9

THE MAGIC IN CHEMISTRY

A COMPLETE PACKAGE FOR NINETY MINUTES OF VISUAL DELIGHT
MAGIC -ILLUSION-TRUTH-EXPLANATION-SCIENCE-HINTS-SAFETY ILLUSION- TRUTH- EXPLANATION- SCIENCE- HINTS-

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THE MAGIC IN CHEMISTRY
A COMPLETE PACKAGE FOR NINETY MINUTES OF VISUAL DELIGHT
MAGIC -ILLUSION-TRUTH-EXPLANATION-SCIENCE-HINTS-SAFETY ILLUSION- TRUTH- EXPLANATION- SCIENCE- HINTS-

SUBRAMANIA RANGANATHAN

SUBRAMANIA RANGANATHAN
DISTINGUISHED SCIENTIST DISCOVERY LABORATORY, ORGANIC III INDIAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY HYDERABAD 500 007

HONORARY PROFESSOR JAWAHARLAL NEHRU CENTRE FOR ADVANCED SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH BANGALORE 560 064

PHONE: FAX: E-MAIL:

040-7160123 EXTN.2648 040040-7160757 040rangan@iict.ap.nic.in

A REGISTERED SOCIETY FOR THE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION, ARTS AND CRAFTS CRAFTS

VIDYANANTHA

A REGISTERED SOCIETY FOR THE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION, ARTS AND CRAFTS CRAFTS

VIDYANANTHA

PADMAVATI PARADISE APARTMENTS #2, 12 -13-262, STREET NO. 8, TARNAKA, HYDERABAD- 500 007 13HYDERABAD-

PADMAVATI PARADISE APARTMENTS #2, 12 -13-262, STREET NO. 8, TARNAKA, HYDERABAD- 500 007 13HYDERABAD-

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

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grateful N. Kumar, Indian I am most Sciences, to Professorand Director, President,Research academy of Bangalore Raman Institute, Bangalore, for suggesting this project and nourishing it till maturity.

Without the valuable guidance of Dr. Darshan Ranganathan at every stage, this work would not have progressed and taken the present form. This involvement is thankfully acknowledged.

RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED TO

DARSHAN RANGANATHAN
WHO PASSED AWAY ON HER SIXTIETH BIRTHDAY JUNE 4, 2001

Dr. K. Muraleedharan, Mr. K. Kishore and Mr. M. Samant gave many hours of their valuable time, from acquiring the chemicals, preparing for and participating in the many rehearsals and the final presentations. My expressions of deep obligation to these young colleagues! I thank Dr. R. A. Mashelkar, Director General, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, who most enthusiastically supported this exercise. My grateful thanks to Dr. K. V. Raghavan for his help and encouragements, which were available at all times

S. Ranganathan
Hyderabad, 2001

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PREFACE

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he best way to propagate is to T manifestations that projectthe message and bounty ofisscience morepresent its the basic principles. This all the true in

the realm of chemistry, as a discipline that profiles the dynamic melody between energy and matter. When teaching enjoyed a premier place in the dissemination of science, experimental demonstration was always the forum and one could find examples of this form from the time of Faraday and Raman. This art has all but vanished from our classrooms and academic gatherings. A revival would have a positive influence in our understanding, learning and propagation of science and this book is a very small step in this direction. Several accounts of experimental demonstration have left a deep impression on me. Faradays lectures on the candle, his demonstration of the liquefaction of gases, Ramans demonstration of the Raman effect and aspects of vision are outstanding examples. The one, which I vividly remember, is a lecture at the Royal Institute of Chemistry, narrated in Kendals book entitled, Young Chemists and Great Discoveries. Here, a furnace was keeping lead molten and the speaker stated that dry hands can safely receive the molten lead and invited the Prince of Wales, the future king, to receive this, which he unhesitatingly did. Does the scientist of the present hold such confidence amongst laymen!

THE MAGIC IN CHEMISTRY

Several criteria have played a role in the selection of over a dozen examples that comprise this book. These include, the visual impact, the quantum of scientific message, ease with which it can be shown in a limited time, use of simple protocols with readily available materials and a concern for safety. All examples have been tried on several occasions and are quite reproducible.

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THEPREFACE FLAME
PATTER The creation of a flame will perhaps remain the best example of Magic. It invariably evokes the deeply latent atavistic impressions, connected to our most primitive existence

MAGIC Light a candle in a dark hall.

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE Centuries ago, Michael Faraday, in his lectures on the chemistry of a candle, described the light seen, as a pale reflection of the Sun. How true it is! In present day comprehension, the light of the candle originates from the bond energy of hydrogen, which on nuclear fusion leads to electromagnetic radiations. These received by the earth, unite carbon dioxide and water by a process that requires energy, leading to energyrich bonds. The combustion of these back to carbon dioxide and water gives electromagnetic radiations seen!

Inventor and scientist Michael Faraday lectures at the Royal Institution. The Prince Consort with his sons the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh are seated in the front row facing Faraday. From a painting by Alexander Blaikley.

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PREFACE THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG
PATTER Generally, what our senses report is based on life experiences and at times they could be erroneous. Indeed, much of magic and illusion relate to misleading the senses, to create unnatural impressions. The truth/science behind these, is like and iceberg, the overt tip that is magic and the large latent part that is truth/explanation/science.

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MAGIC Liquid filled to the brim in a 25 ml conical flask is declared as kerosene by the audience. You invite one to drink this, which will be politely refused. You drink it yourself!

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE The contents as kerosene was a carefully created illusion by adding just a drop of kerosene to the flask filled with pure water.

"The Icebergs had wholly lost their chilly aspect, and glittering in the blaze of the brilliant heavens, seemed in the distance like masses of burnished metal or solid flame. Nearer at hand they were huge blocks of marble inlaid with mammoth gems of pearl and opal. One in particular exhibited the perfection of the grand. Its form was not unlike that of the Colosseum, and it lay so far away that half its height was buried beneath the line of blood-red waters!. -Hartwig, G. 1877. From The Polar and tropical worlds: a popular and scientific description of man and nature in the polar and equatorial regions of the globe.

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PREFACE BURN WITHOUT PAIN
PATTER Can fire be an illusion?! Can something be put on fire, without being damaged?! I have seen people walking on burning coal and have read the science behind it. All it requires seem to be lots of courage and some precautions. I certainly do not have the former! FLAME

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WET

MAGIC Dissolve ~ 0.5 g of strontium nitrate in 50 ml of water. Mix it with 50 ml of ethanol. Immerse a currency note in this, drain most of the solvents, hold it firmly by a pair of long tongs and set ablaze. Brilliant red flames engulf the note. The flame self-extinguishes. Similarly, set ablaze a small piece of coarse cotton fabric. Here the flame will engulf the fabric, burn vigorously for ~ 3 minutes before self-extinguishing. The cloth will be so wet that water in quantities can be squeezed out!

FLAME

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE A highly efficient partitioning system is illustrated in these simple experiments. The preference for water by the cotton fabric makes it thoroughly wet and therefore non-inflammable at the expense of the surroundings, which will be very rich in the flammable ethanol. We see fire, but it actually surrounds the fabric without affecting it. Many such simple partitioning systems are used, that range from pickling to chromatographic separations! HINTS/SAFETY Even a single burn spot can mar the show. This could happen at the site the fabric is being held by tongs. To prevent this not frequent possibility, wet the tip of the fabric that is being held by the tongs. The fabric should not drip!

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PREFACE COLD FIRE
PATTER How do people juggle balls of fire or make it emerging from the mouth! In folklore, burning camphor in the palm, without hurting it, was asked for to prove innocence. I can be perfectly guilty and still escape unscathed with the right chemistry! The basic reason for such fascination is the belief that a flame is hot. It need not be!

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MAGIC Set fire to a ball of cotton, which was immersed in carbon disulfide: carbon tetrachloride = 40: 20 ml and solvents partially squeezed out, placed in the palm. The flame will hardly warm the hand. It can be tossed around from hand to hand and even passed around.

CS2 + CCl4

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE A very interesting meeting of several aspects find manifestation in this simple experiment! Carbon dioxide will not burn and is used to extinguish fire. Its elder brother, carbon disulfide, just burns, without generating much heats (low heat of combustion). Besides, carbon disulfide has a very high vapor pressure, and the vapor blankets the uncovered cotton-ball. On the other hand, carbon tetrachloride is heavy, has relatively low vapor pressure and is non combustible. Therefore it settles close to the palm and the core of the ball making contact not harmful. HINTS/SAFETY

Carbon disulfide and its combustion products have an acrid and obnoxious smell; the experiment should not be prolonged more than two minutes. Dump the burning ball in a bucket of sand and cover it. Carbon tetrachloride is deemed carcinogenic! The success of the experiment depends on judicious retention of solvents in the cotton ball.

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PREFACE SETTING SUN
PATTER The rising and setting Sun, marking the beginning or end of a day in our lives, will always hold a fascination, since it evokes a surrealistic feeling and has been so extolled in our ancient literature as the charms of sandhya. On cloudless days, the sun will be orange to red with surroundings a brilliant blue! On cloudy days bright colors appear and this has been captured in the scores of painings by the famous artist, Constable. Added to these are cries of birds. returning home and the gentle breeze that make the leaves dance in the dusk. We will now simulate the magic of sun set! MAGIC To 100 ml of 2% aqueous sodium thiosulfate contained in a 1 liter beaker, placed in a clear slot in the covered overhead projector (OHP) 20 drops of water : hydrochloric acid = 7:1 are added. The projected bright disc of Sun gradually becomes orange and then red, in about 3 minutes. On the other hand, the beaker shines with an intense whitish blue hue. Stirring with a glass rod may be needed if the color is not evenly distributed. In the beginning, set the Sun at the lower middle of the screen and towards the end pull it out of the screen by simultaneously pushing a blank board. To complete the illusion of sunset, create the chirping of birds by using a calling-bell gadget! TIPS Measure board to the size of the overhead-projector and cut hole in the middle corresponding to the base of a 1l beaker. Place the beaker containing the thiosulfate, focus and add 20 drops of dilute acid. Stir with a glass rod occasionally.

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Na S S O

O O

Na HCl S + SO2 + H2O + NaCl

IV
TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE

IV

Profound principles of science are involved in this simple experiment! In presence of acid, the thiosulfate disproportionates to sulfur and sulfur dioxide. The former, under the exact conditions of the reaction, forms colloidal particles of the correct size to scatter light most efficiently (Tyndall effect). The brilliant white light emitted around 5000 is split to bright blue in the beaker by scattering and vivid orange on the screen by the lack of it. Notice on a clear day, the sky will have the same hues at both sunrise and sunset! The splitting of white light to high energy (blue) and low energy (red) components are brought about by materials that exhibit non linear optical activity, the foremost amongst which is, surprisingly, urea. Such operations have many uses.

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PREFACE ELECTRON TRANSFER
Na
PATTER The transfer of an electron is perhaps the most fundamental of all processes that take place in this universe. You do not see it, but its manifestations, one abundantly does. The transfer can be attended with color, form and energy. The simple process of a single electron transfer is shown in this experiment.

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Na+

EtOH
MAGIC To ethanol to which three drops of a solution of phenolphthalein had been added, in a petridish, placed in the clear slot of an OHP, small pieces of sodium are added, one at a time. The vigorous transfer of electron from the sodium to the solvent, accompanied by gas evolution would make the metal move around emitting gases and with a bright pink halo that slowly permeates the medium giving a illusion of a bleeding fly! TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE One electron is transferred from sodium to ethanol and this excess electron makes the ethanol break down to ethoxide and hydrogen. The former transforms the indicator to a pink color, regenerating alcohol and the anion of the indicator. Till recently, the hydrogen formation was considered arising from direct transfer of the electron to a proton. This is held unlikely since, alcohol being a very weak acid, cannot produce enough of matching protons for the transfer!

[EtOH]

EtO + H2

EtOH

EtO +

H+

K = 10-18

HINTS/SAFETY Sodium reacts violently with air and water. It should be handled under kerosene and excess metal should be destroyed by ethanol.

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CHEMILUMINESCENCE
PATTER Pack a dozen fireflies in a glass and you can get enough light to traverse the darkest of lanes. In deep villages this is done, as I have, long ago. In Japan, thousands of firefly roost in a single tree lighting it up, far prettier that a Christmas tree. Even the bird-brained birds know that fireflies cannot create fire. In Panchatantra this advice, given to a bunch of monkeys who were blowing at a flock of fireflies to make fire, to keep them warm, by a bird, was not appreciated! The understanding of how the flies make the glow is at the root of all kinds of procedures to produce this cold light. The organic chemist, Emil White, collected thousands of fireflies, by enticing sex signals by a pen-light torch decidedly a low trick! The keen flies so attracted met the net than the mate! From these he isolated the chemicals involved and clarified how light is produced. I am going to entice you with cold light! MAGIC In a 100 ml round-bottomed flask place 10 g of neutral alumina, add 3 ml of 30% hydrogen peroxide and 20 ml of methylene chloride. Swirl. Now add ~5 mg of rubrene. To this swirled mixture add, in drops, a solution of 3 ml of oxalyl chloride in 20 ml of methylene chloride. Intense blue light! HINTS/SAFETY The dye rubrene can be replaced with other sensitizers, a good one being 9,10-diphenyl anthracene. The lifetime of the glow and its color would depend on the dye used. Oxalyl chloride is a corrosive and low boiling substance
CHEMICAL ENERGY GROUND STATE EXCITED STATE

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LIGHT ENERGY
O C
O Cl O O O O Cl

HOOH

C O

*
O

LIGHT ENERGY

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE All reactions that produce cold light chemiluminescence have a common pattern. A kinetically driven reaction produces a reactive molecule imprisoned in a bond cage. To escape from this, it splits, producing a ground state molecule and an excited one. The latter goes back giving up its excess energy to a sensitizer, a dye, which goes back emitting the light. The events are graphically presented above. Cold light enjoys significant applications like, in mines, hazardous operations, underwater exploration, camping and so on. Commercial kits to specifications are also available.

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PREFACE DISORDER [ENTROPY] DRIVEN REACTION
PATTER Emperor Jehangir was fond of chilled wine. With no machines to make ice, at that time, he either got the mules to bring it from Himalayas or from frost collected in winter from pits lined with hay. Indeed, ice was a luxurious commodity! If Jehangir were a chemist, he would have had the know-how to freeze water. We will do so!

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EARTHERN POT

ADIABATIC DEMAGNETIZATION

MAGIC

Ba(OH)2.8H2O + NH4SCN
In a silver glass placed in a wine glass containing water, which touches the bottom of the glass, are placed 45 g of barium hydroxide octahydrate and 15 g of ammonium thiocyanate. Stir with a thermometer. In two minutes the inside temperature would fall from +20 oC to less than -20 oC - the mass becomes a liquid and water vapour and ammonia rise. The outside water will freeze to ice!

Ba(SCN)2 + 2NH3 + 11H2O

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE In all systems, heating up which increase disorder, is easier that cooling down which brings more order! Universally also, disorder is spontaneous and order is imposed. Normally in a disorder (entropy) driven reaction, the basic system is constrained to pay for the entropy increase, making it to cool. Good examples are the cooling of water in a mud pot, arising from being constrained to pay for the escape of surface water molecules. Another example is adiabatic demagnetization, where the order of spins maintained by an external field collapses on removal of it. The disordered spins take away energy from the medium thus cooling it. Solid helium can be made by this procedure. In the present experiment, ammonia and water escape leaving the system deprived of energy.

HINTS/SAFETY The process can be made time efficient by using chilled water.

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GEL PREFACE SHAKTI
PATTER The north of India is eternally indebted to king Bagirath, for having brought Ganges from heavens, to wash away the sins of his forebears! After a long stint of penance, the powers agreed to release Ganges, provided a person of strength was found to receive it. Another stint and Shiva agreed to do so. The Ganges was naughty, thought of taking the lord downstream but was punished by containing it on his hair! Another stint of penance, the lord deigned to release the now chastened Ganga, but unfortunately on her way she washed down the hut of sage. The enraged sire drank the whole river! Another stint So people have been thinking of containing water. Now I will show you a gel that drinks so much water.

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O O O O O O O O O

MAGIC To a glass of water, add one spoon of Gel Shakti and stir. In two minutes the gel takes all the water. Invert the glass for effect!

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE The gel is prepared by grafting polymers of acrylic acid or its amides on to a basic cellulose structure. The concentration of acid and amide groups makes it very thirsty for water, to derive stabilization by a vast network of hydrogen bonding. Hence the formation of the gel. Scientists at the National Chemical Laboratory, Pune, designed Gel Shakti. It has enormous application in water management.

= -O-CH2= COOH / CONH 2

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PREFACE CHEMICAL FOG
PATTER Fine water clusters scatter light to produce fog. In a laboratory reaction, the exact conditions needed to produce fog are very difficult to achieve. We would be generating such a fog and make ourselves disappear, temporarily of course!

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MAGIC In a metal trench of dimensions 24xlxl inches, layer 20 g of KOH pellets and cover with 20 g of hydroxylamine hydrochloride. Mix rapidly with a glass rod. In a couple of minutes intense fog will be generated, which in a draught-less room will rise vertically along the dimensions of the trench.

3NH2OH -I 100G

NH3 + N2 + 3H2O -III 0 23L 23L 70L

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE As shown in the adjoining page, this is a beautiful dis-proportionation of hydroxylamine to nitrogen and ammonia, producing copious amounts of water. Here a gram of hydroxylamine hydrochloride will produce more than a liter of fog! The KOH-HC1 neutralization produces energy to transform the water to particles that have a great resemblance to that in a fog.

HINTS/SAFETY The reaction produces a white residue and makes the trench very hot!

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PREFACE FIRE IGNITED WITH WATER
PATTER Water can put out fire, provided among other things, it is not a player in the game. There are also examples where fire can be started with water, where again water being not a direct party in the process. We will see one of these!

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MAGIC Mix 20 g of ammonium nitrate, 5 g of ammonium chloride and 25g of barium nitrate. Make a heap on a resistant sheet, cover uniformly with 20 g of zinc dust. Add two drops of water at the top. Green jet of spray emitting flame!

NH4NO3 -III N2O + Zn +II 0

N2O + 2H2O +II 0

N2 + ZnO 0 +II

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE Ammonium nitrate is the major player in this reaction, which is cleverly modulated, by auxiliary donors like barium nitrate and ammonium chloride. All the salts used are very soluble in water. Their concentrated solution arising from the drops of water, sets the reaction shown in the adjoining page. Here the initial cold reactions become very exothermic. HINTS/SAFETY The success of the experiment totally depends on the quality of zinc. Good zinc dust would be grey and free flowing. A rehearsal with the sample zinc is mandatory. If the zinc is not active it must be activated.

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PREFACE THE EIGHT ELECTRON SHUTTLE
PATTER Good old Sisyphus used to roll up a huge stone, expending muscular energy to create potential gradient. Once on the top he pushed it down! All he got out of the energy was cheerful whoop, just like the chemical reactions that you see here. Light and sound, but not much gain. But in life the return trip is carefully regulated to produce gradients that can create energy! For example ATP that fires the system arises from a proton gradient! Carefully modulated electron gradient drives the modern civilization in the form of electricity. Here we will show the mother of all electron gradients! Eight electrons down the hill in one go!

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+VII

+VI

+V

+IV

+III

+II

MAGIC On a resistant sheet, make a heap of a mixture of 10 g of sodium metaperiodate and 10g of sugar. Add two drops of con. sulfuric acid at the top. Brilliant flare ejecting colored fumes! TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE The complete spectrum of the 8 oxidation states of iodine can be seen with a range of colors, in a vigorous reaction which ignites the sugar, which is transformed to carbon dioxide and water, like in life systems, the difference being, while here it is a show, in real life it is running the life!

+I
6NaIO4 + C12H22O11 +VII 0

-I
12CO2 + 6NaI + 11H2O +IV -I

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BENGAL FLARE PREFACE
PATTER Good schools to 1earn chemical magic are places of worship, which abound in this country. These usually create the appropriate atmosphere. When I was a boy, it awed me to no end to see people getting into a trance and hitting their head with evil looking swords and the resulting copious flow of blood! Elders told me because the man is pious it does not hurt him. I have seen ugly, angry red welts on the backs of people who thrash themselves with chains and thorns, in a religious frenzy. Now I know that a good smearing or ferric chloride on the weapon (!) and a paste of ammonium thiocyanate on a sweaty surface can indeed draw, what looks like blood! In days of yore, the priests were pretty good psychologists. They knew what would awe the pilgrim. One common trick was to invoke the atavistic influences. This was achieved in temples of Kali in Bengal by burning balls of chemicals that produced intense bright red light in closed confines. The bright red tongue of flame was compared to that of this ferocious Godess! We are now going to cast you under this spell! MAGIC

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2Sr(NO3)2 + 4KClO3 + C12H22O11

4KCl + 10CO2 + 2N2 + 2SrCO3 + 11H2O

Weigh out 10 g of potassium chlorate, 10 g of icing sugar and 20g of strontium nitrate in a paper and gently mix by rotating paper (caution!). Make an elongated heap and add few drops of conc. sulfuric acid along the top. Intense bright red flare! TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE As graphically shown in the adjoining page, chlorate and nitrate oxidize sugar to carbon dioxide and water in a highly exothermic reaction. Potassium chlorate and sugar can react violently. The mixing order should be potassium chlorate with potassium nitrate followed by sugar on a paper by tilting the edges. Do not use a spatula!

HINTS/SAFETY

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PREFACE VOLCANO
PATTER The eruption of a volcano is an awe-inspiring spectacle. History records total devastation in many parts of the world. Although such calamities are now rare, the capricious and unpredictable nature of volcano still casts a spell. Whilst one dreads earthquakes we look forward to seeing a volcano in action! Volcanic eruptions need high temperatures, upward draft of hot gases and molten silicates. They spew, froth and hiss, creating a crater and a big mess around. We will chemically simulate these requirements!

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MAGIC Ignite on a resistant sheet, a heap of ammonium nitrate embedded with magnesium turnings and the top of which has been wetted with ~l ml of acetone. The mass will erupt, with a loud hiss, emanating hot gases, white flashes with huge outflow of dirty green lava!

(NH4)2Cr2O7 -III +VI 75G

N2 + Cr2O3 + 4H2O 0 45 L +III

TRUTH/EXPLANATION/SCIENCE The neat equalization of the electron gradient (ammonium = -3, dichromate = +6; see adjoining graphic representation) leads to the evolution of huge amounts of nitrogen and water (75 g of ammonium dichromate can produce 45 liters of gases). The redox reaction produces extremely light dirty green chromium trioxide, which is blown out from the core. These effects produce close impressions of a volcano.

HINTS/SAFETY Chromium trioxide is thought to be carcinogenic. The dust should not be inhaled and must be swept away immediately after the demonstration.