Download Conductivity of Pure Water

Benson Bush and Spencer Fawcett
1st Period
Problem
Can we make distilled water more conductive
by dissolving materials into distilled water?
Research

Distilled water is water that contains no impurities at
all. It is also known as pure water. Scientists need pure
water for different tests, and it is needed for some kinds of
technology for it to work. Tap water is water that comes
from wells that are located in the counties in each state.
There are currently 22 wells in Davis County. All Utah does
to filter the water out is to take out all of the debris like
sand and gravel, while leaving all of the rest of the
impurities there. The only other thing that they add is
chlorine to the water. Sodium chloride, sugar, magnesium
sulfate, borax, and iodine are all conductive when dissolved
in water.
And… More Research
 An ohm is a unit of electrical measure to measure the resistance between two
conductors. Circuits are loops on which electricity travels. In a circuit a power
source pushes electrons around the loop. In order for a circuit to work it needs
three things: a power source, a material that the electricity can flow through,
and something to power (Like a light bulb). The energy in a circuit travels from
higher voltages to lower voltages, so it flows from negative to positive in a DC
current. If you have a short in your circuit that is really bad because the circuit
is trying to make an infinite loop and that will burn up the wires and possibly
harm someone and/or start a fire. An AC current (alternating current) is
different from a DC current (direct current). AC has higher voltage than a DC
does and can harm things if not handled correctly. AC travels in more of an
wave pattern that is alternating, thus giving it the name alternating current.
DC goes in a straight pattern and is normally found in batteries, while AC is
what comes out of the wall sockets. A transformer can be used to transform AC
into DC so that it can be used in things like laptops, and in our case so we don’t
kill ourselves by electrocution.
Hypothesis
If we add borax to the distilled water
then it will conduct more electricity
because borax is a mineral found in the
Earth that is crystalline and it lathers.
Variables
 Constant: The amount of electricity being supplied, in
amps.
 Control: Distilled water
 Manipulated Independent Variable: The materials
being added to the distilled water.
 Dependent Responding Variable: The amount of
energy being resisted, in ohms.
Materials
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7 glasses
multimeter
Copper wires
Distilled water
Sodium Chloride (table
salt)
Magnesium Sulfate
Granulated sugar
Borax
Vinegar
measuring spoons
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Stirring spoons
Liquid measuring cup
Electrical tape
Plastic forks
Pen/ Pencil
Science Research Journal
Multimeter
Steps
1. Put 1 cup of distilled water into 6 of
the glasses, and put 1 cup of tap
water into 1 glass.
2. Put 1 tablespoon of each material
into 5 of the glasses filled with
distilled water (leaving the tap water
and one of the glasses of distilled
water alone).
3. Stir the materials into the glasses
until they are dissolved, using
different spoons for each.
4. Using the forks, copper wire,
electrical tape and the multimeter,
create a wire holder to make a gap
that stays constant throughout the
experiment.
Wire Holder
Steps Continued
5. Put the wire holder contraption into the
solution with both wires in the solution.
6. Time for 10 seconds and take the reading.
7. Observe, on the multimeter, how much
electrical resistance there is in ohms and
record your data in your Science Research
Journal.
8. Clean the ends of the wires that you have
put into the solution.
9. Repeat steps 5-8 with each other solution
(including tap water and untouched
distilled water).
10. Average each set of data. Record and graph
the data you collect from each solution.
Sign for Ohms
Observations
This table shows that distilled water is
indeed not conductive.
Materials
Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Average
Distilled
Water
0
0
0
0
Tap Water
13.9
45.6
35.4
31.633
Borax
170
30.5
9.2
69.9
Vinegar
13.9
12.8
16
14.233
Salt
10.6
15.1
12.2
12.633
Magnesium
Sulfate
8.3
7.9
36.2
17.467
Sugar
130
141.9
156.3
142.733
The lower the number, the less resistance, or the
more conductive the material is. Salt is more
conductive than any of these.
Graph
Averages
Distilled Water
Tap Water
Vinegar
Averages
Salt
Magnesium Sulfate
Sugar
0
50
100
150
Conclusion:
Our hypothesis was not supported by the data because
salt had less resistance and allowed electricity to travel
through the distilled water a lot easier.
Works Cited
 “All in a Circuit-What makes a Circuit? Battery Power, How a Battery Works,
Flat!, Home Circuits, Conductors and Insulators.” Net Industries. 2014. Web. 15
Dec. 2014. http://science.jrank.org/kids/pages/232/All-in-Circuit.html
 Marcic, S., V.Pravdic, and C. Veksli. “Proton Conductivity in Borax,
Na2[B4O5(OH)4]-8H2O.” Science Direct. Elsevier Ltd. 1 Jan. 1962. Web. 5 Dec.
2014. http://www.sciencedirect.com/
 “Tap Water.” DavisWiki. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. http://www.daviswiki.org
 “What Is a Circuit?” Sparkfun. SparkFun Electronics. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.
http://learn.sparkfun.com/
 “What is Distilled Water?” Distilled and Ionized Water. 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 15
Dec. 2014. http://www.distilledionizedwater.com
 “What’s the Difference Between AC and DC?” Mit School of Engineering. 17
Sept. 2013. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. http://engineering.mit.edu/ask/what’sdifference-between-ac-and-dc.