The Effects of Acid on different kinds of metal
I'm doing a science fair project on the affects of acid on different kinds of metal. I would like some information on this.
high school student - Meridian, Mississippi
Hi, Jake. You are posing the question rather vaguely, so it seems that you don't feel especially enthusiastic about this project yet and haven't yet been to the library on this. Your school or town librarian should be able to help find books for you on interesting science projects and on acid attack on metal. I think that is the first step.
If your library trip doesn't pique your curiosity about some specific aspect of this that you'd like to address, maybe the teacher will let you change the project to something you would enjoy more? Enthusiasm is key to a worthwhile project -- you have to be interested in learning the results.
For a "routine" project, pick some dilute common acids hopefully available in your high school lab like hydrochloric, sulfuric, phosphoric, acetic, and nitric; and pick some common metals like steel, zinc, copper, and aluminum. Conduct tests under the supervision of the chemistry teacher or lab assistant. Obviously these acids can be hazardous and this part of the project must be done in the lab; unfortunately, you can't put the acid on display on project night, but you can certainly display the corroded metal.
Later you can flesh this out the subject by searching the internet for hits containing both the acid name and the metal name. Good luck!
What Ted says makes sense. But YOU have to chose WHICH acid you want to write about.
Why? Because some acids attack some metals and others don't. And mixtures of acids can be very aggressive!
So start with, say, Hydrochloric (sometimes called Muriatic) or Sulphuric.
Go to GOOGLE and try to get data on corrosion resistance of metals on the acid of your choice. OK?
And to prove to your teacher wotta good pupil you are, mention Aqua Regia (King of Waters) which dissolves gold. What is it? Look it up, Jake !
Take it from a parent that has been helping a child with this project, it is not easy to find information at the library or on the web on this subject; any help these kids can be given is in need. Background info on what metals can be affected by what acids is next to impossible to find, and what those affects will be I can't find anywhere. ask.com, yahooeducation.com, and channel4.com have been of some help.Brandy T
- St. Louis, Missouri
You didn't mention what grade your child is in, but a good starting point might be a high school chemistry text. It will explain in detail exactly what acids are, how they work, and why. Most acids quickly dissolve active, light, metals like aluminum, magnesium, and zinc by putting the metal into solution as an ion. They will act more slowly on iron (steel). Most acids will remove tarnish from more noble metals like copper, by dissolving the oxides into ions, while not having the power to oxidize and dissolve the metal itself. Most acids will have no effect on gold (aqua regia, a mixture of hydrochloric and nitric acid, being the exception). Nitric acid is an oxidizing acid (both an oxidizer and an acid) and its effects are stranger--it will dissolve metals like copper, which simple acids won't; but it will not dissolve aluminum, which simple acids will.
For younger students, I personally don't see value in rote memorization of the effects of various acids on various metals -- they haven't yet had chemistry so they will not gain any insight. What the younger students should be learning (in my opinion, but who am I) is the "method" of doing science experiments and projects. And this is about forming a hypothesis, distinguishing between observation, guesses, and conclusions, keeping a lab book and writing everything down, never erasing a single word, and how to do research. For me or anyone to simply respond that such & such an acid will do so & so to such & such a metal doesn't seem to me to get to the heart of the desired learning experience.
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