Saltwater Lab Essay

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Saltwater Density Lab Problem: How can a 4-layer saltwater density column be made? Background Research: The density of water is the weight of the water per its unit volume, which depends on the temperature of the water. When salt is added to the water, its density increases. This is because salt has mass, and since density is mass over volume, the density increases even though the volume does not. This makes the surface tension of the water greater. Surface tension is how the water molecules are held together in the surface forming a barrier like a membrane. It allows objects to float on the surface-- Salt can be put into water and make layers with different amounts of salt. Hypothesis: If there is a balanced amount of salt, then the layers will be consistent. Experiment: Materials: -2 graduated cylinders -4 food colorings -something to stir with -1 beaker -50 mL of water -25 mg of salt -scale to measure salt -timer Procedure: measure 10 mg of salt in the scale and put it in the bottom of the graduated cylinder before putting in anything else measure 50 mL of water and put it in a beaker add 15 mg of salt to the 50 mL of water and stir it until it is completely dissolved carefully put 10 mL of the saltwater in the graduated cylinder with the salt in the bottom put 2 drops of food coloring in the saltwater that is in the graduated cylinder wait about 1 minute until that saltwater layer is completely colored add 10 mL of water to the beaker that has saltwater in it so that the salinity of the water decreases. stir. carefully pour the water with less salt into the graduated cylinder that has the other layer(s) add 2 drops of another color to the new layer that has less salt and wait 1 minute a second layer should me forming repeat steps 7-9 so that more layers can be made Observations: the new layers take some

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