My Heart Beats for Chemistry
Tom Kuntzleman | Tue, 02/22/2022 - 18:21
Tom Kuntzleman conducts a safer "mercury-like" beating heart experiment with an added splash of gratefulness.
Demonstrations
Solution to Chemical Mystery #19: Multi-colored Mixture
Tom Kuntzleman | Sun, 02/06/2022 - 13:22
Did you figure out how to create a multi-colored mixture? Check out the solution to Chemical Mystery #19: Multi-colored Mixture!
Generating explosive gases from sand
Tom Kuntzleman | Fri, 01/07/2022 - 12:16
Did you know that sand can be converted into a mixture of gases that spontaneously ignites in air? The procedures involved are relatively simple to perform, spectacular to observe, and relate to a rich assortment of chemical principles.
Thermal Paper as a Polarity and Acidity Detector
Dean Campbell | Thu, 10/28/2021 - 14:09
Thermal paper such as that used for point of sale receipts typically functions by darkening when exposed to heat. The pigment system used in this paper also darkens when exposed to solvents of intermediate polarity and acids. This enables thermal paper to be used as an inexpensive sort of indicator paper for a variety of demonstrations.
Lithium Battery Flame
Tom Kuntzleman | Mon, 09/27/2021 - 16:42
Inspired by a recent article in the Journal of Chemical Education, Tom Kuntzleman attempted to extract lithium from a coin battery, and to use the extracted lithium to produce a pink flame.
Solution to Chemical Mystery #18: Peek A Boo Blue!
Tom Kuntzleman | Wed, 08/18/2021 - 09:09
Check out the solution to Chemical Mystery #18: Peek A Boo Blue!
Quantum Levitation and Superconductors
Tom Kuntzleman | Thu, 06/03/2021 - 13:21
Some explorations and explanations regarding superconductors and the quantum levitation (also known as quantum locking) experiment.
Simple formation of metal mirrors
Tom Kuntzleman | Mon, 05/10/2021 - 09:57
Beautiful, metallic mirrors of copper or silver can easily be formed in test tubes. Simply add the appropriate metal salt to a test tube, and heat! These reactions should be performed in a fume hood.
Effect of Temperature on Chemical Equilibrium using Copper Complexes
Tom Kuntzleman | Wed, 04/07/2021 - 11:00
This post describes a simple way to generate blue, green, orange, and yellow copper complexes, and to use these complexes to introduce students to the effect of temperature on chemical equilibria. The protcol avoids the use of caustic agents, allowing the experiments to be conducted by students as a laboratory-based investigation.
How Does the Rainbow Candy Experiment Work?
Tom Kuntzleman | Mon, 02/08/2021 - 07:10
Have you seen the rainbow candy experiment? It's a very simple experiment that involves pouring water into a plate that has M&M's candies or Skittles arranged in a pattern. Very curious shapes of sharply divided regions form spontaneously. How does this happen?!