How to grow a crystal? This question is being asked today not only by schoolchildren who have received the appropriate task in the subject of chemistry, but also by some adults who want to cook an original and tasty treat, sugar candy. All this will be discussed in the material of this article.
Theoretical background
As you know from chemistry lessons, crystallization is a process of changing the consistency of a substance. As a result, the liquid gradually turns into a solid. The same transformation can occur with gas, and even with crystals that are able to regenerate (this phenomenon is called recrystallization). For this to happen, certain conditions must be met.
Firstly, the liquid from which it is required to obtain crystals must be not just a homogeneous substance, but a solution, and a supersaturated one at that. What does this mean?
In order to grow a crystal, as required by the chemistry assignment, you need to produce a solution that contains so much crystalline substance that it is alreadycannot be completely dissolved.
Supersaturated solution recipe
This liquid can be easily made in the following way. In boiling or very warm water, gradually add a certain amount of sugar, s alt or other soluble substance.
When the ingredient that is mixed into the liquid begins to settle at the bottom, we can say that the goal has been achieved. As a rule, this requires 100% solvent 150-200 percent soluble.
Usually, the process is much faster if the water is heated to a very hot state. But it should be remembered that most often at 80-90 degrees, dissolution slows down, so you need to take this factor into account and not bring the liquid to a boil.
This is interesting
It is interesting that if you choose the appropriate temperature regime for the substance to be dissolved, you can achieve such an effect that even in an unsaturated solution the substance will not completely disappear. You can do this by looking at a special table, which, as a rule, is presented in chemistry textbooks.
How does it happen? The fact is that crystalline substances like sugar not only dissolve in liquids, but also turn back into a solid state. This requires the so-called "baits", that is, their small particles. Thus, sugar mixed with water can immediately turn into a solid state, settling on the remaining pieces.
It is the process of recrystallization that underlies the experiments on growingsmall pebbles from solutions of sugar, s alt, blue vitriol and so on.
Hygiene requirements
It is best if an amateur chemist is wearing a headdress and his eyes are protected by goggles. Of course, sugar, table s alt or blue vitriol can hardly bring significant damage to human he alth. All of the above precautions are taken rather to protect the substances that are needed to grow a crystal from blue vitriol at home or from some other substance.
This circumstance is explained by the fact that particles of dissolved minerals settle on every speck of dust or hair that accidentally ended up in the liquid.
Radiant Crystals
How to grow such stones at home? For those who are interested in such an experience, but doubt their abilities, there are special kits. Such benefits are called "Radiant Crystals". How to grow them is described in detail in the instructions for this game.
In short, the Junior Chemist Item Box contains:
- 2 pieces of cardboard,
- plastic stand for them,
- bottle of chemical agent.
How to grow a crystal with this kit? You need to install pieces of cardboard in a special plastic stand and pour the solution from the bottle. Manufacturers promise that in a few hours the paper will turn into a cluster of crystals of bizarre shapes.
The comments that are found on various sites say that using dataaccessories, you can really grow very beautiful pebbles, but they do not cover the entire surface of paper blanks, but occupy only part of their area. However, growing a crystal with a kit like this is fairly easy. Therefore, such a manual can be confidently recommended to schoolchildren as a visual material for chemistry lessons.
With food seasoning
A more budgetary option for conducting a scientific experiment can be carried out using ordinary table s alt.
There are two options for how this can be done. To grow a crystal from s alt at home, you need to prepare the following things:
- Ordinary table glass.
- Half-liter can.
- Pan, best enamelled.
- Thread, fleecy preferred.
- Faceted pencil.
- Sheet of paper.
- A piece of gauze fabric.
- Table s alt - 0.5 kg.
As mentioned earlier, when starting this experiment, hygiene requirements must be observed: all dishes must be thoroughly washed, amateur chemists must have rubber gloves on their hands, and some kind of headgear. Pour two glasses of water into the pot, it is better if it is distilled, or at least boiled or filtered.
If there are impurities or specks in it, it is best to strain the liquid.
After the pot is filled, it must be put on a slowfire and bring the contents to a very hot temperature, but not boiling. During heating, s alt should be gradually added to the water: first 250 grams, and when it dissolves, then the same amount.
Don't be surprised if at this stage of trying to grow a crystal from s alt at home, the seasoning doesn't completely dissolve in the water. This is exactly what should be achieved. On the contrary, if the s alt did not settle at the bottom in a small amount after a pound of this substance was poured into the pan, then you need to add a few more spoons, and so on until the desired result is obtained. There should be sediment at the bottom. When this happens, the preparation of the supersaturated solution can be considered complete.
It is necessary to take the pot off the heat.
Water Filtration
This is where a half-liter jar comes in handy, which needed to be prepared in advance. Its neck should be covered with gauze folded in several layers. The liquid must be filtered through this filter. Crystals of undissolved s alt should remain on the surface of the gauze. When this is done, the resulting solution can be poured into a standard table glass. After that, tie the thread to the pencil. The knot should be in the middle of the stationery.
You need to make a thread of such length that it takes about half the glass and in no case seems to be its bottom. Next, you should lower it into the water, and put the pencil on top of the glass. That is why it was necessary to prepare a faceted pencil, and not a round one. The vessel should be covered with a sheet of paper on top to prevent dust from getting inside. After that, it is best to put it with all its contents in some place with a sufficiently high air temperature. If the experiments are carried out in winter, then its optimal location will be the territory near the battery.
It should be remembered that the thread should not touch the walls of the glass, but always be in a calm state. In order to avoid any fluctuations of it, the vessel should not be moved to another place, lifted, and so on. Therefore, carefully consider where it is best to place the glass. This experience can take up to 2 months, so the location of the experience should not coincide with the entrance of the apartment.
How long will the crystallization process take?
As a rule, it takes from 2-3 weeks to 1-2 months. The timing depends on the concentration of s alt in the water (the more the better) and on the accuracy of following all instructions.
What mistakes can be made? To grow crystals for children, it is necessary that no dust, dirt and other small or large particles get into the water. This can slow down the growth of crystals on the thread, since any hair can be a "bait" for dissolved s alt. Accordingly, if such objects are in the water, then the crystals will grow not only on the thread, but also on them. And, since the amount of dissolved s alt in a glass is limited, it is best to eliminate the possibility of such "competitors".
Another mistake
Also, crystal growth may be slower than required if the heated water is cooled rapidly. Therefore, it was said thatthe glass should be placed in the warmest corner of the apartment. If the experiment takes place at a time of the year when the heating system is not working, then the water container can be wrapped in some kind of dense cloth.
Shortcut
If the student was given the task to conduct this experiment a few weeks or months ago, but he forgot to do everything necessary on time, then in this case there is advice on how to grow a crystal from s alt in 1 day. In such a situation, you will need the same list of necessary things as in the option described above. The only difference is that the amount of solution should be doubled. After a few hours, the s alt water in the glass needs to be renewed.
This time the crystal will not form along the entire length of the thread, on the "bait". This word means a large piece of s alt, which must be fixed at the end of the thread. Choose a crystal that can be tied. Don't expect a miracle. In one day, only a small stone will grow. However, this may save the student from getting a negative grade.
There is another way to quickly grow a crystal. To do this, you must first prepare a not very strong s alt solution. The procedure is as follows: two glasses of spices need to be poured with four glasses of water. This mixture is brought to a boil. A thread is dipped into it, previously tied to a pencil in the manner described above. After staying in the liquid for several minutes, the thread is dipped in s alt so that the crystals stick to it in a dense layer. After that, the workpiece is placed onbattery so that it dries out as quickly as possible. When 1 hour has passed, it should be picked up by the pencil. If the s alt crystals crumble, it is best to repeat everything from the beginning.
If the attempt was successful, then the pencil is placed on top of the glass and the workpiece is dipped into the solution prepared according to the recipe described in the description of the previous method. In a day, new crystals will appear on the thread, covering those that were already on it. Here, too, one should not expect supernatural sizes of stones.
However, using this method, you can successfully complete your homework. Having considered the recommendations on how to grow a crystal from s alt quickly, but on a more modest scale than is obtained with the usual version of the experiment, we can proceed to the description of obtaining stones from other substances. This is what the material of the next chapters of this article will be about.
Original confectionery
How to grow a crystal? This question may concern not only schoolchildren preparing for chemistry lessons, but also people who are passionate about cooking. Of course, large crystals grown from s alt are unlikely to be useful in the preparation of any original dishes, sugar stones are another matter.
Such products can serve not only as a visual aid for school lessons, but also suitable for eating as original homemade sweets. Therefore, the following will talk about how to grow a crystal from sugar.
Preparing treats
For this purpose, you will need not a thread like thisrequired experience with s alt, and some wooden stick of small size. Perfect for sandwich skewers. You can also use ice cream sticks. Small branches of trees, thoroughly washed, are also quite suitable. If you use them, then the lollipops that will be obtained by crystallization will have a shape that repeats the outlines of this natural material.
In the recipe for how to grow a crystal from sugar at home, a list of ingredients for this purpose will be given in such quantity as to make 5-6 homemade candies.
So, to make stones, you will need half a kilogram of sugar, 2 cups of water, an enamel pan, sticks (a wooden base for lollipops), 5-6 glasses or glasses (small jars are perfect for this purpose, but without labels, because it is necessary to monitor the process through the transparent walls of the vessels).
A few sheets of paper will also come in handy to cover the vessels with the grown crystals.
First of all, you need to cook sugar syrup. To do this, pour half a kilogram of sugar into water in the amount of 2 glasses, poured into an enamel pan. It is necessary to boil this solution, stirring, for 20-25 minutes. Do not keep the syrup on fire for too long. Otherwise, it may turn brown. When the syrup is ready, you should pour it into small glasses, glasses or small jars. Sheets of paper, cut so that they can close the containers, are pierced in the middle with wooden sticks. It should be ensured that these blanks fromwood tightly held.
Considering the question of how to grow a crystal from sugar, it is worth emphasizing the following detail: the syrup does not need to be filtered before it is poured into containers, as it does not lend itself well to this. This substance is thick enough to easily seep through gauze. When sweet water is poured into the vessels, it remains to cover them with paper with wooden sticks fixed on top. It will take quite a long time to wait for a layer of sugar crystals to appear on the wood blanks.
This process takes several weeks. However, the result, as a rule, fully justifies the hopes. The resulting lollipops can be used as an independent confectionery product, and it is also easy to come up with other uses for it. For example, when serving tea, they are sometimes placed next to the cup. They replace the usual spoonful of sugar.
How to grow crystals at home in a day from sugar? Lollipops cannot be obtained in such a short time, but you can try to grow a stone on a string, as described in the recommendations for making similar products from s alt.
To do this, boil the syrup according to the recipe, as indicated in this chapter, tie a thread of such a size to the pencil in the middle so that it does not touch the bottom of the glass. After that, the stationery should be placed on the walls of the vessel, and the thread should be immersed in sugar syrup. After a couple of days, the experience will give the first results. A thin layer of crystals will form on the surface of the thread.
Colorful lollipops
If you want sweets made in this way to be of different colors of the rainbow, then it makes sense to purchase a set of artificial colors. In sugar syrup, poured into several vessels, you need to pour the contents of the bags: each glass has its own color.
This is one way to grow crystals at home with different color shades.
Natural Treats
If the reader sets out to prepare such sweets from natural products, then the syrup can be cooked on the basis of juice. In this case, the resulting confection has not only a bright color, but also a rich fruity or berry flavor.
Another quick way
You can also do this type of this experiment, how to grow a crystal from vitriol. These stones tend to grow much faster than their s alt counterparts and are more beautiful due to their bright blue or purple color.
In order to make such a miracle, you can use the above recommendations on how to grow a crystal from s alt at home. The only difference is that instead of cooking seasoning, you will need to use copper sulfate. This substance can be purchased at any store for gardeners and summer residents, since this material serves as an excellent fertilizer.
When implementing this method, how to grow a crystal at home, you need to carefully monitor that children,those present at such experiments took precautions, as in this case they would be dealing with a chemical that is not quite suitable for human consumption.
As a rule, crystals obtained from copper sulphate come in bizarre shapes, since in this case it is usually not just their formation, but the splicing of several stones with each other. Therefore, they usually resemble stalactites and stalagmites from mountain caves.
Conclusion
This article addressed the question of how to grow a crystal at home from s alt, blue vitriol, sugar and using a special kit. The resulting product can sometimes be used as a wonderful confection that will pleasantly surprise your family members and guests. Also, such obtaining crystals is a traditional school task in chemistry. An important part of the article is the chapter on how to grow crystals in a day at home. If you follow all the recommendations, your experiments will certainly be crowned with success. The main thing is to be patient.
