Chemistry is a great home study science. Kids of all ages can work together and still study curriculum appropriate for each individual age. This can be achieved by using fun and easy investigations that can be expanded to provide enrichment for more advance studies. An example is the chemistry of rusting.
Anyone who has used steel wool cleaning pads knows that as long as they are kept dry they don't rust, but get them wet and you best watch where you place them. The rust that forms stains many surfaces.
So what is happening? Does the steel wool rust because the soap is washed out exposing the steel to air? UUM! This is a good question but one that is easily solved since you can buy steel wool without soap where paint supplies are sold. So, it has to be the water. You can discover for yourself if it is the water or soap that promotes the rusting of steel wool cleaning pads. For a fun investigation, see Rusty Wool.
If rusting is the combination of iron and oxygen, what does water have to do with it? For an explanation, see CHEMISTRY:RUSTING.
For an explanation of how to write the chemical reaction for rusting, CHEMISTRY:RUSTING EQUATION
Image Credit
Loading ...
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Twitter by digitalbliss: New on Digital Bliss Chemical Reactions http://bit.ly/4hBybO…