Here it is folks! My first EVER Chemistry experiment on this blog (first attempt at a lava lamp).
What you see here, is the combination of 70% isopropyl alcohol, distilled water, tonic water, veggie oil, and droplets of green and blue glow stick solution. After mixing, I introduced several pieces of an alk-seltzer tablet into to reaction flask to induce fizzing. It's by no means perfect, considering the fact that the "lava" primarily exists on the top layer of the solution, being fully separated.
Also, it should be noted that I wasn't after formation of an actual lava lamp, this first time around. I just wanted to test and assess the effects of adding these chemicals together, and observing the effects that would ensue post addition of the alka-seltzer tablet to the solution in question.
Tonic water glows bright under black light (based on the concentration of quinine), and particles from the glow stick will glow under black light as well, but neither will glow to the naked eye under normal light conditions (especially for the glow stick solution samples introduced to the water/alcohol layer in the "lamp").
When you agitate this mixture, bubbles will form, layers will flop, smash together, and reform based on density, and so on. I aim to capture portions of the experiment that I find relatively interesting, and would like to share with you all. That is what these posts will generally be about.
To me, the science of Chemistry is an art. And I will attempt to "capture" these glimpses of art via photography.
I'll post some of the pictures I took during this process soon after this post, and will continue to do so throughout the day/week. I'll be doing more experiments as well, and eventually hope to perfect an actual lava lamp.
OH! And one last thing: to the aspiring chemists who may read this blog, please perform these experiments with eye protection (ESPECIALLY after adding the alka-seltzer tablet) and hand protection. If you're not big on utilizing stoichiometry and understanding how to base proportions of adding chemicals with respect to your container, you're going to make a mess. Just remember to be careful, and make sure you have some rags around. Some of these chemicals WILL stain.
In the meantime, enjoy your self. (:
- Christian
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