Making a Metal Oxide

Aim: To make a metal oxide and observe the difference in the properties of the product compared to the reactants
Equipment:

• Magnesium strip
• Bunsen Burner
• Safety glasses
• Metal scissor tongs

Method:

1. Light your Bunsen burner
2. Hold the piece of the magnesium in the scissor tongs. Ensure that you are holding onto the very tip of the magnesium
3. Place the other end of the magnesium into the flame. (At the top of the blue flame.)
4. When the magnesium starts to bun, do not look directly at it as the light that it emits can cause permanent  damage to your eyes

Observations:

It takes a wee while for the magnesium to catch, but when it does it looks amazing. Its a white light that, when looked at through a pair of tinted safety glasses, sparkles. The burnt magnesium looks like an orb of pure white light. Once the magnesium is burnt out, you should be left with  a white, crumbly powder. That's the metal oxide powder that we needed to make. While it was an easy experiment to accomplish, it is still quite dangerous to do as you could get seriously injured. S we had to make sure that we took the right safety precautions so we don't get hurt.