We’ve seen some very fascinating things in science this year, but this lab has been one of the coolest. Pretty much we mixed some things, we poured some things, we shook somethings, and we changed the colour of a flame. But that’s not the very in depth or detailed description that’s expected of me in the plp program, so prepare to witness the tutorial to teach you how to be a magical science geek.
You will need to begin by making sure you have all the right materials. We used two 500ml beakers, a graduated cylinder, safety goggles, copper chloride, a bunsen burner, some paper towel and aluminum foil. To ensure maximum safety, put on the safety goggles. Once maximum safety is ensured, fill one of the beakers with copper chloride. Following suite, add the aluminum foil and let it sit for a couple minutes. If you’re patient, you’ll likely notice a chemical change in which the foil changes to a rustic, dark brown colour. Bubbles rising to the surface, a subtle smell, and of course the new rusty substance are also indications of the chemical change that has occurred.
When the elements slowly begin to come apart, pour out the copper and wash the beaker and contents a couple times. To wash it, fill it a little with water, let it settle for awhile and then pour it out. This will ensure the copper is as pure and clean as can be. After that magnificent step, add chloride and do yet another wash with that. Scrub-a-dubdub. Then, scrap the aluminium from the bottom of the beaker and pick it up with your pair of tongs. Using the tongs to pick up a little bit of the material, hover it over the Bunsen Burner which will magically transform a blue flame into a green flame.
Congratulations! You’ve just completed the experiment based around the equation CuCl2+Al=Cu+AlCl3. You get a gold star.