activity: pH Testing

The pH scale is a way of measuring how acidic or alkaline a substance is. We use indicators to show us the pH of a substance. Indicators like universal indicator change colour depending on whether a substance is acid or alkaline. Universal indicator is particularly useful because it changes to a range of different colours, so tells us how acidic, or how alkaline a substance is. If it changes red, orange or yellow (pH 1-6), it tells us the substance is acidic. A colour change of greenish blue, blue or purple (pH 7-14) indicates an alkali. If it turns green, then the substance is neutral (pH 7).

Most fish prefer water with a pH between 7 and 8. If the pH is outside the range 5 to 8.5 the water is seriously polluted with acid or alkali. What you will need:

5 samples of water - tap water, distilled water and 3 other sources (this could be tap water from a different area, pond water, river water, sea water) narrow range pH paper several clean, dry test tubes test tube rack, or large beaker to hold the test tubes in

Click here for more information on collecting water samples. What you will do: 1. Pour 1 cubic cm of a water sample into a test tube.

2. Add the pH paper and note down the colour change. 3. Pour the water sample away and throw the pH paper in the bin. Don't leave the pH paper in the sink!!

What do you observe? You can record your results in a table like this:
water sample tap water distilled water sea water pond water river water colour change pH value acid or alkaline

Questions: 1. Did you find any pattern to your results? For instance, were the water samples mostly acidic, alkaline or neutral? 2. Why was it important to use dry test tubes for this experiment?
http://www.fi.edu/guide/bond/purity.html activity: Water Purity Test

The boiling point of pure water is 100 degrees celsius. If water contains any impurities this will alter its boiling point.

What you will need:

5 samples of water - tap water, distilled water and 3 other sources (this could be tap water from a different area, pond water, river water, sea water) accurate thermometer several clean, dry boiling tubes clamp stand and boss bunsen burner test tube rack, or large beaker to hold the boiling tubes in safety glasses Click here for more information on collecting water samples.

What you will do:

Put some safety glasses on. Pour 2 cm3 of your water sample into a boiling tube. Clamp the boiling tube at a slight angle, so you can heat the bottom of the tube. Make sure it is not pointing at anyone's face. Put the thermometer into the tube and carefully clamp it, so it doesn't touch the base or side of the boiling tube. Heat the liquid water until it boils and record the temperature it boils at.

What do you observe?

You can record your results in a table like this:

Water sample Boiling point in degrees celsius tap water

distilled water sea water pond water river water

Questions:

Which of your water samples was the purest? Explain your answer. How could you have improved your experiment to make it a fairer test? Here are three sources of water pollution: a) homes, b) farms, c) industries. For each one of these, list two pollutants that it might produce.