A solution of copper sulfate crystal. How to grow a crystal from copper sulfate

Crystal… This very word smells of something mysterious and magical. They have long aroused admiration, and often admiration. Many of them received their own names. True, most of them were diamonds, rubies, emeralds and other precious stones of natural origin. The severity and symmetry of the form, the variety of colors, the play of light on the edges ... Is it possible to at least partially reproduce this magnificent spectacle under normal conditions? The answer is clear - it's possible. From almost any water-soluble crystalline substance available in everyday life, if desired, with certain knowledge and patience, a person can grow crystals that will delight the eye, decorate the interior and flatter the pride of their creator . But for this you need quite a bit:

• the substrate from which the crystal will be formed;
• dishes (preferably glass), where the future "masterpiece" will grow
• water (preferably distilled), in which the salt will be dissolved;
• diligence, diligence, patience.

Before growing a crystal from copper sulfate, you need to decide on the source material. Sugar, which is available in any modern home, disappears not only because of its unlimited edibility (there are cases of experimental cultivation of crystals from sugar by enthusiastic scientists even in besieged Leningrad), but also because crystals form extremely slowly.

Perhaps the second most accessible compound is table salt (NaCl) , giving translucent crystals of almost perfect cubic shape. But crystals of a compound known colloquially as blue vitriol grow much faster. Yes, and they look much nicer.

What is copper sulfate?

What is copper sulfate? Any chemist will answer this question that this substance (copper sulfate) is a white (more often, slightly grayish due to the almost irresistible presence of impurities) crystalline powder with the chemical formula CuSO 4 . This is an extremely hygroscopic compound - from almost any substance containing easily separated water, it takes it away. This feature determines the fact that CuSO 4 under normal conditions is in the state that everyone is used to seeing in hardware or gardening stores. It has the appearance of surprisingly beautiful turquoise blue crystals. At the same time, its formula looks somewhat different - CuSO 4 5H 2 O.

First naive experience

To obtain copper sulfate crystals of the appropriate quality, you need
prepare its saturated solution. Turning to the reference books, anyone will find that the solubility of hydrated vitriol at 20 ° C is 35.6%. This means that 100 ml of water cannot physically dissolve more than 35.6 g of salt.

Thus, to make 500 ml of a saturated solution at normal room temperature, only 178 g of copper sulfate is needed. However, this limit can be easily overcome. With increasing temperature, the solubility in water of most salts increases. Copper sulphate is no exception. When heated, the solubility of CuSO 4 gradually increases exponentially to a threshold of 65-70 ° C (such an indicator for dehydrated copper sulphate is approximately 1.3). Further heating becomes not only useless, but often destructive for the future crystal.

A simple calculation using a calculator or pencil and paper shows that to prepare 500 ml of a heated saturated solution, 270-300 g of the original salt will be needed. By pouring a pre-measured amount of CuSO 4 with hot distilled water with thorough stirring, we achieve maximum dissolution of the salt. The aqueous solution thus has a saturated blue color. A small amount of undissolved vitriol may remain at the bottom. It will have to be filtered through loose filter paper, synthetic absorbent cotton, or several layers of gauze.

Leaving the filtered solution for several hours at a constant normal temperature, we get a “scattering” of beautiful crystals from copper sulphate of a fairly regular shape. After additional filtration and drying, the crystals will be able to take their rightful place in the room for a while.

The process of growing crystals from copper sulfate, of course, can be accelerated . To do this, place the container with the solution in the refrigerator. In this case, the liquid remains in a state of stable equilibrium. For the formation of crystals need a "push". Such a “push” for a hypersaturated solution of vitriol will be a small crystal (seed). In this case, large druses of small crystals form very quickly around the seed crystal.

Further development of the idea

If it is desirable to grow elegant beads, it is enough to lower a cotton or woolen thread into a saturated solution. A separate crystal of copper sulphate will form around each villus.

If it is necessary to grow a large crystal from a copper
vitriol, have to do otherwise . First, again, a saturated solution is needed, but the seed is tied to a fishing line or synthetic thread. This is necessary so that small side crystals do not form. The seed can be chosen from the most beautiful in shape and color of the crystals mentioned in the first experiment. It should not touch the bottom and walls of the vessel. The solution should not be cloudy or contain fine sediment at the bottom. At a constant temperature to a size of 1 cm, the crystal will grow in a week. Crystals of copper sulphate of 5-10 cm look amazingly beautiful. This result can be achieved in 1-1.5 months. It should be borne in mind that the saturated solution will have to be periodically topped up, carefully observing the growth of the crystal. Ideally, the crystal will look smooth, with clear edges, and have an intense blue color.

In order for the copper sulfate crystal to be preserved for a long time (under normal conditions, copper sulfate crystals are quickly destroyed), it is recommended to cover it with a protective layer of colorless universal glue (but not Cyanopan and its analogues) or nail polish. You can also place the grown crystal in a hermetically sealed glass vessel.

How to grow a crystal at home? If earlier such a question might surprise, today most people have seen at least once in their lives what home-grown crystals are, and some have already created such beauty.

The process can be called laborious, and it will take a lot of time, but it can definitely captivate, especially since the result is usually impressive. Growing crystals is recommended as a joint activity with children, because small and not so young researchers are very interested in such a pastime.

When deciding to experiment at home for the first time, it is worth starting with the simplest, using a product that can be found in any home - sugar. This method is especially recommended for conducting research with children, especially since they will try the result. How to grow a crystal from sugar?

This will require the following:

The growing process begins with cooking sugar syrup - 1/4 tbsp. water is mixed with 2 liters. sugar and keep on the stove until the liquid acquires the consistency of syrup. Then a skewer is dipped in it and sprinkled with sugar. The further beauty of the sugar crystal depends on the uniformity of the sprinkling. Thus, several blanks are made and left for 8-12 hours until they are completely dry.

Once the skewers are dry, you can begin the next step. Pour 500 ml of water into a saucepan or ladle and pour 2.5 cups of granulated sugar. Then the container is placed on a slow fire and boiled, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes a syrup. It is important to ensure that the sugar is completely dissolved.

Then add the remaining sugar (2.5 cups) and continue cooking. After the syrup is left for 20 minutes to cool. And at this time, you can do the preparation of the base for the crystals. It is necessary to cut circles of paper, slightly larger in diameter than the glasses and gently pierce them with chopsticks. The main thing is that the paper should be firmly fixed on the skewer, as it will play the role of a holder and serve as a lid for the glass.

Cooled down, but still hot, the syrup must be poured into glasses. And if at this moment you combine it with food coloring, then the grown crystal will become colored. Then the stick in paper is dipped into the sugar mixture and left there until a crystal forms. After a similar procedure is repeated with the remaining blanks.

It will not be possible to quickly grow a crystal in this way, since, on average, this process will take 6-8 days. After it is formed, you can admire the result and treat yourself and the children to a beautiful sweetness.

How does salt crystallize?

You can use not only sugar, but it is also possible to grow a crystal from salt at home. This is a fairly simple procedure, which, however, requires patience.

To create it, you need the following:

Water is heated in a saucepan, not bringing to a boil, otherwise the experiment will fail. Then salt is slowly poured into it, without ceasing to mix, so that each salt portion is completely dissolved. Salt is added until the water stops dissolving it.

Salt solution is placed in a jar and settled for about 20-24 hours. As time passes, various crystalline formations appearing from the salt sediment are found in the tank. You need to choose the one that is prettier and larger, get it out of the jar and tie it on a thread.

The remaining solution must be poured into another jar, but so that other crystals do not get into it. Then a crystal with a tied thread is lowered into it. After that, it remains only to wait, as the crystal will begin to grow, and in a couple of days a change in its size will be noticeable.

As soon as its growth stops, you can end the experiment or prepare an additional salt solution and repeat the procedure so that the crystal becomes much larger. By the way, you can speed up the process by changing the saline more often.

Having learned how to grow a crystal from salt and having prepared everything you need, it is worth considering a few nuances. First, you can not cool the solution, chat, and also try to color, coloring will not occur, but the experiment will fail.

Use for the experience of copper sulfate

We will talk about a more complex process that can be carried out at home, but if it is performed by children, then with the obligatory viewing of adults. How to grow a crystal from copper sulfate (aka copper sulfate)?

For the experiment, you need to prepare the following components:

When purchasing the last component, it is worth evaluating the quality of the substance - the powder has a bright blue color, a uniform consistency, without impurities and lumps.

Pour 100 g of the substance into a container and pour it in small portions with hot water, without ceasing to stir. The solution is so saturated that the copper salt is not able to dissolve in it.

The liquid is filtered and placed on a shelf in the refrigerator compartment. Enough night to find that the bottom of the jar is covered with a lot of crystals. It is worth choosing a couple more beautiful and larger and lower it into a filtered solution, after securing it with a thread. The container is covered with paper and all that remains is waiting.

This is the longest experiment, as vitriol crystals grow slowly. It will take more than one week for it to ripen. The crystal is then taken out of the jar, rinsed under cool water and covered with a colorless nail art coat.

Having learned how to grow a crystal at home, you can do an experiment without delay. And if everything is done correctly, the result will surely please.

Dobrinka 2015

1. Introduction………………………………………………… page 3-4

2. Relevance…………………………………………… page 4

3. Appearance of crystals ……………………………… page 5

4. Main technological stages of cultivation

any large crystal ………………………… page 5

5. Practical work…………………………………….. pg. 5-8

6. Bottom line. Conclusions…………………………………………… page 8

7. Literature………………………………………………. page 9

Topic: "Growing crystals from copper sulphate."

Target : grow copper sulphate crystals at home

Tasks:

learn what a crystal is, find out what conditions need to be created for the growth of crystals, observe the growth process, prove that it is possible to grow crystals at home.

Object of study: mineral.

Subject of study: copper sulphate crystals.

Research methods:

experiment, observation, Practical value research in that it can be used in the lessons of the world around, in extracurricular activities, in the classroom,

Techniques and skills to be mastered in the course of work:

1. Rules for working with text, reference material;

2. Rules for using a computer;

3. Ability to work with information, equipment and materials.

4. Practical skills.

Predicted result:

In the course of the research work, they will learn how to grow crystals. Prepare a presentation in the form of a presentation.

Hypothesis: check the possibility of growth of salt crystals without the use of special equipment .

Stages of work on the project: project selection, activity planning, selection of materials, analysis and comparison.

Independent thoughts and observations: obtaining information from various sources.

1. Introduction

Crystals attract a person. You can admire them for a long time, considering the edges. They attract with their color. These are: amethysts, pomegranate, crystal, etc. What kind of crystalline forms nature has not created! Since childhood, we have all been attracted and attracted to ourselves by multi-colored pebbles. Intuitively, we felt some kind of mystery in them and could not take our eyes off their natural natural beauty. We have always wanted to know more about crystals, how they form, grow, what is their structure, function and what makes them so different from each other. Perhaps a crystal is a rare and beautiful mineral or gem. You are partly right. Emeralds and diamonds are crystals. But not all crystals are rare beautiful. Each individual particle of salt or sugar is also a crystal!

In nature, there are hundreds of substances that form crystals. Water is one of the most common of them. Freezing water turns into ice crystals or snowflakes grown from water vapor.

2. Relevance

This year, in the lessons of the world around us, we studied minerals. I was very interested in quartz. I decided to find out if it is possible to grow such crystals myself. After all, many ornamental stones are grown in laboratories. After studying the literature on growing crystals, we realized what an exciting activity it is, as safe as possible in terms of safety, which is important for those who conduct experiments at home. Careful preparation and execution hone skills in the ability to carefully handle substances and properly organize a work plan. People use crystals in construction, in the manufacture of jewelry, watches, electronic devices, computer technology. Crystals are used to make prisms and lenses of optical devices. And also devices based on liquid crystals have become an integral part of our life, so this topic is relevant for a modern person.

3. The appearance of crystals.

What are crystals? Crystals, translated from Greek, (krystallos) ice. According to the encyclopedia, a crystal is a solid body. Crystals grow by attaching particles of matter from liquid or vapor. Crystals are of natural origin and artificial, grown in specially created conditions. And each person, if desired, can easily grow crystals at home. But in order for the result to turn out really beautiful, it is necessary to carefully perform all the actions, follow the technological process.

Having studied the literature, we learned that blue vitriol is salt (salt - from a chemical point of view) of blue color, not poisonous to humans (unless you eat it) and it is used not only in gardening, but also in medicine, in construction and even in the food industry! But the most interesting thing for me was that every single particle of this salt is a crystal! The process of crystal formation is called crystallization. One method of obtaining crystals is the gradual removal of water from a saturated solution. The "extra" substance crystallizes. And in this case, the slower the water evaporates, the better the crystals are obtained.

4. Main technological stages of growing any large crystal

supersaturated salt solution
- Constant air temperature
- Constant solution temperature
- No additional "seeds"
- Thorough solution filtration

5. Practical work.

To conduct the experiment, we need: blue vitriol, thread, 2 cans, spoon, cardboard, scissors, spoon, glass, protective equipment, filter.

1. At the initial stage, we prepare a supersaturated solution. Pour about 300 ml of water into a jar or glass. We begin to add copper sulfate.

Pour a tablespoon, stir. The vitriol will dissolve very quickly. Add another spoonful and stir again. We do this until the salt begins to settle at the bottom. The solution is supersaturated. Place the jar in a pot of water and put the pot on the fire. It is necessary to achieve complete dissolution of vitriol in water so that the crystals are beautiful and clean, for this it is necessary to filter the resulting solution, and as quickly as possible, until crystallization has occurred.

2. While the solution is cooling, prepare the "seed". The seed can be a large crystal of copper sulphate or a bead or button. We fix the seed on the thread.

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3. The seed on the thread can be placed inside the jar with the solution. In this case, the seed should not touch the walls of the vessel or its bottom. Therefore, we tie the thread to a stick or pencil in the middle. Lay the pencil across the neck of the jar.

4. Leave the structure alone and wait until crystals begin to form. When the crystal reaches the desired size, we remove it from the solution, cut the thread.

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A concentrated solution of copper sulfate should not get on your hands, so use gloves

1. Do not taste copper sulfate salt.

2. Avoid contact with the nose and eyes.

3. It is strictly forbidden to eat from the dishes that were used during the experiment.

4. During the growth of the crystal, do not touch it with your hands, because fingerprints will remain on it, and the crystal will grow in an irregular shape.

5. Always wash your hands at the end of the experiments.

The jar with the solution was placed open in a warm place. The growth of the crystal was monitored every day, in no case lifting, turning or shaking the glass with the solution, otherwise the crystal could be broken. Three days after the start of the experiment, a crystal of copper sulphate appeared on the thread.

On the 26th day of the experiment, we removed the crystals from the jar.

Practical significance.

Crystals obtained in the process of growing from copper sulfate salt can be used to decorate the interior of rooms, to create a variety of decorative compositions and panels. The grown crystals in the form of various flowers, figurines, twigs can be used to make souvenirs and gifts for friends and acquaintances.

6. Bottom line. Conclusions.

In the course of our work, we investigated a very interesting property of crystals - their growth in an artificial environment. It turns out that crystals can be grown at home, without any effort.

As a result of the research, the hypothesis is fully confirmed: we managed to grow copper sulfate crystals at home.

Literature

1. Great Children's Encyclopedia: Chemistry, comp. K. Lucis. Moscow: Russian Encyclopedic Association. 2000.

2. Vladimirov's golden gold: Scientific literature. M.: Children's literature. 1986.

3. Interactive encyclopedia "Everything about everything", M.: Makhaon 2007.

4. Leenson Chemistry. M.: Bustard. 1996.

5. Encyclopedia for the curious “What, why and why? » M. : Makhaon 2012.

6.http://www. likeprosto. en

7.http://www. zircon81.narod. en

At home, you can grow crystals of a wide variety of shapes, sizes and even colors. If you use salt or sugar as a material for crystallization, then you will have to use dyes to obtain a colored crystal. But growing a crystal from copper sulfate at home allows you to immediately get a crystal of a beautiful blue color.

The essence of the crystallization of copper sulfate is no different from the crystallization of sugar or salt. Copper sulphate is widely used in agriculture, is used as a fertilizer and is sold in garden supply stores.

To grow a crystal from copper sulphate at home, you will need:

• Copper vitriol;
• Water. It is better to use distilled water (you can buy it at an auto supply store) or use regular boiled water.
• glass jar or jar;
• Thread.
• Stick or regular pencil;
• Colorless nail polish.
• Rubber gloves.

Instructions on how to grow a crystal from copper sulfate at home

Attention! When working with copper sulphate, it is better to wear gloves!

1. At the initial stage, we prepare a supersaturated solution. Pour about 300 ml of water into a jar or glass. We begin to add copper sulfate. Pour a tablespoon, stir. The vitriol will dissolve very quickly. Add another spoonful and stir again. We do this until the salt begins to settle at the bottom. The solution is supersaturated. Place the jar in a pot of water and put the pot on the fire. It is necessary to achieve complete dissolution of vitriol in water.
2. While the solution is cooling, prepare the "seed". The seed can be a large crystal of copper sulphate or a bead or button. We fix the seed on the thread.
3. The seed on the thread can be placed inside the jar with the solution. In this case, the seed should not touch the walls of the vessel or its bottom. Therefore, we tie the thread to a stick or pencil in the middle. Lay the pencil across the neck of the jar.
4. We leave the structure alone and wait until crystals begin to form. Copper sulfate crystals grow somewhat faster than salt or sugar crystals. When the crystal reaches the desired size, we remove it from the solution, cut the thread.
5. In order to give the crystal an even more attractive look, cover it with colorless nail polish.

Things to remember:

The more saturated the solution, the faster crystallization will proceed. After a day or two, you can carefully remove the crystal from the solution, and replace the solution with a new, more saturated one.

Keep the crystal away from small children. After all, copper sulfate crystals are so beautiful that children will definitely want to taste them.

And with your own hands you can grow crystals from sugar, copper sulfate and colored salt

How to grow a crystal from copper sulfate at home

Copper sulfate is a substance that, due to its beautiful bright blue color, is ideal for growing crystals. They can be given to your loved ones or used as a decorative element. In any case, they will not leave anyone indifferent, and the manufacturing process can become truly exciting. So, how to grow a crystal from copper sulfate?

Preparatory activities

Copper sulphate can be purchased at almost any hardware store. It is actively used in agriculture for pest control. However, one should not forget that this substance is toxic. When working with blue vitriol at home, be sure to use rubber gloves and do not allow it to enter the esophagus and mucous membranes. Wash your hands thoroughly in running water after finishing work.

You can grow a real miracle from copper sulfate, but do not forget about safety in the manufacturing process

In order to make a crystal, you will need:

• water - if possible, use distilled or boiled as a last resort. Raw tap water is categorically not suitable due to the content of chlorides in it, which will react with the solution and degrade its quality;
• copper sulfate;
• cup;
• wire;
• wool thread - make sure it is thin. You can use long hair. Copper sulfate crystals are transparent and the thread should not be visible through them.

When placing the seed in a container with a solution, make sure that it does not come into contact with the walls or bottom of the vessel. This can disrupt the crystal growth process and its structure.

Instructions for growing a crystal

There are two technologies for growing crystals from copper sulfate.

But both of them are based on working with a saturated solution of a substance.

Note! The higher the temperature of the water, the faster the copper sulfate dissolves in it. But when the liquid reaches + 80 ° C, subsequent heating does not affect the solubility of salts.

Fast way

By growing copper sulfate crystals in a fast way, you do not have to worry about seeding: you can do without it at all. The sediment will easily be fixed on the thread.

Second way

In this case, you can grow a large crystal of copper sulfate, but it will take much longer. In addition, unlike the first method, the choice of the seed is fundamentally important. In addition, you will have to make sure that small crystals do not stick to it.

The larger and smoother the copper sulfate crystal selected from the total mass, the more beautiful the final product will turn out.

You will need 200 g of warm water and about 110 g of copper sulfate.

Manufacturing instructions:

• mix vitriol and water in a suitable container (glass or jar), leave for a day. Stir occasionally: the active substance must be completely dissolved. After that, filter the solution through cotton wool or special filter paper. The sediment remaining on the filter surface can be dried and reused if necessary;
• pour the resulting solution into a clean container;
• select a seed crystal, tie it to a thread (hair). Fasten the second end of the thread on a stick, put it horizontally on the container. The seed must descend into the solution in a strictly vertical position. Cover the dishes with a piece of cloth so that dust does not get inside;

A suitable seed size crystal of copper sulphate

• after a few days you will notice that the crystal is growing. In a week it will reach 1 cm, and over time it will increase even more;

Be sure to cover the container with the solution and seed with a piece of cloth

While working, you may encounter some difficulties. They are easy to overcome by adhering to simple rules.

When exposed to air, a crystal of copper sulphate loses some of its moisture, weathers and eventually collapses. To avoid this, store it in a tightly closed container in a cool place. Experts advise covering it with a colorless varnish - this will create a reliable protective film.

How to grow a crystal from copper sulfate at home (video)

Growing copper sulphate crystals is a long process, it requires attention and patience. However, the result will definitely please you. Share your experience with us in the comments. Good luck to you!