Category: STEAM

Stem-round4

A special property of acids and bases is their ability to neutralize the other’s properties. An acid is an ionic compound that produces positive hydrogen ions (H+) when dissolved in water. A base is an ionic compound that produces negative hydroxide ions (OH-) when dissolved in water. To get a better understanding of what Acid and Base are, we did the experiment call the Acid and Base Test.

Material: Cups and Red cabbage solution as an indicator

• Lemon juice, Vinegar, Sprite, Water, Toothpaste and water solution, Baking soda and water solution, Bleach.

Step 1: Add 20 ml of each solution to a each cup

Step 2: Pour indicator solution to each solution cup

Step 3  Acid vs Base

• Take Lemon juice cup ( already mixed with indicator) and Pour it in the bleach cup
• Take baking soda and water solution and pour it in the vinegar   ( Take note of the reaction )
• Take Sprite and pour slowly into the toothpaste solution ( take note of the reaction )

These below are the result after the experiment:

• Lemon juice with the indicator: The lemon juice being the most acidic of the lot changes to a bright red color.
• Sprite with the indicator: The color changes to a very light pick.
• Water with the indicator: Because water is neutral so the color with turn into the red cabbage color.
• Toothpaste and water solution with the indicator: The color change to a very very light pink.

• Bleach with the indicator: It goes back the bleach’s color.
• When you pour the Lemon juice cup into the bleach cup, the color will turn into the color of the bleach. This is because the bleach has the strongest base, so it resolves the red color from the red cabbage indicator to its own color
• Why when you put the sprite into the toothpaste and the color turn to the color of the indicator?
  • This is because they both are neutralize that’s why the color turning to the color of the red cabbage.

Paying attention to the experiment is really important because it helps you to understand more clearly about Acid and Base.

STEAM – round 3

This round we have been focusing on Carbon. Carbon is a very important and special element because every living thing is made out of carbon. If there isn’t any carbon there won’t be life on earth. Carbon is present in the atmosphere as the gas carbon dioxide (co2), which make up approximately 0.04% of the atmosphere. Related to that we also studied about the carbon cycle. Carbon is a virtually important molecule in the carbon cycle. The global moment of carbon between the abiotic environment, including the atmosphere and ocean and organisms, is known as the carbon cycle. The carbon cycle is what makes up life. Now I’ll you more about it. Carbon dioxide are from animal respiration, plant respiration, combustion, and Auto and factory emissions. Where does it go?. They go up to the atmosphere. How does it cycle?

• Trees are the one who takes carbon dioxide and use it to make food. They absorbed carbon dioxide through photosynthesis. Animals then eat the food and carbon is stored in their bodies or released as CO2 through respiration. After trees eat the carbon dioxide then they will also release back the oxygen, which is what we use to breathe. We, human use oxygen to breathe and release back some carbon dioxide through farting.
• Decomposer also plays an important role in the carbon cycle. It breaks down the dead organisms and returns the carbon in their bodies to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide by respiration. If there isn’t any decomposer, there will be less carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere and there would be less carbon dioxide for plants to take in for photosynthesis.
• During the combustion of fossil fuel carbon is returned to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.  These are what I know about the carbon cycle.

We also did one experiment related to carbon. It is called the Black Snake experiment.     

Processes of Making the Black Snake

• Mix the sugar and baking soda together in one bowl or anything that you can use to mix something
• Next, Pour the sand in another bowl and pour the Alcohol into the sand to wet it
• Pour the sugar and soda mixture on the sand
• At last, Ignite it with a match

Result

• It creates the Blacksnake
• The sugar needs something hot like fire to break down itself and I think sugar also need oxygen to break down itself. When oxygen is used, carbon dioxide and water vapor is released.
• The baking soda also reacts with heat, so when the fire heat it, it produces the solid sodium carbonate that’s why it makes the snake looks solid.
• Because my teacher told me that, Carbon dioxide is black, so carbon dioxide is what makes the snake black.
• Altogether, these three reactions produce the solid components of the snake, color of the snake and hot gasses that expand the BLACKSNAKE!!

Chemical bonding

STEM – round 2

Chemical bonding is one of the most interesting topic to learn about. Basically, a chemical bonding is a force of attraction between atoms or ions. It occurs when atoms share or transfer valence electrons. Valence electrons are the electrons in the outer energy level of an atom. There are three types of Bonding. One is the Ionic Bonds, second is the Covalent Bonds, and the third one is the Metallic Bonds

• Ionic Bond 
  •  An ionic bond is the force of attraction that holds together positively charged ions. It forms when atoms of a metallic element give up electrons to atoms of a nonmetallic element. Metals “want” to give up electrons, and nonmetals “want” to gain electrons. Ionic bonds are really strong.
  • Ionic compounds form crystals instead of molecules. Ionic bonds are strong and the crystals are rigid. As a result, ionic compounds are brittle solids with high melting and boiling points.
• Covalent bonds
  • Covalent bond is when two elements share the electrons with each other.They share electron to form molecule, and two of the electron is called double bond.                                                                                                            Note: They only share when they need to be share, and not always the same elements can share, but different elements can also be share.
• Metallic bonding
  • Metals mean anything that are hard or conductive, they don’t really melt in a room temperature, but they will be melt in when the temperature is 800°c or 100°c. Metal observe the heat very fast and it conducts strong heat, too.
  • A Metallic bond is a sharing of electrons between many atoms of a metal element.

These are what I know about chemical bonding based on what my teacher have taught me and some of my own research.

Did you know that Hydrogen bond is the weakest?. I know the answer, that is because they are easily and rapidly formed and then broken under normal biological condition.

Note: Rapidly means very quickly 🙂