Ice to Water

Extracted from http://resources.yesican.yorku.ca/lpdd/g07/lp/nelson/nel09.html

If you leave an ice cube in a beaker at room temperature, heat from the surrounding air will transfer to the ice, and the ice will become water. In this investigation, you will investigate what happens to the temperature of ice as heat is transferred to it from the surrounding air.

                Materials

·  Stirring rod 

·  250 ml beaker 

·  250 ml crushed ice 

·  Timing device 

·  Thermometer 

CAUTION: Thermometers break easily. Do not stir the ice while the thermometer is in the breaker. Do not use the thermometer to stir the ice. Do not rest the thermometer on the bottom of the breaker. 

 

Procedure

In your notebook, draw a table similar to the one shown here. 

 Time 

(min)

 Temperature 

(°C) 

Changes 

 Observed 

0

1

2

etc... 

 

 

 

 

 

Placed the crushed ice in the breaker. 

·  Stir the ice with a stirring rod.

·  Place the thermometer in the breaker and record the temperature at 0 min.
a) Why should you stir the ice/water mixture? 
b) Where do you think the thermometer should be to get the most accurate temperature reading? Why? 

 

Take out the thermometer and stir the ice again. 

·  At 1 min., insert the thermometer in the beaker and measure the temperature.

·  Continue recording the temperature every 12-min, or until the ice has all melted.
c) Record the temperature each minute. 
d) Record your observations of any changes in the beaker. 

 


 

Investigation Questions 
  1. What change of state occurs in this activity? 
  2. The change of state needs energy? Where did this energy come from? What do we call this energy? 
  3. What happens to the temperature during this change of state? 
  4. Draw a line graph of your data. Describe the shape of the line during the change of state. 
  5. What do you think would happen to the line on the graph if you heated the water after all the ice had melted? Explain your answer. 

Apply  

  1. During the fall, you are camping and you leave some water in a bucket overnight. The next morning, you notice a layer of ice on the top of the water. What do you think the temperature of the water is just beneath the ice? 
  2. On the basis of your observations, do you agree with the following statement:" when heat is added to a solid, the heat can cause a change of state or an increase in temperature'? Explain your answer. 

Journal Entry 

Predict the melting temperature of each of the following substances: wax, steel, sugar, asphalt, alcohol, cooking oil. Explain your thinking in each case. 

 


States Of Matter

Earlier, you estimated the temperature of ice cream, hot tea, and the air inside a hot oven. You know that ice cream is different from tea, and tea is different from the air inside an oven. Ice cream is a solid, hot tea is a liquid, and the air inside your oven is a gas. All substances can be grouped into one of these states of matter-solid, liquid, or gas. Each state of matter has certain characteristics, or properties.

 

 

A gas fills any container it is in, and takes on the shape of the container; a gas can flow and it is easy to compress. 

 

A liquid has a set volume, but it will take the same shape as the container it is in; a liquid can flow, but it is difficult to compress. 

 

A solid has a set volume and a rigid shape; it cannot flow like a gas or a liquid, and it is very hard to compress. 

Heat and States of Matter

If heat is added to or released from a substance, the state of the substance can change. For example, if heat is added to ice cream, it changes from a solid to a liquid. If heat is added to hot tea, the water will boil, changing to a gas.

 

The six changes of state  

Melting is the change from a solid to a liquid.  

Vaporization is the change from a liquid to a gas. Slow vaporization is called evaporation. Fast vapourization is called boiling.  

Condensation is the change from a gas to a liquid.  

Solidification, or freezing, is the change from a liquid to a solid.  

Sublimation is either the change from a solid directly to a gas, or the change from a gas to a solid. Notice that sublimation is the name for two possible changes of state. 

 

Self Check 
  1. What is the state of each of the following materials?
    a) Steel at room temperature 
    b) Air 
    c) Mercury at room temperature 
    d) Water at 125ºC 
    e) Water at -25ºC 
    f) Water at 25ºC 
    g) Antifreeze at -25ºC 
  2. In each of the following cases, name the change of state and indicate whether heat is added or removed during the change of state.
    a) Molten (liquid) gold forms bars. 
    b) Unused ice cubes in a frost-free freezer gradually disappear. 
    c) Moisture forms on a car's windshield during the night in winter. 
    d) Grapes turn into raisins.

Apply

  1. Look at a photo of lava from a volcano flowing into the ocean. How many changes of state happened when the volcano erupted? Explain. 

 

Journal Entry 

During the course of the day, record any changes you see in states of matter. List the place where the change happened, the initial state, and the final state for each change. 

 

From Heat and Temperature, ITP Nelson. © Copyright 1997 
Copyright permission is hereby granted for educational purposes only, otherwise this resource may not be reproduced, modified for re-sale or sold "as-is" without explicit written permission from the authors.  
All educational reproductions of this document must include this copyright notice.