How to grow a crystal? This question is being asked today not only by schoolchildren who have received the appropriate assignment in the subject of chemistry, but also by some adults who want to prepare an original and tasty treat, sugar candy. All this will be discussed in the material of this article.
Theoretical basis
As is known from chemistry lessons, crystallization is a process of changing the consistency of a substance. As a result of it, the liquid gradually turns into a solid. The same transformation can occur with gas, and even with crystals that can degenerate (this phenomenon is called recrystallization). In order for this to happen, certain conditions must be met.
Firstly, the liquid from which crystals are required to be obtained must be not just a homogeneous substance, but a solution, moreover, a supersaturated one. What does it mean?
In order to grow a crystal, as required by the task in chemistry, it is necessary to produce a solution that contains so much crystalline substance that it can no longer be completely dissolved.
Oversaturated solution recipe
Such a liquid can be easily made in the following way. In boiling or in very warm water, a certain amount of sugar, salt or other soluble substance should be gradually added.
When an ingredient that is mixed in the liquid begins to settle at the bottom, it can be said that the goal is achieved. Typically, this requires a 100% solvent of 150-200 percent soluble.
Usually the process is much faster if the water is heated to a very hot state. But it should be remembered that most often at 80-90 degrees there is a slowdown in dissolution, so you need to take this factor into account and not bring the liquid to a boil.
It is interesting
It is interesting that if you select the appropriate temperature for the substance that should be dissolved, then you can achieve such an effect that even in an unsaturated solution the substance will not completely disappear. This can be done by looking at a special table, which, as a rule, is presented in chemistry textbooks.
How does this happen? The fact is that crystalline substances like sugar not only dissolve in liquids, but also go back to solid state. This requires the so-called "bait", that is, their small particles. So, sugar mixed with water can immediately turn into a solid state, settling on the remaining pieces.
It is the recrystallization process that underlies the experiments on growing small pebbles from solutions of sugar, salt, copper sulphate, and so on.
Hygiene Requirements
It is best if there is a hat on the head of an amateur chemist, and the eyes are protected by glasses. Of course, sugar, table salt or vitriol is unlikely to cause significant damage to human health. All the above precautions are taken rather to protect the substances that are necessary in order to grow the crystal from copper sulfate at home or from any other substance.
This circumstance is explained by the fact that particles of dissolved minerals settle on each speck of dust or hair, which accidentally ended up in a liquid.
Radiant crystals
How to grow such stones at home? For those who are interested in such an experience, but doubt their abilities, there are special kits. Such benefits are called "Radiant Crystals." How to grow them, the details are written in the instructions for this game.
In short, the box with items for the young chemist contains:
- 2 pieces of cardboard
- plastic stand for them,
- chemical reagent bottles.
How to grow a crystal with this kit? You need to install pieces of cardboard in a special plastic stand and pour the solution from the bottle. Manufacturers promise that in a few hours the paper will turn into a cluster of bizarre crystals.
In the comments that are found on various sites, it is said that, using these accessories, it is really possible to grow very beautiful pebbles, but they do not cover the entire surface of the paper blanks, but occupy only part of their area. However, growing a crystal with a kit like this is pretty simple. Therefore, such a guide can be recommended with confidence to schoolchildren as visual material for chemistry lessons.
Using food seasoning
A more budgetary option for conducting scientific experience can be carried out using ordinary table salt.
There are two options for how this can be done. To grow a crystal from salt at home, you need to cook the following things:
- Ordinary table glass.
- Half liter jar.
- The pan is best enameled.
- Thread, preferably fleecy type.
- Faceted pencil.
- Paper.
- A piece of gauze.
- Salt - 0.5 kg.
As mentioned earlier, when starting this experiment, it is necessary to observe hygienic requirements: all dishes should be thoroughly washed, amateur chemists should have rubber gloves on their hands, and some kind of clothing on their heads. Two glasses of water should be poured into the pan, it is better if it is distilled, or at least boiled or filtered.
If impurities or specks are observed in it, it is best to strain the liquid.
After the pan is full, it must be put on a slow fire and bring the contents to a very hot temperature, but not boiling. During heating, salt should be gradually added to the water: first 250 grams, and when it dissolves, then the same amount.
Do not be surprised if, at this stage, attempts to grow a crystal from salt at home, seasoning does not completely dissolve in water. This is exactly what should be achieved. On the contrary, if the salt does not settle on the bottom in a small amount after half a kilo of this substance has been poured into the pan, then you need to add a few more spoons, and so on until the desired result is obtained. A sediment should appear at the bottom. When this happens, the preparation of a supersaturated solution can be considered complete.
It is necessary to remove the pan from the heat.
Water filtration
Here a half-liter jar is needed, which was required to be prepared in advance. Its neck should be covered with gauze, folded in several layers. Filter through this filter. Crystals of undissolved salt should remain on the surface of the gauze. When this is done, the resulting solution can be poured into a standard table glass. Then you should tie the thread to the pencil. The node should be in the middle of the stationery.
It is necessary to make a thread of such a length that it occupies about half a glass and in no case does its bottom appear. Next, you should lower it into water, and put a pencil on top of the glass. That is why it was required to prepare a faceted pencil, not a round one. The vessel should be covered with a sheet of paper on top to prevent dust from entering. After that, it is best to put it with all the contents in any place with a sufficiently high air temperature. If the experiments are carried out in winter, then its optimal location will be the area near the battery.
It should be remembered that the thread should not touch the walls of the glass, but always remain in a calm state. In order to avoid any of its fluctuations, the vessel should not be rearranged, raised, and so on. Therefore, carefully consider where it is best to place the glass. Such an experience can take up to 2 months, so the venue should not coincide with the passage of the apartment.
How long will the crystallization process last?
As a rule, it takes from 2-3 weeks to 1-2 months. Timing depends on the concentration of salt in water (the more the better) and the accuracy of all instructions.
What mistakes can be made? To grow crystals for children, it is necessary that no dust, dirt and other small or large particles enter the water. This can slow the growth of crystals on the thread, since any hair can be a "bait" for dissolved salt. Accordingly, if such objects appear in water, then crystals will grow not only on the thread, but also on them. And, since the amount of dissolved salt in a glass is limited, it is best to eliminate the possibility of such "competitors" appearing.
Another mistake
Also, crystal growth can proceed more slowly than required if the heating of the heated water was rapid. Therefore, it was said that the glass should be placed in the warmest corner of the apartment. If the experiment takes place at that time of the year when the heating system does not work, then the container with water can be wrapped with some dense material.
Faster Option
If the student was given the task to conduct this experiment several weeks or months ago, but he forgot to do everything necessary in time, then there is advice on how to grow a crystal from salt in 1 day. In such a situation, you will need the same list of necessary things as in the option described above. The only difference is that the amount of solution should be doubled. When several hours pass, the salt water in the glass needs to be updated.
This time, the crystal will not form along the entire length of the thread, on the "bait". This word means a large piece of salt that needs to be fixed at the end of the thread. Choose a crystal that can be attached. Do not expect a miracle. In one day, only a small stone will grow. However, this can save the student from getting a negative mark.
There is another option, how to quickly grow a crystal. To do this, you must first prepare a not very strong salt solution. The procedure is as follows: two glasses of spice should be filled with four glasses of water. This mixture is brought to a boil. The thread immersed in it, pre-attached to the pencil in such a way as described above. After being in the liquid for several minutes, the thread is dipped in salt so that the crystals adhere to it in a dense layer. After that, the workpiece is placed on the battery so that it dries out as quickly as possible. When 1 hour has passed, it should be lifted by a pencil. If salt crystals have crumbled, then it is best to repeat all over again.
If the attempt was successful, then the pencil is placed on top of the glass and the workpiece is dipped in the solution prepared according to the recipe described in the description of the previous method. In a day, new crystals will appear on the thread, covering those that were already on it. Here, one should not expect supernatural sizes of stones.
However, using this method, you can successfully complete your homework. Having considered the recommendations on how to grow a crystal from salt quickly, but on a more modest scale than that obtained with the usual version of the experiment, we can proceed to describe the preparation of stones from other substances. This is what the material of the following chapters of this article will be.
Original confectionery
How to grow a crystal? This question may concern not only schoolchildren preparing for chemistry lessons, but also people who are passionate about cooking. Of course, large crystals grown from salt are unlikely to be useful in preparing any original dishes, sugar stones are another thing.
Such products can serve not only as a visual aid for school lessons, but also are suitable for eating as original homemade sweets. Therefore, it will be further described how to grow a crystal from sugar.
Cooking Goodies
For this purpose, you will no longer need a thread, as required by the experience with salt, but some kind of wooden stick of small size. A skewer for sandwiches is perfect. You can also use ice cream sticks. Small branches of trees, thoroughly washed, are also quite suitable. If you use them, then the candies that are obtained by crystallization will have a shape that repeats the outlines of this natural material.
In the recipe for how to grow a crystal from sugar at home, you will be given a list of ingredients for this purpose in such quantity that you get 5-6 homemade candies.
So, for the manufacture of stones you will need a pound of sugar, 2 cups of water, an enameled pan, sticks (a wooden base for candies), 5-6 glasses or glasses (for this purpose small cans are fine, but without labels, since you need to follow the process through transparent walls of blood vessels).
A few sheets of paper are also useful in order to cover the vessels with the grown crystals.
First of all, you need to cook sugar syrup. To do this, pour in 2 cups of water, poured into an enameled pan, half a kilogram of sugar. You need to cook this solution, stirring, for 20-25 minutes. Do not keep the syrup on fire for too long. Otherwise, it may acquire a brown tint. When the syrup is ready, pour it into small cups, glasses or small cans. Sheets of paper cut so that they can cover the containers are pierced in the middle with wooden sticks. Ensure that these wood blanks are held tight.
Considering the question of how to grow a crystal from sugar, it is worth emphasizing the following detail: before pouring it into containers, the syrup does not need to be filtered, since it does not lend itself well to this. This substance is thick enough to easily leak through cheesecloth. When the sweet water is poured into the vessels, it remains to cover them on top with paper with fixed wooden sticks. It will take quite a while to wait for a layer of sugar crystals to appear on the wood blanks.
This process takes several weeks. However, the result, as a rule, fully lives up to expectations. The resulting lollipops can be used as an independent confectionery product, and it is also easy to come up with another application for it. For example, when serving tea, they are sometimes placed next to a cup. They replace the usual sugar sprinkled with spoons.
How to grow crystals at home per day from sugar? It is impossible to get lollipops in such a short time, however, you can try to grow a stone on a thread, such as described in the recommendations for the manufacture of similar products from salt.
To do this, cook the syrup according to the recipe as described in this chapter, tie a thread of such a size to the pencil in the middle that it does not touch the bottom of the glass. After that, stationery should be placed on the walls of the vessel, and the thread immersed in sugar syrup. After a couple of days, the experience will give the first results. A thin layer of crystals will be formed on the surface of the thread.
Multi-colored lollipops
If you want sweets made in this way to be of different colors of the rainbow, then it makes sense to purchase a set of artificial dyes. In sugar syrup, poured into several vessels, you need to pour the contents of the bags: each glass has its own color.
This is one of the ways to grow crystals at home, having different color shades.
Natural goodies
If the reader asks to prepare such sweets from natural products, then the syrup can be cooked on the basis of juice. In this case, the resulting confectionery product has not only a bright color, but also a rich fruity or berry taste.
Another quick way
You can also conduct this kind of experiment, how to grow a crystal from vitriol. These stones, as a rule, grow much faster than their salt counterparts, and turn out to be more beautiful because of their bright blue or purple color.
In order to make such a miracle, you can use the above recommendations regarding how to grow a crystal from salt at home. The only difference is that instead of culinary seasoning you will need to use copper sulfate. This substance can be purchased at any store for gardeners and gardeners, since this material serves as an excellent fertilizer.
When implementing this method, how to grow a crystal at home, you need to carefully monitor that the children present in such experiments observe safety precautions, since in this case they will deal with a chemical that is not quite suitable for human consumption.
As a rule, crystals obtained from copper sulphate come in bizarre shapes, since in this case, usually not just their formation, but the fusion of several stones with each other. Therefore, they usually resemble stalactites and stalagmites from mountain caves.
Conclusion
This article examined the question of how to grow a crystal at home from salt, copper sulphate, sugar and using a special kit. The resulting product can sometimes be used as an excellent confectionery product that will pleasantly surprise your family members and guests. Also, such obtaining crystals is a traditional school assignment in chemistry. An important part of the article is the chapter on how to grow crystals at home in a day. If all the recommendations are followed, your experiments will certainly succeed. The main thing is to be patient.