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Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments diy Science Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments All Lab, No Lecture First Edition Robert Bruce Thompson BEIJING • CAMBRIDGE • FARNHAM • KÖLN • SEBASTOPOL • TAIPEI • TOKYO Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments All Lab, No Lecture by Robert Bruce Thompson Copyright © 2008 Robert Bruce Thompson. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A. Published by Make:Books, an imprint of Maker Media, a division of O’Reilly Media, Inc. 1005 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol, CA 95472. O’Reilly books may be purchased for educational, business, or sales promotional use. For more information, contact our corporate/institutional sales department: 800-998-9938 or [email protected]. Print History Publisher: Dale Dougherty April 2008 Associate Publisher: Dan Woods First Edition Executive Editor: Brian Jepson Editor: Tom Sgouros Creative Director: Daniel Carter Designer: Alison Kendall Production Manager: Terry Bronson Copy Editor: Nancy Kotary Indexer: Patti Schiendelman Cover Photograph: Jason Forman The O’Reilly logo is a registered trademark of O’Reilly Media, Inc. The DIY Science series designa- tions, Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments: All Lab, No Lecture, and related trade dress are trademarks of O’Reilly Media, Inc. The trademarks of third parties used in this work are the property of their respective owners. Important Message to Our Readers: Your safety is your own responsibility, including proper use of equipment and safety gear, and determining whether you have adequate skill and experience. Chemicals, electricity, and other resources used for these projects are dangerous unless used properly and with adequate precautions, including safety gear. Some illustrative photos do not depict safety precautions or equipment, in order to show the project steps more clearly. These projects are not intended for use by children. Use of the instructions and suggestions in Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments: All Lab, No Lecture is at your own risk. O’Reilly Media, Inc. and the author disclaim all responsibility for any resulting damage, injury, or expense. It is your responsibility to make sure that your activities comply with applicable laws, including copyright. This book uses RepKover™, a durable and flexible lay-flat binding. ISBN: 978-0-596-51492-1 [1/10] Dedication Carl Wilhelm Scheele (1742 – 1786) To Carl Wilhelm Scheele, one of the first true chemists, who did so much with so little. As a practicing pharmacist without access to the advanced laboratory equipment available to many of his contemporaries, Scheele discovered numerous chemical elements and compounds—including oxygen, nitrogen, chlorine, barium, manganese, molybdenum, tungsten, citric acid, glycerol, the pigment Scheele's Green (cupric hydrogen arsenite), and many others—debunked the phlogiston theory, and was among the first to establish the rigorous, standardized, consistent quantitative procedures that are the hallmark of modern chemistry. Scheele died at age 43, apparently from mercury poisoning contracted as a result of his unfortunate habit of tasting the new compounds he prepared. Contents Preface .............................................................................................................................................xi 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 Maintaining a Laboratory Notebook .................................................................................................5 2. Laboratory Safety ..........................................................................................................................9 Laboratory Safety Rules We Recommend ...................................................................................... 10 3. Equipping a Home Chemistry Lab ..........................................................................................13 General Purpose Glassware and Plasticware ................................................................................. 14 Volumetric Glassware .......................................................................................................................22 Microscale Equipment ......................................................................................................................26 Recommended Laboratory Glassware ............................................................................................28 Laboratory Equipment and Supplies .............................................................................................. 30 Work Area .......................................................................................................................................... 41 4. Chemicals for the Home Chemistry Lab .............................................................................. 45 Chemical Names ...............................................................................................................................46 Chemical Grades ...............................................................................................................................47 Chemical Risk Factors and Safety Advice .......................................................................................48 Hazard Pictograms and Letter Symbols .........................................................................................52 Safe Chemical Handling ...................................................................................................................52 Chemicals Used In This Book ..........................................................................................................58 5. Mastering Laboratory Skills ................................................................................................... 69 Measurement Resolution and Significant Figures .........................................................................69 Handling Chemicals Properly ........................................................................................................... 71 Using a Balance .................................................................................................................................73 Measuring Liquids by Volume .......................................................................................................... 74 Filtration .............................................................................................................................................83 Separations .......................................................................................................................................84 Using Heat Sources ..........................................................................................................................85 Working with Glass Tubing ...............................................................................................................88 Cleaning Glassware .......................................................................................................................... 90 6. Laboratory: Separating Mixtures........................................................................................... 93 Laboratory 6.1: Differential Solubility: Separate Sand and Sucrose .............................................94 Laboratory 6.2: Distillation: Purify Ethanol .....................................................................................97 Laboratory 6.3: Recrystallization: Purify Copper Sulfate ............................................................ 101 Laboratory 6.4: Solvent Extraction ................................................................................................105 Laboratory 6.5: Chromatography: Two-Phase Separation of Mixtures ......................................108 Laboratory 6.6: Determine the Formula of a Hydrate ...................................................................116 7. Laboratory: Solubility and Solutions ................................................................................... 121 Laboratory 7.1: Make Up a Molar Solution of a Solid Chemical ...................................................126 Laboratory 7.2: Make Up a Molal Solution of a Solid Chemical ................................................... 133 Laboratory 7.3: Make Up a Molar Solution of a Liquid Chemical ................................................136 Laboratory 7.4: Make Up a Mass-to-Volume Percentage Solution ..............................................140 Laboratory 7.5: Determine Concentration of a Solution by Visual Colorimetry ........................ 142 8. Laboratory: Colligative Properties of Solutions .................................................................147 Laboratory 8.1: Determine Molar Mass by Boiling Point Elevation ............................................. 149 Laboratory 8.2: Determine Molar Mass by Freezing Point Depression ...................................... 153 Laboratory 8.3: Observe the Effects of Osmotic Pressure ..........................................................156 9. Laboratory: Introduction to Chemical Reactions and Stoichiometry ....................................161 Laboratory 9.1: Observe a Composition Reaction ........................................................................163 Laboratory 9.2: Observe a Decomposition Reaction ................................................................... 167 Laboratory 9.3: Observe a Single Displacement Reaction ...........................................................171
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