Ions and Electrolytes Experiment https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Chem_p053/chemistry/electrolyte-challenge-orange-juice-vs-sports-drink Background Information. Beverage companies make millions each year by touting the power of the electrolytes in their drinks which, according to them, have the ability to replace the electrolytes that you lose during exercise. Electrolytes are atoms that separate into ions, such as sodium and potassium, in solution. Since these ions have the potential to conduct electricity, electrolytes are indispensable for the proper functioning of your cardiovascular and nervous systems. Thus, a science project identifying comparing the amount of electrolytes in drinks could be interesting. https://sciencing.com/science-electrolyte-levels-sports-drinks-7969703.html Purpose: To determine which drinks have the most electrolytes IV: ___________________________________________________________________________________ DV: __________________________________________________________________________________ CV: __________________________________________________________________________________ Procedure: 1. Place the electrolyte solutions in a clean beaker rinsed with deionized water and dried. 2. Turn the dial of your multimeter to measure direct current in the 200 mA range. mA is the unit for milliAmps. 3. Place the conductance sensor (straw with wires) in the tap water. Make sure you submerge it to the bottom of the bowl. Record the current 4. Tap the straw sensor on a paper towel to remove excess water. Rinse the sensor with the distilled water squirt bottle.. 5. Place the sensor in the sports drink and measure the current. Record the current 6. Tap the straw sensor onto the paper towel, and rinse the straw sensor with the squirt bottle of deionized water. 7. Place the sensor in the pedialyte and measure the current. 8. Tap the straw sensor onto the paper towel, and rinse the straw sensor with the squirt bottle of deionized water 9. Place the sensor in the pedialyte and measure the current. 10. Tap the straw sensor onto the paper towel, and rinse the straw sensor with the squirt bottle of deionized water. Water Sports Drink Pedialyte Orange Juice ÷by 9 volts ÷by 9 volts ÷by 9 volts ÷by 9 volts Trial 1 milliAmps Trial 2 milliAmps Trial 3 milliAmps Average Amount of Conductance Conductance is proportional to the amount of electrolytes. Increasing the concentration of electrolytes in solution, increases the solution’s conductance. Conclusion: 1. Make a claim about your hypothesis: (A claim is your opinion. Was your hypothesis right or wrong?) _____________ 2. Write evidence (numbers) from your data table that supports why your claim is right AND why you are not wrong. In other words, summarize the data by discussing the average results for each drink tested.) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Were there any errors that may have affected your results? Are you confident in your data? ___________________ Background Information: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Chem_p053/chemistry/electrolyte-challenge-orange-juice-vs-sports-drink#background "Just do it!" You have probably heard that slogan, and there is no doubt that exercise is a key part of staying healthy. But if you are exercising, you are sweating, and exercising depletes the body's stores of fluids and minerals, which must be replaced. Most experts agree that if you are engaged in light to moderate exercise, drinking a glass or two of water should do the trick. But if you are exercising strenuously, you also need to replenish some of the salts that your body loses through sweat. Electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium, are present in sweat. These salts, or electrolytes, are found in most sports drinks, and also in natural juices like orange juice. According to the article, how can sports drinks or orange juice help after strenuous exercise? ______________________________________________________________________________________________ What are 2 electrolytes found in your sweat? ________________________________________________________ What advantages does a sports drink have over water? Water provides the liquid you need to avoid dehydration, but it does not have electrolytes. An electrolyte is a substance that will dissociate or break into ions in a solution. The ions in the solution give it the capacity to conduct electricity. Why is water a good choice, but maybe not the best choice after strenuous exercise? ______________________________________________________________________________________________ The proper concentration of electrolytes in your blood is essential to your health. Your cardiovascular and nervous systems—to name just two—require electrolytes to function well. Differences in the concentration of sodium and potassium inside and outside of cells allow your nerve and muscle fibers to send electrical impulses (which is how these cells communicate and get your body to react and move). What do electrolytes do in your body? _______________________________________________________________ Your body keeps the concentration of the various electrolytes in its fluids within a narrow range, and this process depends on consuming enough water and electrolytes. The maintenance of electrolytes within this narrow range is due to the body's homeostasis, which controls the absorption, distribution, and excretion of water and its dissolved electrolytes. What does homeostasis do? ______________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ To measure the electrolytes in this science project, you will use a multimeter. A multimeter is an electronic device that measures voltage, current, and resistance. For this project, you will use just the ammeter part of the multimeter. An ammeter measures the amount of electrical current flowing. Once you have the amount of amps in each solution, you will divide by the volts provided from the 9 volt battery to calculate conductance. Once you have the amount of amps in each solution, how will you calculate the conductance of each solution? ________________________________________________________________________________________________ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODbgKXFED5o
