Category Archives: Science Experiments

Preserving Autumn Leaves

Last week we considered the Chemistry of Autumn, and tried to preserve some of the best colored leaves for our nature study wall/shelf.

First, we collected the most colorful leaves we could find – on our property. We saw some prettier ones while driving down the road, but I decided that it was more important that this be part of our collection of leaves from our own property.

Then we prepared the recipe in a baking pan:

1 part glycerine (found at a local pharmacy)

2 parts water

We laid in a few of our favorite leaves from different trees, loosely covered it with plastic wrap, and then set a smaller baking pan on top to force the leaves down into the liquid.

We started checking them after a couple of days, wanting a supple feel, and then we blotted them dry when they were done.

If you compare the before and after pictures above, you can judge how well it worked. The Tulip Poplar leaf turned out real nice. The green colored Red Maple leaf kept a nice green color, but the red colored Red Maple leaf, didn’t keep its color.

It seems that leaves displaying a splendor of yellow and orange, might be the best for this technique, but the leaves with red don’t do as well.

Blowing Up Balloons Chemically Experiment

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In this experiment the objective is to determine what observable factors are changed in a chemical reaction and what factors remain constant.

Chemicals Used:
Part one calls for 50 ml hydrochloric acid (you will need to buy 2 of the linked to product,) and 8 grams of zinc.

You can also buy the Hydrochloric acid at someplace like lab or at a commercial cleaning supply company under the name “muriatic acid”, but you want it diluted to 3 M for this lab. I chose to buy it from lab.

Part two calls for 50 ml acetic acid (vinegar) and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda).

I bought these two items, only because I didn’t know that I had them in my pantry!

Equipment Used:
250 ml flask
Balloons
Balance – We didn’t have a balance, so we went on without it, but because we want to consider the Law of Conservation of Mass, it would have been a valuable tool to have.

Safety Considerations:
You are using acid this week so use proper safety precautions for hydrochloric acid! Please be sure to use goggles, gloves, and possibly some protective clothing.

You should do part one of this experiment outside.

Things Considered:
In an exothermic reaction energy is being released by the reaction, therefore the system becomes warmer.
In an endothermic reaction energy is being used by the reaction, so the system becomes cooler.

Watch the Experiments:
Here is a video of part one being demonstrated.

What Happened?
Here is an explanation of what happened in part one (that’s hydrogen gas in your balloon – be careful,) and part two (it’s just carbon dioxide in this balloon – your plants will like it.)

Ronnie used a funnel to get the zinc powder into the balloon.

The balloon has to be securely over the mouth of the flask.

We did part one inside, but the smell bothered us, so we moved outside.

We were much safer doing part two outside, but it was harmless.

Our First Chemistry Experiment

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We tackled our first chemistry experiment last week! It was great! It didn’t work exactly like we expected, but still, it was great!

In this experiment we were amateur alchemists, trying to turn base metals into gold. Our desire to do an experiment of this kind came from our reading about Bernard Trevisan, one of the original alchemist. But we didn’t spend our entire life and family fortune is search of the Philosopher’s Stone, just an afternoon and 3 pennies.