Chapter 1: Chemical Reactions and Equations

Activity 1.1
Figure 1.1

Burning of a magnesium ribbon in air and collection of magnesium

oxide in a watch-glass

1) What do you observe?

Answer : 1) Magnesium ribbon burns spontaneously and white ash deposits on a

watch glass.

2Mg + O2 2MgO

2)Burn the magnesium ribbon keeping it away as far as possible from your eyes.

Answer: Because fumes causes irritation of eyes.

3)Clean a magnesium ribbon about 3-4 cm long by rubbing it with sandpaper.

Answer: Because to remove the layer of magnesium oxide.

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Activity 1.2
1)Take lead nitrate solution in a test tube.

2)Add potassium iodide solution to this.

3)What do you observe?

Answer :A yellow precipitate of lead iodide is formed .It is an example for double
displacement and also precipitate reaction.

Pb(NO3)2 + 2KI PbI2 + 2KNO3

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Lead nitrate and potassium iodide both are colorless .They react with each other to
form a yellow ppt of lead iodide.

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Activity 1.3

1) Take a few zinc granules in a conical flask or a test tube.

2) Add dilute hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid to this
Do you observe anything happening around the zinc granules?

Answer: Air bubbles comes out from the granules. Zinc reacts with HCl or H2SO4 and forms
hydrogen.
Acids are corrosive and harmful for skin .Avoid touching them with bare skin.

Zn + 2HCl ZnCl2 + H2 + heat

Zn + 2H2SO4 ZnSO4 + H2 + heat

Touch the conical flask or test tube. Is there any change in its temperature?
Answer: Conical flask becomes warm because it is an exothermic reaction , so energy
is released in the form of heat.
This is an example for displacement reaction.

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Activity 1.4
1)Take a small amount of calcium oxide or quick lime in a beaker.
2) Slowly add water to this.

Touch the beaker as shown in Fig. 1.3.

Do you feel any change in temperature

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Answer: Quick lime reacts with water to form slaked lime .This process is exothermic
and releases heat.

Beaker feel hot after adding water.

CaO + H2O Ca(OH)2 + heat

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Activity 1.5

1)Take about 2 g ferrous sulphate crystals in a dry boiling tube.

2)Heat the boiling tube over the flame of a burner or spirit lamp as shown in Fig.

Note the colour of the ferrous sulphate crystals.

Answer:It is green in colour

Observe the colour of the crystals after heating.

Answer:It changes to brown due to formation of ferric oxide .This is an example for
decomposition reaction.

2FeSO4 Fe2O3 + SO2 + SO3

Do not point the mouth of boiling tube at neighbors or yourself

Answer: Because both SO2 and SO3 are toxic gases which is harmful to our health.

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How do you identify the gas evolved on heating ?
Answer: By its characteristic smell. It gives a foul smell.
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Activity 1.6
1)Take about 2 g lead nitrate powder in a boiling tube.
2)Hold the boiling tube with a pair of tongs and heat it over a flame, as shown in Fig.

What do you observe? Note down the change, if any.

Answer:A yellow precipitate of lead oxide which is yellow in colour is formed with the
evolution of brown nitrogen dioxide gas which has an irritating smell and brown in
colour.
It is an example for decomposition reaction.

2Pb(NO3)2 2PbO + 4NO2 + O2

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Activity 1.7
1)Take a plastic mug. Drill two holes at its base and fit rubber stoppers in these holes.
Insert carbon electrodes in these rubber stoppers as shown in Fig.
2)Connect these electrodes to a 6 volt battery.
3)Fill the mug with water such that the electrodes are immersed. Add a few drops of dilute
sulphuric acid to the water.
4)Take two test tubes filled with water and invert them over the two carbon electrodes
5)Switch on the current and leave the apparatus undisturbed for some time.

Answer: Electricity decomposes water into its component.Hydrogen atoms in

water receive an electron from cathode electrode and form hydrogen
gas.Similarly oxygen atoms in water lose electron at the anode and forms
oxygen gas.
Why sulphuric acid is added to the water?
Answer:Sulphuric acid acts as electrolyte which increase the electrical conductivity of water.

Is the volume of the gas collected the same in both the test tubes?
Gas collected at cathode is twice that of gas collected at anode.
Test these gases one by one by bringing a burning candle close to the mouth of the test
tube?
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What happens in each case?

When we bring the flame to the gas collected at cathode it burns immediately
because oxygen is a combustible gas.
When we bring the flame to the gas collected at anode makes a pop sound because it
is hydrogen gas.

2H2O 2H2 +O2

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Activity 1.8
1)Take about 2 g silver chloride in a china dish.
a) What is its colour before exposed to sunlight?
ANSWER: White

place this china dish in sunlight for sometime

b) what is the colour of silver chloride after sometime?
ANSWER: Colour of silver chloride turns grey from white.

2AgCl sunlight 2Ag + Cl2

Silver chloride in presence of light decomposes to solid silver and chlorine gas.
Elemental silver is grey in colour , so a grey colour appears.
This is an example of decomposition reaction.
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Activity 1.9
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Take three iron nails and clean them by rubbing with sand paper.
Take two test tubes marked as (A) and (B). In each test tube, take about 10ml copper
sulphate solution.
Tie two iron nails with a thread and immerse them carefully in the copper sulphate solution
in test tube B for about 20 minutes [Fig. 1.8 (a)]. Keep one iron nail aside for comparison.
After 20 minutes, take out the iron nails from the copper sulphate solution.
Compare the intensity of the blue colour of copper sulphate solutions in test tubes (A) and
(B)

OBSERVATION: Iron nail displaces copper from copper sulphate solution.As a result ,
solution fades in colour.
This displacement reaction results in the formation of elemental copper.Elemental
copper deposits on the iron nail and impart a brown colour to the nail.

CuSO4 + Fe FeSO4 + Cu
COLOUR:
Copper sulphate solution colour: Blue

Ferrous sulphate solution colour: green

Iron nail colour : Brown …

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Activity 1.10
Take about 3 mL of sodium sulphate solution in a test tube.
◼ In another test tube, take about 3 mL of barium chloride solution.
◼ Mix the two solutions
What do you observe?
Answer: A white precipitate of barium sulphate sinks at the bottom.

Na2SO4 + BaCl2 BaSO4 + 2NaCl

It is also example for : This is an example for precipitation and double
displacement reaction.
Sodium sulphate and barium chloride undergo double displacement and form
barium sulphate and sodium chloride. A ppt of barium sulphate is formed.

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