How to make glass from sodium chloride

Sodium chloride (common salt) crystals are formed through a chemical reaction that occurs when a mixture of water and salt binds with air and evaporates, causing the atoms to form symmetrically in a crystalline solid. Performing a crystal experiment allows children to observe the phases and changes of matter from liquid to solid . The experiment provides an entertaining and practical activity for beginning chemists, and can be used as an aid to teach about stalactites and stalagmites that are formed in caves.

• 1 cup of distilled water
• Pan
• Epsom salt
• Spoon
• Glass jar
• Ruler
• Chain
• Scissors
• Pencil
• Paper clip

one

Pour 1 ½ cup of distilled water into a pot.

two

Bring the distilled water to a boil over medium heat. Add 2 teaspoons of Epsom salt and stir the mixture so that the salt dissolves. Continue with the process of adding, removing and diluting the salt until the water is saturated with salt and the salt does not dissolve.

3

Pour the solution into a glass jar. Measure the length from the solution to the top of the bottle. Cut a piece of string a little more than an inch long so that when you hang from the top of the jar, the string will get into the mix.

4

Tie the thread at one end of a pencil. Tie the loose end of the string to a paper clip. Balance the pencil on the top of the jar so that the strings and paper clip hang inside the jar.

5

Cover the top, sides and bottom of the jar with a dish towel. Place the container on a flat surface and allow it to cool to room temperature. The crystals are formed in the paper clip and the tape when the mixture of salt and water evaporates. Check the bottle in three days, at which time a glass stalactite should be formed.