Emily+Cassulo+&+Aubri+Applegren

= Crystal Formation =

Problem:
How do three contrasting substances crystallize to form a translucent solid?

Background/ Purpose:
The word crystals originated from the Greek word "krustallos" meaning ice. Crystals were known around the world as healing powers, held spiritual powers, soul of dragons, and essence of love. Crystallization is a process of forming crystals and usually occurs in solutions, molten substances, and gases. Temperature and other operating conditions are what crystal formation is dependent upon. During the process of crystallization, the molten substance or solute has to form clusters. The clusters mold into formed shapes, defining the edges of the crystal. The clusters need to be secure, so they can build upon other crystals. Crystals form many different ways. The most common way is in volcanic areas. Hot gases encounter cool surroundings and deposit crystals. Most mineral crystals grow from molten rock deep within the earth. As magma cools, many crystals form together producing irregular shapes. Natural crystals are dug up out of the ground. They're formed by the earth's temperature and pressure. Crystals are also created in laboratories. Using alum, sugar, and salt are just some ways that crystals can be formed by an unnatural environment. Saturated solutions will be made out of alum, sugar, and salt which will then create the crystals. Volume and mass are the measurements we chose to figure out which saturated solution would make the greatest crystal. We believe alum will make the greatest crystal because it is said to be the most reliable, easiest, and quickest. With only a short amount of the time that the crystals will be forming, alum would create the greatest crystal. The independent variable in our experiment are the three saturated solutions: alum, sugar, and salt. The dependent variable in our experiment is the amount of alum, sugar, and salt put into the water. What are some other ways to form crystals in a lab?-Quentin Why does sugar, salt, and alum make crystals?-Trey Keeley Is the making of an unnatural crystal difficult?-Trey Keeley Give more detail about why the chemicals react to make the crystals form. -Angela Jaszarowski How does alum, sugar, and salt make a crystal? -Angela Jaszarowski Can you try and apply the solution you you put in your background? It may make the experiment clearer. Meghan Rest

Hypothesis:
If we make crystals from alum, sugar, and salt, then the alum crystal will have the greatest amount of volume and mass. Why do you believe the alum will form the crystal with the greatest volume and mass?-Quentin When you perform the experiment, will there be a certain time in which you will need to test or grow the crystals? Meghan Rest

Materials:
What is the total cost of materials? -Bailey Meiner
 * One bottle of alum (aluminum potassium sulfate, a pickling spice) *$3.18
 * One container of salt *$2.18
 * One container of sugar *$2.98
 * Disposable gloves *$4.63
 * Boiling or hot water *FREE
 * Three large beakers *$12.00
 * Three small beakers *$7.05
 * Three large bowls or jars (that can hold at least 12 ounces) *$44.91
 * Six coffee stirrers or craft sticks *$2.47
 * Paper covering (paper towel or coaster) *$4.97
 * Three pieces of string *$4.50
 * Three stickers or pieces of masking tape *$1.51
 * a pen *$1.87
 * a teaspoon *$7.02
 * a hot plate

Need the amounts of each material (sugar, salt, alum) Ms. Miller

Procedure:

 * 1) Label each beaker with the correct substance that will be put in there.
 * 2) Fill one of the beakers with boiling water & sprinkle a teaspoon of alum in the water & stir it with one of the stirrers until it dissolves completely. (*make sure you use gloves while handling this spice. It is a skin and eye irritant, don't let it get in your eyes)
 * 3) If the alum dissolves add another teaspoon, & stir until it dissolves again. If it dissolves again keep adding until it doesn't dissolve anymore. (1 teaspoon at a time)
 * 4) After 3-4 hours, the saturated solution should make little crystals. Take one of the crystals out of the beaker, (preferably the biggest one), and dispose of the saturated solution.
 * 5) Take the crystal & tie a string around it. Tie the other end to a popsicle stick.
 * 6) Repeat steps 2 & 3.
 * 7) Once the saturated solution is complete, add food coloring.
 * 8) Lay the Popsicle stick over the jar and let the crystal hang by the string in the jar. Make sure the crystal is not touching any of the sides of the jar.
 * 9) Lay the covering over the jar so no other particles can get in the jar.
 * 10) Put the jar into a closed cabinet safe from any disruptions it could have.
 * 11) Wait 2-3 days to take out the crystal.
 * 12) Measure the volume by filling a little beaker with water to the top, inside of a bigger beaker. Push the crystal to the bottom of the little beaker. Measure the spillage of the water in the bigger beaker.
 * 13) Measure the mass by putting the crystal on the balance.
 * 14) Repeat steps 2-13 with the salt and sugar.
 * 15) Calculate data and repeat procedure just to make the results more accurate.

Bibliography:
Alphabetize your bibliography. -Bailey Meiner "Crystal." //The Gale Encyclopedia of Science//. Ed. K. Lee Lerner and Brenda Wilmoth Lerner. 4th ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2008. 1204-1209. //Gale Virtual Reference Library//. Web. 25 Oct. 2013. [|CX2830100653&docType=GALE]

Formoso, Michelle. "How Do Crystals Form?" //Education.com//. Education.com, 2006. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. []

"How to Grow Alum Crystal..." //YouTube//. YouTube, 04 Dec. 2011. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. []

"Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History." //HTTP 404: The Webpage Cannot Be Found://. The Dynamic Earth, n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. [|http://www.mnh.si.edu/earth/text/2_2_2_2.html__]

Wood, J. Lang. "Interesting Facts on Crystals." //EHow//. Demand Media, 24 Mar. 2010. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. [|http://www.ehow.com/about_6125347_interesting-crystals.html#ixzz2gmdjHCc7]

Khare, Parul. "Information About Crystals." //EHow//. Demand Media, 17 Apr. 2010. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. []