Testing pH

 Aim: To see if everyday chemicals and bases color on the pH scale

Method: 

1. Get blue litmus, red litmus, and universal indicator.

2. Get spotting tile and safety glasses.

3. get some everyday chemicals and place them in your spotting tiles.

4. add red litmus paper, blue litmus paper, and UI (Universal Indicator) to your chemicals and see what color they turn.

5. Write down and record your results.

Results:

Chemicals tested	Colour in blue litmus	Colour in red litmus	Colour in the universal indicator
Dishwasher powder	blue	blue	blue
Floor cleaner	blue	blue	yellow
Toilet cleaner	red	red	red
Baking soda	blue	blue	blue

Discussion: If it turns red it is an acid and if it goes blue it is a base. For most of the mine if one went blue they all did apart from one which went yellow but it should still be a base as two out of three said it's a base. Most of the things that I tested were blue which means they were a base but toilet cleaner is an acid. An acid has hydrogen (H+) in it which makes it acid and a base has hydroxide (OH-) in it instead. These colors turn these color because of the pH level it is. The Red color has a pH level of 1 while violet has a pH level of 14. The lower the number of the pH scale it is the more acidic it is, the higher the number on the pH scale the more base it has. If the color you get is green that means that it is neutral and has a pH level of 7. You won't get different colors from red and blue if you are using litmus paper so that's what universal indicator is used for. The pH scale numbers have a color that goes with them here is a photo that shows the number and the color it goes with. If you don't know what alkaline is it's the word used instead of the base in science.

Conclusion:

This shows if these acids and bases are acids or bases based on the color of the pH scales and what these tools show. My experiment did work apart from one which may be a bit faulty as I got different results the results usually stay true. Next time I would test a bigger variety and see if different chemicals and bases show different colors and results. This experiment does work and it is great to see how everyday tools pH levels.

BYE!