FLAME TEST DEMO I. PURPOSE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND COLOR SPECTRUM BY IDENTIFYING SUBSTANCES WITH A FLAME TEST
BACKGROUND MATERIALS CAN BE IDENTIFIED BY THE COLOR OF THE FLAME THAT THEY PRODUCE WHEN BURNED. ELEMENTS ARE THE UNITS FROM WHICH ALL MATTER IS MADE. ELEMENTS ARE LOCATED ON THE PERIODIC TABLE. SUBSTANCES CAN BE TESTED TO DETERMINE THEIR COMPOSITION.
FLAME TESTS ARE USED TO ANALYZE WHAT IS IN A SUBSTANCE. THE FLAME TEST DETERMINES THE TYPE OF METAL OF AN IONIC SALT THAT IS PRESENT. THE NUMEROUS METALS BURN DIFFERENT COLORS. THE SPECIFIC COLOR INDICATES WHAT METAL IS PRESENT, JUST LIKE A FINGERPRINT OR DNA TEST IS USED TO DETERMINE THE EXACT PERSON. THE FLAME COLOR MAY BE SIMILAR, BUT NO 2 ELEMENTS BURN THE SAME EXACT COLOR. SPECTROSCOPY CAN BE USEFUL IN HELPING SCIENTISTS UNDERSTAND HOW AN OBJECT LIKE A BLACK HOLE OPERATES, HOW AN ACTIVE GALAXY PRODUCES LIGHT, HOW FAST A GALAXY IS MOVING, AND OF WHAT ELEMENTS A STAR IS MADE.
THE COLORS OF FIREWORKS COME FROM THE BURNING OF METALLIC SALTS. ORIGINALLY, ONLY 2 COLORS WERE USED. IN 1630, 1 COLOR WAS ADDED. BY THE 1850’s, FORMULAS FOR THE COLORS USED IN FIREWORKS WERE CREATED. MANY OF THE SALTS ARE STILL BEING USED TODAY.
FIREWORKS WERE NOT THE ONLY USE FOR THE COLORS EMITTED BY THESE SALTS. SCIENTISTS WERE USING FLAME TESTS TO OBSERVE THE COLORS GIVEN OFF WHEN A CHEMICAL IS BURNED AND CONSEQUENTLY IDENTIFY THE MATERIAL. COMPOUNDS CAN ALSO BE IDENTIFIED. SODIUM CHLORIDE BURNS YELLOW, POTASSIUM CHLORIDE BURNS PURPLE, AND LITHIUM CHLORIDE BURNS RED.
ELECTRONS CAUSE THE DIFFERENT COLORS THAT ARE OBSERVED WHEN MATERIALS ARE BURNED. ELECTRONS ARE SUBATOMIC PARTICLES THAT MAKE UP ATOMS. WHEN AN ATOM IS HEATED THE ELECTRONS JUMP INTO A HIGHER ENERGY LEVEL. THE ELECTRON ABSORBS ENERGY. LATER, THE ELECTRON WILL FALL BACK INTO ITS PREVIOUS ENERGY LEVEL AND RELEASES ENERGY. THIS RELEASED ENERGY IS IN THE FORM OF COLORED LIGHT. DIFFERENT ATOMS EMIT DIFFERENT COLORS OF LIGHT.
TODAY SCIENTISTS OBSERVE BURNING STARS TO DETERMINE THE SUBSTANCES THAT MAKE UP THE STAR. FOR EXAMPLE, IF A STAR IS BURNING BRIGHT RED, IT MIGHT CONTAIN A HIGH LEVEL OF STRONTIUM.
THE DATA TABLE LISTS ELEMENTS AND COMPOUNDS AS WELL AS THE COLOR OF THEIR RESPECTIVE FLAME. SUBSTANCE COLOR ANTIMONY PALE GREEN ARSENIC BLUE BORON BRIGHT GREEN BARIUM YELLOWISH GREEN CALCIUM RED-ORANGE CALCIUM CHLORIDE ORANGE CESIUM PALE VIOLET COPPER (NON-HALIDE) EMERALD GREEN COPPER CHLORIDE BLUE-GREEN INDIUM BLUE LITHIUM CRIMSON (BRIGHT DEEP RED) MAGNESIUM DIOXIDE WHITE SODIUM YELLOW POTASSIUM PURPLE PHOSPHORUS PALE BLUISH GREEN LEAD PALE GREEN RUBIDIUM PALE VIOLET SELENIUM AZURE BLUE STRONTIUM SCARLET THALLIUM PURE GREEN TIN MIXTURE OF BLUE/LIGHT RED ZINC BLUISH GREEN
II. MATERIALS
BUNSEN BURNER PLATINUM WIRE (MICROSPATULA) 1M HCl DEIONIZED H2O PAPER TOWELS SAMPLES: SODIUM CHLORIDE POTASSIUM CHLORIDE LITHIUM CHLORIDE BARIUM CHLORIDE COPPER MAGNESIUM STRONTIUM CHLORIDE CALCIUM CHLORIDE ZINC
III. PROCEDURE 1. LIGHT BUNSEN BURNER 2. CLEAN MICROSPATULA WITH H2O AND PAPER TOWEL 3. HEAT TIP OF MICROSPATULA TO DRIVE OFF MOISTURE
4. FOR DRY SAMPLES, WET TIP OF MICROSPATULA WITH H2O 5. DIP TIP OF MICROSPATULA INTO SAMPLE TO ADHERE SAMPLE TO TIP 6. FOR LIQUID SAMPLES, TRANSFER 2 DROPS OF SAMPLE TO TIP OF MICROSPATULA 7. HOLD TIP OF MICRO SPATULA IN THE FLAME 8. RECORD FLAME COLOR ON DATA TABLE 9. REPEAT STEPS 2 – 8 FOR REMAINING SAMPLES 10. IDENTIFY EACH SAMPLE
IV. RESULTS FLAME TEST SAMPLE # FLAME COLOR SAMPLE NAME 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
V. CONCLUSION 1. DESCRIBE WAVES.
2. DESCRIBE MECHANICAL WAVES.
3. DESCRIBE MEDIUM.
4. DESCRIBE ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES.
5. WHAT DO AND DO NOT WAVES TRANSFER?
6. DESCRIBE SPECTRUM.
7. DESCRIBE WAVELENGTH (λ).
8. DESCRIBE AMPLITUDE (a).
9. DESCRIBE FREQUENCY (f).
10. DESCRIBE PERIOD (s).
11. DESCRIBE SPEED OF THE WAVE.
12. DESCRIBE WAVE.
13. DESCRIBE PHOTON.
14. DESCRIBE SPECTRUM.
15. DESCRIBE SPECTROSCOPE.
16. RECORD THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM INCLUDING VISIBLE LIGHT AND LOW TO HIGH ENERGY.
17. WHAT SUBATOMIC PARTICLES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COLORED LIGHT EMISSIONS?
18. WHERE HAVE YOU OBSERVED COLORFUL LIGHT EMISSIONS?
19. HOW CAN ASTRONOMERS STUDY THE COMPOSITION OF STARS?
20. WHAT COLOR WOULD THE FLAME BE IF THE µSPATULA WAS NOT CLEANED BETWEEN EACH SAMPLE TEST?
21. A STAR CONTAINS SODIUM, WHAT COLOR LIGHT IS EMITTED?
22. A STAR EMITTED PURPLE LIGHT, WHAT ELEMENT IS PRESENT.