odour. It also had pointy edges.
After: Nothing interesting had happened. The copper foil stood in the bottom of the test tube.
Is a new substance made? No
Type of Change: Nothing happened



7.) 3 mL water ­+ iron nail
Before: Water was very clear and it wasn’t viscous. It had no odour and it looked smooth.
After: We didn’t see anything happened but I predict that the iron nail would oxidize or rust as time goes by. Also, I think that the rust would smell because that's what I smelled when I accidentally smelled a rust before. Moreover, I predict that the water will have an orangy color.
Is a new substance made? Yes, I bet
Type of Change: Chemical



8.) 3 mL sulphuric acid + 2 cm magnesium ribbon
Before: Refer to #1 for the description of sulphuric acid. The magnesium ribbon was flimsy and it was a small and tiny strip of grayish metal.





9.) 3 mL copper sulphate solution + 1 spatula iron fillings


Questions:

1) How is liquid different form solid in shape and volume?
Solids have a definite shape and volume while liquids don’t. Liquids follow the shapes of their containers. This is mainly because of the formation and the motion of their particles.

2) How are gases and liquids similar in shape and volume?
The similarity between the volumes and shapes of gases and liquids is that they both have indefinite shape and volume. They also follow the shapes of their containers. However, gases have more indefinite shape and volume. This similarity occurs due to their particles.

3) How are solids and gases different in the amount of space between particles?
There's a big difference between the particles of solids and gases. Solids have particles that are very close together and because of that, they can only vibrate. Gases, on the other hand, have particles that are very far apart from each other and their particles are very hyper and bump into each other.

4) a) How does the space of particles change as energy is added to the particles?
When energy is added to particles, their kinetic energy increases and their spaces become wider.

b) How do the spaces change, as energy is lost?
As energy is taken from the particle, the spaces between the particles become narrower. It is due to the decreasing kinetic energy.

5) a) How does the behaviour of particles change as energy is added to particles?
The particles become more hyper and full of motion as energy is added to it.

b) How does the behaviour of particles change, as energy is lost?
The motions of particles slow down as energy is taken away from the particles. If there is no longer energy, the motion within the particles will be very slow.

6) What happens during condensation?
During condensation, gas is turned to liquid due to heat taken away from it.

7) What is the difference between sublimation and deposition?
Sublimation is the process in which solid changes directly to gas without reaching the liquid state. When deposition occurs, however, gas directly turns to solid, skipping the liquid state.


Conclusion:

The lab experiment today was full of fun because we were able to combine solution and other elements and watch how they change when combined with other things. I learned that when you combine chemicals, sometimes, you wouldn't really get what you expected to result. For example, when combining potassium iodide and lead nitrate solution, I didn’t get what I thought of getting. I thought I would get a faint, thin mixture but I got the opposite. After doing this lab, I learned that some chemicals could dissolve other chemicals in a few seconds after you shake them together. That is what I have observed when I combined sulphuric acid and copper carbonate. Moreover, I learned that copper carbonate, after being liquefied, is denser than sulphuric acid. I saw an oil and water effect while combining the two of them and I didn’t expect that. I think these changes happened because of the things in the chemicals. Maybe, there are some things in the vinegar and the baking soda that reacted with each other which caused the mixture of vinegar and baking soda to produce bubbles. Finally, I learned that some chemicals could be an environmental hazard because our teacher didn't let us throw some of the mixtures down the sink.

Additional Photo:

***This is our test tube rack! (The sulphuric acid and copper carbonate mixture, where are they?...Maybe, I was holding it, my bad!)


***This is our test tube rack with the sulphuric acid and copper carbonate mixture. I wasn't able to put the other chemical mixtures because the we we're already in a hurry to clean up.