Before we did this lab we learned about Earth's layers and how the mantle is made of molten rocks (silicates). We also learned that the further away the elements are on the periodic table the more likely they are to react, I think that it is extremely important to learn about this because we live here and we should know as much as we can about our planet. For the lab part we mixed sodium silicate and distilled water, otherwise known as liquid glass. Once it was mixed we add calcium into one test tube and cobalt in another and copper in the last one and watched them react. When they sunk to the bottom of the tube they started to grow upwards in strings.
Looking back: I didn't really know what to expect but the results we got were very interesting, I didn't think that they'd would react the way they did. I thought that maybe it would fizz up and change the color of the sodium silicate, so when they grew upwards I was really surprised. The test tube with the green and blue reminded me of veins and the test tube with the white reminded me of cotton. The one with the white is calcium and the blue and green one is cobalt. They both reacted pretty slow but I think that the cobalt reacted (grew upwards) a little faster than the calcium. Looking beyond: A question i had while doing this lab was how did it feel. They looked extremely fragile and thin so I wonder if they are soft like cotton or hard like glass. I also wondered if it were in a bigger container like a beaker if there would have been more, also if we had left it out longer if there would have been more. Looking inward: We got desirable results and I think what contributed to that was that this was a guided activity so Andrew was there to help. I think I performed well in this activity, I helped take pictures for our blog. This was my first guided activity and at first I was having trouble understanding and I worried about how I would report it on my blog but I know now that taking notes really helped. Something I can improve upon is asking questions when i'm confused. Looking outward: I worked with my whole table for this lab and I think we performed well, we all contributed equally. As for the whole class i think we could have performed better by not talking as much and listening more. I think if we had listened more our blog reporting could have been better, because we didn't really give him time to explain what he wanted to see on our blogs. What I contributed to the group is that I took pictures for my blog and also the people who couldn't take pictures (the people who were mixed the ingredients). Looking forward: If I could do this again I would take a video of the reaction because I think it would look better than just pictures. I can't think of any way to continue this project. If I were to organize a group I wouldn't mind working with the people at my table, which are Evan, Autrina, Nick and Elyse. We all get along pretty well together. Takeaways: One takeaway is to take a lot of notes and ask questions when you get confused so your posts will be better. Also to talk less so Andrew has time to finish what he has to say. For this lab we ripped open a diaper, to get an absorbing crystal substance to make the fake snow. The substance is called sodium polyacrylate, and when mixed with a liquid it absorbs it. First we mixed the sodium polycrylate with water and it absorbed a lot more than 10 times its mass. We then added salt and it seemed to get more liquidy.
Looking back: The experiment went very well, although it didnt really feel like snow until the very end. Towards the end it looked and felt just like snow. The thing that suprised me most about this lab was how much the sodium polycrylate absorbed before we added the salt. I noticed that after we added salt thats when it started to remind me of snow. Looking beyond: I think that some thing in the sodium polycrylate reacted with the water which made it absorb as much as it did. Some question I had whike doing this lab was what wiuld happen if someone were to digest it? Would it come out like fake snow? I also wonder how it can hold so much when its just a small anount? Looking inward: My partners and I got desirable results and I think what contributed to that was that Brayden was there to help and guide us. I think I performed well, for this lab I was in a smaller group so I felt a little more comfortable asking questions and for help when I really needed it. Looking outward: I worked with Evan and Autrina and I think that my group performed very well and I think it was because we were in a smaller group which I think it made easier for us to pay more attention. What i contributed to the group was that I helped take a lot of picture for my group members mixing the fake snow and I also helped mix it. Looking forward: If I could do this again I would try and take better photos, I feel like I missed some good photos that would have made it a little easier to follow along with the writing part of this post. For example I could've taken a picture of when he poured the salt in. If I were organizing a group, again I would definitely work with Autrina and Evan because i'm very close with them and feel comfortable working with them. I don't really see anyway you could continue this project. Takeaways: A takeaway for this lab was to definitely take notes, I think this would've helped with the writing part of this post. Another takeaway is to try and take as many pictures as you can so you don't miss any important ones. Our launch data shows the thrust curve of our motor. To make this graph we put the time (1/30th of a sec) in one column and the thrust in another column and turned that into a graph. The graph shows that the thrust starts at 0, goes all the way up to 2968 then, drops back down to 0 on the 103rd frame. This means that our thrust was almost 3.5 seconds long.
Since the rocket nozzle was 3/16th and a lot of the 1/16ths were exploding, Andrew changed it to a quarter inch and it was a success! I'm super happy how it turned out and i'm really excited to see how the motor will work when we build our rocket.
This section we are creating our own rocket motors for the rockets we are making next section. To make the motor we chose what kind of burner we would use and what kind of fuel to use. We chose to make a core burner because we are planning to make a heavier rocket. For the fuel we chose to use black powder because its more powerful. My partners are Autrina and Elyse and so far our performance has been very well and I am satisfied with the work we have done and the effort we've put in.
Autrina, Evan, Nick and I made bath bombs, with already made essential oils to see how they should look. While we were making the bath bombs we had a hard time getting them to stick together but in the end they turned out great, they worked really well. The science behind the bath bombs is that to make the bath bombs you need to use citric acid and baking soda and when they are put in water they react and that's what make the bath bombs fizz and dissolve.
Looking back: In the end they turned out very good, the most challenging part was trying to get the halves to stick together but luckily we were able to. Looking beyond: On a molecular level when the ingredients were dry they didn't react but when we put them in water they reacted and that's what makes them fizz. While doing this project I didn't really have any questions. Looking inward: We got desirable results and I think what contributed to tat was that we worked well together and we got some help from classmates who have already made them and knew what we could do to make them better. Looking outward: I worked with Autrina, Nick and Evan and I think my partners and I did very well we all contributed evenly and worked together. I would definitely want to work with them again. Looking forward: If we were to do this again I would want to use smaller mold so we can make more bath bombs. If we wanted to continue this project we could make our own essential oils to use in the bath bombs. Takeaways: A takeaway from this project is to prepare as soon as you can because when we wanted to start them we didn't have all of our materials. |
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