burning a candle
Burning a candle As a candle burns oxygen is used and heat and water are produced. A few sensors can be used to monitor this process – including a light sensor to indicate when...
Tagged: chemistry
thermometric titration
Thermometric titration As acid reacts with alkali the pH changes and heat is evolved. This heat of neutralisation can be easily monitored using sensors – to produce a graph of temperature and pH against...
acid-base titration
Acid-base titration As acid drains into alkali the pH changes. This can be monitored using a pH sensor and instantly produce a graph of pH against volume. The volume of acid added is entered...
reaction rate: marble & acid
Rates: marble and acid Apparatus Clamps, bosses, & stands, marble pieces (large, medium and small sizes), 1M hydrochloric acid HCl, flask, bung, delivery tube, a good gas syringe. Interface, position sensor. Setting up Set...
reaction rate: thiosulfate & acid
Rates: Thiosulfate and acid Sodium thiosulfate and acid react to form a precipitate. The light sensor can be used, like a colorimeter, to monitor the rate of the reaction. In this experiment we study...
exothermic reactions
Exothermic reactions A temperature sensor can collect information about the heat generated when lime is mixed with water. Exothermic reactions are used in a glove heating pack. The proportions of this mixture is important....
heat of reaction
Heat of reaction As acid reacts with alkali, heat is evolved. This is the heat of neutralisation. This can be easily monitored using a temperature sensor. In this experiment the temperature is monitored continuously...
scientist 69: the science author – Michael Freemantle says WW1 was the chemists war (2014)
The First World War, that began in 1914, put chemists to work. Their chemicals could harm as well as heal … but on balance the outcome was … horrific. As the author of two...
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energy in food
As food burns it releases energy. This energy can be used to heat up water. If you know how much water you used, and how hot it gets, you can calculate the food’s energy...
lipase and milk fat
Fats, such as the fats in milk, need to be digested by your body. They are broken down into fatty acids and glycerol by an enzyme called lipase. You can do this in the...
measuring visible change in liquids
Measuring the appearance of cloudy sulfur when we mix acid and sodium thiosulfate is a popular science teaching activity. We can change the temperature or concentration of the reagents, and see whether the mixture...
effect of temperature on rate of reaction
If you were a chemical manufacturer you would certainly be interested in finding ways to increase the rate of production. One way is to do the reaction at a higher temperature, and in this...
effect of surface area on a rate of reaction
Hydrochloric acid and marble (CaCO3) react to form carbon dioxide gas. The gas can be captured and measured using a gas syringe. A position sensor can be attached to the syringe to record the...
tip for graphing with Excel
Sometimes you need to graph several variables one after the other – for example, in this weather database, we plotted the daily maximum temperature against time. For clarity, we plotted just 10 days.Next we...
data on the periodic table
Datasets (files) like the one below are useful in science. There is data to analyse by drawing graphs. The file below is in a ‘CSV’ format. Open it in your spreadsheet or Datalogging Insight program...
exothermic reaction of plaster of Paris in water
Plaster of Paris is white powder you mix with water and pour into a mould. You can make models with it while hospitals use it on broken limbs. When you mix it with water...
a cooling curve
I expect that when something cools, it will get cooler in a plodding kind of way. That’s true, but when something changes state, the cooling is not so steady.The graph below shows how liquid...
pH data on souring milk
The label on my milk bottle tells me how long the milk will ‘last’ at different temperatures. What do they measure to make this assessment? Is it the pH? I summoned patience, collected a glass...
why we use IT in science teaching (1994)
Scientists need to measure and communicate, to handle information and model ideas. In essence, they need to process information. Young scientists have similar needs. When they write, draw graphs, do maths and make measurements,...
rates of reaction
what affects the rate of reaction? A chemical reaction can be made to go fast or slow. In this activity you will try to measure how a chemical reaction is affected by temperature. When...
exothermic reactions
When quicklime is mixed with water an exothermic reaction takes place. A temperature sensor can collect information about the heat generated over time. Other things being equal, this reaction might be used in a...
acid-base titration
As acid drains into alkali the pH changes. This can be monitored using a pH sensor to produce an instant graph of pH against volume. The easy way of doing this is to not...
combustion – burning a candle
As a candle burns oxygen is used and heat and water are produced. A few sensors can be used to monitor this process. A light sensor indicates when the candle is extinguished, a humidity...
scientist 68: the crop scientist – Julian Little & products for farming (2014)
This podcast concerns the science of food crops. The growing world population leads to a demand to farm the land several times more effectively than we used to. But growing crops comes with risks....
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scientist 50: the chemical engineer – Mark Haw fluid and process engineering (2013)
Hear about measuring the properties of materials that are not just solids or liquids or gases but are all three in one. The soil under your feet is one such material – it is of course a solid...
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scientist 47: the drug discovery chemist – how medicines are discovered (2012)
In this podcast, a Cambridge chemist talks about drug discovery. Sean McKenna, a scientist in the pharmaceutical industry, describes techniques that take the guesswork out of making pills. We think you will be intrigued...
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scientist 44: the entrepreneur – water and fracking for oil and gas (2013)
Fracking was once uneconomic, but today’s energy crisis has led to new options. As the government has issued licences to drill in the UK, there have been protests in the UK. This podcast wises-up...
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scientist 34: the atmospheric scientist – John Pyle & atmospheric ozone (2012)
We visit the Centre for Atmospheric Science in Cambridge University and speak to Professor John Pyle about modelling the lower atmosphere using supercomputers. Follow-up link: Centre for Atmospheric Science atm.ch.cam.ac.uk See also ‘the earth...
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scientist 31: the science outreacher at Cambridge science centre (2012)
The Cambridge Science Centre is a really useful educational attraction in the city centre. Founder Dr Chris Lennard tells Roger Frost what the centre aims to do for science education. The Cambridge Science Centre opened in 2013 at 18 Jesus Lane,...
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scientist 28: the ice chemist – Robert Mulvanney at British Antarctic Survey (2012)
We hear how British Antarctic Survey scientists drill ice to discover how the world has changed over thousands of years. Dr. Robert Mulvaney of the British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge talks to the Science Show’s Roger...
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