Learn first-hand the fundamental principles of this essential science as you perform real chemistry experiments.
For example, you will experiment with fuels and combustion, make your own hydrochloric acid, separate mixtures, produce oxygen gas, and more.
In doing these experiments, you will build a strong foundation in chemistry as you are exposed to a broad range of chemical phenomena and hands-on lab experience. As you gain experience with the tools and chemicals of the modern chemistry lab, you with also learn advanced topics such as chemical equations, atomic structures and the periodic table — concepts that are critical to continued study of chemistry.
This lab is an excellent way to prepare for high-school level, and even college level, chemistry.
In this unit, you will learn how to build your own home chemistry lab safely under the direction of professionals. We'll show you how to do real chemistry experiments, provide chemical storage information, give guidelines on proper chemical disposal when you're finished, highlight lab tips and tricks, and warn you about things to watch out for. This is real chemistry for real kids.
This video picks up where the intermediate chemistry video leaves off so you'll want to be sure you have completed that one first. The C3000 contains three trays, the first of which is the C1000 (which is covered in the intermediate chemistry lesson). So if you've completed the first part and are ready for more, here we go!
NOTE:For the Alcohol Burner Wick: Tape tightly around one end, making the end small and tapered. You can also put glue (white glue or rubber cement work great) into the fibers at one end. As the glue hardens, form the end into a smaller and tapered end. It will slide through easily, and cut the end off and your ready to go.
How do I use this information? You have two options, depending on your comfort level and ultimate educational goals. You can just watch the videos and talk about what's going on with your child, or you can watch the videos and then perform the experiment with your child.
This unit includes the instructional videos for Chemistry, and is meant to be used in conjunction with the experiments in the Thames and Cosmos C1000 and/orC3000 chemistry lab kits. The manual included in the C1000 and 3000 has complete safety information and many more experiments for you to complete after you finish this unit.
All experiments presented here at AT YOUR OWN RISK. You are fully responsible for your own safety and those around you. (No building nuclear reactors in your garage.)
To put it simply, don’t eat anything in your chemistry lab, keep children and pets away from your lab, lock up your chemicals safely, learn how to store your chemicals safely, and don’t create large quantities of anything explosive, corrosive, or toxic. Always wear safety equipment and do your experiments in a spot what has plenty of air for ventilation, water and a drain, and a phone.
In all seriousness, be safe, have fun, play with the kids, and if you run across anything that boggles the mind, let us know and we'll try to help you out.
Scientific Concepts:
- Atoms are made of a core group of neutrons and protons, with an electron cloud circling the nucleus.
- Elements A substance made up of only one particular kind of atom is called a chemical element, and you can find a whole slew of these on the periodic table.
- A molecule is the smallest unit of a compound that still has the compound’s properties attached to it. Molecules are made up of two or more atoms held together by covalent bonds.
- Avogadro’s constant (6.022 x 1023 ) Chemists like to use it to help keep track of the particles in a chemical reaction.
- Moles A mole is a unit of measurement, just like inches or meters. One mole is the amount of a substance that has the same number of particles as found in 12 grams of carbon C-12, which is 6.022 x 1023 particles.
- Balancing Chemical Reactions Learning how to figure out whether a chemical reaction will occur and what comes out the other end is found by writing a balanced chemical equation to describe a chemical reaction.
- Acids are sour (like a lemon), react with metals, and can burn your skin. They register between 1 and 7 on the pH scale.
- Bases are bitter (like baking soda), slippery, and can also burn your skin. They measure between 7 and 14 on the pH scale.
- An acid-base reaction deals with reactions that involve hydrogen (protons).
- pH stands for “power of hydrogen” and is a measure of how acidic a substance is.
- The electrons in the outermost shell are the ones that form the bonds with other atoms.
- When one atom accepts or donates an electron to another atom, an ionic bond is formed.
- When the atoms share the electron(s), a covalent bond is formed.
- Usually an electron is more attracted to one atom than another, which forms polar covalent bond between atoms.
- By knowing the value of the bond energy, we can predict if a chemical reaction will be exothermic or endothermic.
- Ionization energy (measured in electronvolts, eV) is the amount of energy needed to completely remove an electron from gaseous atom or ion.
- A combustion reaction gives off energy, usually in the form of heat and light.
- A decomposition reaction breaks a complicated molecule into simpler ones
- A double displacement (metathesis) reaction has two compounds exchanging bonds to form new compounds
- Redox reactions involve an exchange of electrons between compounds. Redox stands for oxidation-reduction.
- Oxidation happens when a compound loses electrons (increases oxidation state)
- Reduction occurs when a compound gains electrons (decrease in oxidation state).
- Le Chatelier’s Principle predicts how changes in pressure, temperature, volume, or concentration will cause a reaction to shift and compensate for these changes.
- Nuclear reactions deal with changes inside the nucleus of an atom.
- Neutralization Reaction (Hydrolysis) When acids and bases react with each other, they sometimes form a salt and water.
- Synthesis Reaction happens when simple compounds come together to form a more complicated compound
- The chemical reaction inside electrochemical cells is also a redox reaction. Splitting the water molecule into parts (hydrogen and oxygen) requires power (electrolysis) to break the bonds.
- Electronegativity is how attracted an electron is to an atom.
- Ideal Gas Law relates temperature, pressure, and volume of these gases in one simple statement: PV = nRT
- Different factors affect the rate of reaction, or speed of the chemical reaction, including temperature, pressure, surface area, catalysts, and more. The main idea is that the more collisions between particles, the faster the reaction will take place.
