Narrative Report: Physical and Chemical

Changes
(Group 5)

There are 2 types of changes in which matter undergoes; we have the

physical and the chemical change. On our recently conducted lab
activity, we learned to identify the difference between a physical
change and a chemical change, and we were able to determine types
of chemical reactions in different chemical equations through carefully
following some procedures.

Firstly, we placed a few drops of ethyl alcohol in a watch glass. No

changes occurred. Next, we again placed about 1 ml of ethyl alcohol in
an evaporating dish, and carefully ignited the alcohol with a lighted
matchstick. In this procedure, we observed how the heat of the lighted
matchstick consumes the alcohol until the evaporating dish was dry
and left with some burns on the sides. For the next procedure, we
strongly heat a pinch of sugar in a test tube. In here, we witnessed how
the sugar crystals turned into a brown thick liquid that solidified after a
certain amount of time. There also was a change in odor. Then, we
strongly heat about 1 g of crystals in blue vitriol (copper II sulfate) in a
dry test tube. While doing so, we witnessed how its color changed from
blue to some sort of ash white. Next, we heat a few grains of clean
sand in which no changes were observed. After that, we witnessed
some pieces of mossy zinc added to 5 ml of dilute hydrochloric acid
solution in a test tube in which the zinc quickly reacted by forming
bubbles (of hydrogen). We also noticed that as the test tube was
covered, more bubbles rise. For the next one, we added about one
gram of sugar crystals to 5ml of water. The sugar crystals were
dissolved and we noticed that the water was not very transparent
anymore unlike before sugar was added. Then, as we tried adding one
gram of ammonium chloride crystal to 5ml of water, just like the sugar,
it also dissolved. The only difference is that in here, very small bubbles
were formed. Lastly, we watched a piece of magnesium ribbon held in
flame in which we observed how a flashing light was produced while
the fire was consuming the Mg ribbon. At the end, the ribbon just
turned into ash.

At the end of the experiment, by carefully following each of the

procedures, we were able to prove how physical change differs from
chemical change. Physical change may include change in appearance
but not change in the substances composition in which the chemical
change contrasts this, since in chemical change, it involves changing
the substances composition to form a new substance. Physical change
is completely reversible while chemical change is not. It is irreversible.
We were also able to determine some types of chemical reactions like
the single replacement reaction, which occurred when the mossy zinc
was added to the dilute hydrochloric acid.