Lab Procedure- Elemental Hydrogen
1. Title
Introduce what the experiment is about as clearly and concisely as possible. The title
should be around one sentence.
Example:
To form the element hydrogen
2. Introduction
Write a paragraph that gives your readers the necessary background to understand
your experiment. This includes explaining scientific theories, processes, and other
related information.
Example:
hydrogen is the lightest element in the periodic table. Hydrogen is the most
abundant chemical substance in the universe. It has the chemical symbol H and
atomic number of 1. It is a colourless and odorless gas and is the most abundant
element in the universe. It is flammable in the presence of oxygen.
3. Aim
The aim identifies what is going to be tests in the experiment. It should be around 2
sentences.
What is the purpose of doing this experiment? What do you hope to learn from the
results?
Example:
The aim of this experiment is to form hydrogen and to test for its presence using the
pop test.
4. Hypothesis
The hypothesis is a prediction of the outcome of the experiment based on the
background information. It should be one or two sentences.
What do you expect to observe? Explain why you expect this behaviour and the
theories that were used in this expectation:
Example:
It is predicted that when magnesium reacts with an acid it will form hydrogen gas.
This is will be indicated by the presence of an audible pop when the gas is exposed to
a flame.
5. Risk Assessment
Identify hazards associated with the experiment and provide a method to prevent or
minimize the risks. A hazard is something that can cause harm, the risk is the
likelihood that harm will occur from the hazard and precautions are methods to help
minimise the likelihood of harm.
Example:
Hazard and associated
harm
Heating test tubes with
Bunsen burner
Risk
Precautions
Medium
Tie long hair back,
Use safety flame
6. Materials
List all equipment needed and the amount
Specify amount and concentration of chemicals
List any safety equipment required.
7. Method
List all the steps required to perform the experiment in chronological order.
Include instructions for set up, waste disposal and clean up.
Should be clear enough for someone else to repeat the experiment and get similar
results.
Give explicit instructions for how observations and results should be recorded.
8. Results
Record results collected during the experiment.
Reactants
Hydrochloric acid and Magnesium strip
Observations
9. Discussion
Interpretation of your results.
Answer the practical review questions on page 238 of your text book
10. Conclusion
Was the aim achieved? Was the hypothesis correct?