Erika Wawrzenczyk

Mr. Guiley
Grade 8, Science, Period 3
December 18, 2014

Elements Colors Lab

During the elements of color lab, I followed a set of procedures. First I put on my safety
equipment, which included a plastic apron and goggles. Then I went to one of the stations that
had a burner, tongs, and a liquid element with my group. We then had Mr. Guiley turn on our
burner. I then proceeded to dip the tongs into the solution and hold it in the fire. At each station,
my group and I saw an array of colors that appeared in the burner when the tongs were put into
the fire. As I continued to test the solutions, I recorded the colors I saw on my data chart. Also,
my hypothesis was correct. My hypothesis was that, I believe that I can identify the color
correctly, then I will not be able to identify the elements we are burning. It was correct because
by just seeing the colors that are burning, we werent able to distinguish what element they were.
During the lab, I collected data from the experiments I conducted. At the first station, the
element sodium chloride was present, and the fire burned a light orange shade. The next station,
the element strontium chloride was present, and the fire burned a dark, deep orange. The element
was calcium chloride was found at station three, causing the fire to burn a rich red-orange color.
Then, at station 4, the element copper was present, which resulted in the fire burning a bright
green, with orange flecks scattered through the fire. Next was station 5 that held lithium chloride,

causing the fire to burn a bright yellow-orange color. Lastly, at station six, barium chloride
caused the fire to change to a yellow flame that shined through the room.
After my group and I finished experimenting with the known elements, we tested some
unknown elements. The first unknown element I tested was potassium. When I put it in the fire it
burned a bright coral color. The next element was sodium and it turned the flame to a dark, deep
orange shade. The third element was barium and it caused the fire to burn a light salmon color.
Then I tested strontium. It caused the fire to turn a deep blood red shade. The fifth unknown
element I tested was calcium and it caused the flame to turn to a light green color with coral
specks in it. Lastly, the final element in the unknown group was lithium and it burned a medium
red-orange color. Throughout the unknown group, I was able to have a slight idea what the
element was due to the chart and color that the flame was giving off. One problem that occurred
multiple times was the fact of leaving the tongs in for too long. This caused the flame to change
color giving the illusion of a different color.