"Into Violet"

"Into Violet"

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Tags: Naturalistic Photography, Low-light Photography, Parts of Things, Grass, Purple

Chemical Gardens, Pt. I

This is why it has taken me so long to post much photography!
None of this could have been possible without the infinite support of John, Anna, Shelly, Liz, and Jim.

Everyone: this is a chemical garden. They are very, very, very beautiful in nature.

In a solution of 50/50 sodium silicate (Na2SiO3) and distilled water, added clumps of metal salts (IE: copper (II) sulfate, cobalt (II) chloride, nickel (II) sulfate, etc) will begin to "grow" in the same nature as plants or stalagmites.  

Essentially, the metal salt, once added to solution, will start to dissolve in water. It will then form an insoluble metal silicate, which acts as a semipermeable membrane. Now, because the metal solution inside the membrane has a greater ionic strength than that of the sodium silicate solution, osmotic effects will cause pressure to build in the membrane, eventually forming a tear. The metal cations, then, will begin to interact with the silicate anions in a manner identical to the original, insoluble-metal-silicate-forming process (forming more solid structures!). During this particular event, typically, the pressure at the bottom of the container is greater than the pressure at the top, thus enticing the plant-like structures to go grow upward. 

Of course, one may theoretically exploit the characteristics of chemical gardens! For example, the density of the "fluid" contained in the membrane dictates the direction of growth for these delicate structures. The concentration, moreover, of the sodium silicate in the solution overall is responsible for the rate of growth, as well. 

There are various applications for these chemical oddities, anywhere from the examination of hydrothermal vents (the chemistry between both concepts are very closely related), to the origins of life on earth. If you aspiring scientists have any free time, I highly suggest researching these topics. They are very, very interesting reads.

Science is beautifully awesome.

I really do plan on doing more with this in the future. Chemical gardens are captivating oddities in the world of science and art... and I really want to give them the attention they deserve. 

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That's it for today, guys. The blog should be fully functional by tomorrow, just like last summer. I hope you enjoy what I have in store for you all. (:

Until next time,

- Christian

Tags: Science, Chemistry, Abstract Photography, chemical, silica, crystal, garden, metal, salt, sodium, silicate, beautiful 

"Melancholy Gardens"

"Melancholy Gardens"

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Tags: Low-light Photography, Science, Chemistry, Abstract Photography, sodium, silicate, metal, salts, crystal, chemical, garden

The SIBS; Lakewood, OH [4.19.13]

So... I saw this band on Friday (4.19.13), at Mahall's 20 Lanes (Lakewood, OH).

Everyone, meet the SIBS:

"Heart"
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"Inside my Genes"
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"You Got It"
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"Overload"
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"Connected"
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"Toth"
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"Ruby"
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"Weirdo"
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"The SIBS"
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The SIBS are James Beil (drums/vocals), Ruby Beil (guitar/vocals), and Eric Toth (guitar/vocals).

Their music is pretty awesome. You should check them out when you get the chance; it's always terrific to support local bands.

In the meantime, I have exams to smash my brain into. It's nearing the end of my spring semester in college, so things are a little hectic. I'll post some more pictures when I get the chance, but constant updates should return on May 18th. (:

See you soon,

- Christian

Tags: The SIBS, Lakewood, Portraiture, Street Photography, Low-light Photography, Band Photography, James Beil, Ruby Beil, Eric Toth, Mahall's 20 Lanes

Chemistry Experiment I: Part III

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Well, here it is! My attempt at a lava lamp!

So, I've added water, vegetable oil, and food coloring to a container. I do want to say, however, that if you're after the "full experience" of having a lava lamp, I suggest you try a larger container and putting a bright light source either above or under the container. I was only after capturing the general chemical reaction that takes place, which is why I utilized a smaller container.

The science is basically the same as in the last post:

Once in the container, water will sink to the bottom and push oil to the top because water (in terms of density) is heavier than the veggie oil. They do NOT mix. Agitating the mixture at this point may break up the oil into droplets, which will eventually reform into the oil (top) layer.

In water, Alka-Seltzer tablets (specifically, sodium bicarbonate and citric acid) will react and form sodium citrate, water, and carbon dioxide gas. The bubbles produced may take water molecules/food coloring bubbles up when they rise through the oil, but when they pop at the surface said water molecules/food coloring bubbles will sink back down once more.

You can cap the container after the CO2 gas leaves, and then store for later use. (:

And there you have it! If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message. And again, thanks for reading and watching. :)


- Christian Gunder
Tags: Chemistry, Science, Low-light Photography, , Experiment

Chemistry Experiment I: Part II

I hope you're all having a kick-ass St. Patrick's Day! If you're of age, put down the beer for a second and read this post. You won't regret it, if science and photography is your style (and it is, right?)


So, this is continuing the experiment I performed last night. The difference this time is substantial: the components in the flask are now strictly a ratio of 1:2 (tonic water : veggie oil). When adding the Alka-Seltzer, the reaction proceeded a tad more "violently":

Oh, and yeah. The Goonderbog has a youtube account now. If you have a youtube account, subscribe! You won't be disappointed!

Anyway, included in the video description is the explanation of the science behind these chemical processes:

Once in the container, water will sink to the bottom and push oil to the top because water (in terms of density) is heavier than the veggie oil. They do NOT mix. Agitating the mixture at this point may break up the oil into droplets, which will eventually reform into the oil (top) layer.

In water, Alka-Seltzer tablets (specifically, sodium bicarbonate and citric acid) will react and form sodium citrate, water, and carbon dioxide gas. The bubbles produced may take water molecules up when they rise through the oil, but when they pop at the surface said water molecules will sink back down into their respective water layer.

With regards to Tonic Water, a sample will glow bright blue when hit with UV light due to the presence of quinine. When UV light hits this particular molecule (baring a delocalized aromatic system with delocalized electrons), it excites an electron and when it subsequently falls down back into its ground state, it releases a photon (and thus being fluorescent in UV light) 

Pretty neat, huh? Here's a picture capturing one of the "violent" reactions:

Tumblr Hi-Res Link!

That's it for today. The last and final part of this experiment will be the introduction of food coloring to the reaction flask. You won't wanna miss that (expect by the end of the week, if not sooner).

Take care, everyone. And enjoy your holiday. (:

- Christian
Tags; Chemistry, Science, Low-light Photography, lava lamp,

Chemistry Experiment I: Part I

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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Tags:  Science, Chemistry, Low-light Photography,