This blog is for amateur chemists and anyone who is interested in learning about chemical reactions. I also will tell you about how to obtain various elements and chemical compounds for a relatively low price.
This is a PowerPoint presentation that I recently added to. It is essentially an illustrated guide to some of the properties of the element groups using my videos. Most of the videos are not professional quality but I hope they are still interesting....
Read moreFor the past few months, I have not been heavily posting on this blog. The main reason is the lack of additional experiments to perform. For a very limited budget, there is a limit on the number of experiments that can be done, and I believe that I have...
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Lachrymatory agents, normally called tear gases, are a group of chemicals that cause non-lethal and temporary irritation of the eyes and respiratory passages. One of the most common tear gases is the often reddish-colored OC (Oleoresin Capsicum), although...
Read morePepper_spray_used Pepper spray is a solvent containing extracts of hot peppers which is placed in a pressurized canister. It is applied to the face of an attacker as a non-lethal self-defense weapon. Pepper spray causes "immediate closing of the eyes,...
Read moreRight now on the shelf in my laboratory I have the following substances: CuCl2(s), KBrO3(s), NiCl2(aq), SnCl2(aq), MnCO3(s), PbCO3(s), Zn(Ac)2(s), Na2HPO4(s), Li2CO3(s), Na2CO3(s), SrCO3(s), CaCO3(s). Below are the methods I used to make each chemical....
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During the course of amateur experimentation, there is always the occasional experiment which has an unexpected problem. Sometimes this is due to poor lab technique and lack of safety precautions, while other times it is one of those one-in-a-thousand...
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The creation of an artificial atmosphere is necessary for manned underwater and space travel. Humans breathe in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide and water. Air contains 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.04% carbon dioxide, and a trace amount of water vapor....
Read moreThe batteries in common use today have a small variety of chemicals that are used to create power. The electricity is created by separating one chemical reaction into two parts and harnessing the flow of electrons between those two parts. Many chemical...
Read moreThermite generally refers to a mixture of a finely powdered metal and metal oxide in various ratios. Depending on the components, these mixtures can burn smoothly and slowly or explode with a bang (well, almost). Getting the components of thermite is...
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There are several ways to make invisible ink, but I decided to try a dye that responds to changes in pH. Phenolphthalein is a white crystalline substance which is soluble in alcohol. Solutions of it are colorless at a pH below 8.2 and magenta or pink...
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