Giulia Socolof 3/8/13 Ms.

Tavares- Science 6 Slot H Partner: Ben Zimmerman The Magnesium Strip Purpose: To observe the effect that fire had on magnesium and whether such effect was physical or chemical change, and to observe the law of conservation of mass. Prediction: The strip would burn quickly, and would produce a very bright light. Hypothesis: If a magnesium strip is put over an open flame, then it will quickly ignite and burn because of the chemical properties of the strip and oxidation. Materials: A magnesium strip, a propane burner, matches, tongs, goggles, a lab apron, a pencil, and a beaker of water are needed for this lab. Procedure: First, a magnesium strip was carefully removed from its container using forceps, and then the strip was transferred from the forceps to tongs. As many qualitative and quantitative observations as possible about the strip were recorded. Then, a match was lit, the gas turned on, and the burner lit. The strip was put over the flame as fast as possible, so it would not oxidize. Without looking directly at the light, the effect that the flame had on the magnesium strip was observed for approximately 30 seconds. Then the data and observations were recorded.

Data/Results:

Giulia Socolof 3/8/13 Ms. Tavares- Science 6 Slot H Partner: Ben Zimmerman Qualitative Observations- Before the reaction, the magnesium strip was observed to be a silvery color, short, thin, fragile, and to feel very light in weight. During the experiment, it was observed that the strip became very hot, and started to glow. Then, it burst into flames for a brief period of time and ultimately died down, changing color to white. After that, it crumbled to ash. It was noted that the chemical bonds of the strip were broken, and reformed into magnesium oxide, MgO.

Quantitative Observations Weight of the product before reaction: Trial 1- 0.053g. Trial 2-0.05g. Trial 3- 0.037g Weight of the product after the reaction: Trial 1- 0.033g. Trial 2- 0.03g. Trial 3- 0.017g After each reaction, the weight of the product went down by 0.02 grams. The strip was noted to feel very light before being weighed by the balance. The comparison of the weight of the product before and after reactions is depicted on the graph below.
0.06 0.05 0.04 0.03 0.02 0.01 0 Before 1 After 1 Before 2 After 2 Before 3 After 3

Key Blue: Weight of product in grams Numbers on bottom: Trial number Numbers on left: Weight in grams Before/After: Product before and after reaction

Giulia Socolof 3/8/13 Ms. Tavares- Science 6 Slot H Partner: Ben Zimmerman Discussion: The purpose of this lab was to see if a chemical or physical change occurred, and to see if the experiment complied with the law of conservation of mass. The hypothesis was: if a magnesium strip were put over an open flame, then it would quickly ignite and burn because of the chemical properties of the strip, and oxidation. For this lab, a magnesium strip, a propane burner, matches, tongs, goggles, a lab apron a pencil, and a beaker of water were needed. First, the strip was carefully removed from its container using forceps, and then it was transferred to tongs and as many observations as possible were made about the strip. Then, a match was used to light the propane burner, and then the strip was put over the flame. Without looking directly at the light, the magnesium strip was observed. Before the reaction, the magnesium strip was short, fragile, and silvery. It was also fairly light. Also, the weight of the strip product was recorded before and after each reaction, for a total of three trials. During the reaction, it was noted that the strip began to glow, and was very hot. It then shortly burst into flames, and when dying down it changed color to white, then ultimately crumbled to ash. The magnesium strip turning into ash was an example of a chemical change. The evidence that it was a chemical change was that when it reacted with the flame, its molecules rearranged and became a different set of molecules. Another piece of evidence that it was a chemical change was that the ash could not be turned back

Giulia Socolof 3/8/13 Ms. Tavares- Science 6 Slot H Partner: Ben Zimmerman into a magnesium strip without another chemical change. Also, it formed a new chemical, magnesium oxide, MgO. Conclusion: When the strip was put over the flame, it had a slightly different effect than predicted. It did quickly burn, and it produced a very bright light. But, the chemical change into magnesium oxide was not anticipated. Therefore, the conclusion is that if you put a magnesium strip over a flame, it will quickly ignite and produce a very bright light and then form magnesium oxide because of the properties of magnesium, and oxidation.