Synthesis Of Iron Lab Report

Introduction:

Iron is a grey, reflective metal element which is commonly used in infrastructure. Many buildings and everyday objects are made of iron as it is strong, common, has a high melting point and holds its shape. It is a favourite metal used in knives and axes because of how it holds its shape in a point for a long time and is cheap compared to metals such as titanium. The framework of buildings and machinery are just a few examples of how iron is used in a thick and sturdy form. For the purpose of the experiment iron wool was used as its thin strings allow water and oxygen to have better access to the metal therefore accelerating the oxidation process.

Rusting, or oxidation, is when a metal, in this case iron, reacts with water and

An initial temperature was taken at zero minutes and then the timer was started

10. The temperature was recorded every minute for ten minutes

11. Steps 3-10 were repeated for the liquid substances oil and coke.

12. All materials were disposed of appropriately, cleaned and placed away at the conclusion of the experiment

Results

Table 1. Written observations for the corrosion of iron.

Substance Vinegar Saltwater Oil Coke

Iron wool before experiment The wool is fragile and dark grey in colour. It is also soft, rectangular, brittle and dry.

Iron wool end of experiment The wool was shrivelled and rusted. Brown smudges were left on the paper and an odour arose. It broke apart easily. Clumps of rust formed throughout the wool and rust was also left on the paper towel. The clumps were attached to the iron wool firmly. The wool has a similar appearance to before the experiment except it has compressed in the paper towel. There was slight rusting on the bottom and in the center and the same smell from the vinegar experiment arose.

Table 2. Table of Oxidation in Different Liquids Results Temperature (°C)

Time (Minutes) Vinegar Saltwater Oil Coke

0 26°C 26°C 25.5°C 24°C

1 29°C 27°C 26°C 25°C

2 31°C 25°C 25.5°C 24°C

3 32°C 25.5°C 24.5°C

This is due to acidity regulator 338 which is used to stop the acid from breaking down human tissue and in this case, iron. If given more time the acid would have been able to break down the iron wool but with only 10 minutes it was too weak to do any great deal of rusting.

The solution that produced the least heat was the oil solution as it only produced 0.5 °C. This is due to the fact oil does not mix with water and therefore did not allow moisture to reach the iron. As no chemical reaction took place no heat was produced and the iron wool lost heat energy. There was no rusting on the iron wool by the end of the ten minutes suggesting that absence of heat is a direct result of the oil and not the room temperature.

In the real world, it is unlikely iron will be exposed to vinegar or coke but saltwater and oil are both commonly in contact with iron. Both vinegar and coke contain acid and this can represent acid rain which is common in industrial areas which also happen to contain large amounts of iron structures. Saltwater comes into contact with ships and wharves while oil is used to prevent rust on objects like bikes and machines. To prevent rust via acid rain acid neutralisers can be applied (e.g. in the coke) while zinc blocks can protect from salt water rusting if replaced