Single Replacement Lab
Purpose: What happens to aluminum foil when placed in copper sulfate solution?
Materials:
beaker or glass jar
aluminum foil
copper (II) sulfate solution
stirring rod
measuring spoon
Caution: Copper (II) sulfate solution is poisonous. Handle it with care and wash your
hands thoroughly after lab.
Procedure:
1. Fill in the “before reaction” portion of your observations BEFORE beginning.
2. Obtain copper (II) sulfate from your teacher.
3. Add 1.25 ml copper (II) sulfate, and 200 ml water to the beaker, use measuring spoon to
measure.
4. Observe foil and solution.
5. Place foil in solution. Leave in for 5-10 minutes and stir.
6. Observe the foil and solution.
Observations/ Data:
Observation
Foil Color
Solution Color
Before Reaction
After Reaction
The below equation represents the reaction you have observed. The blanks on the
reactant side represent coefficients that need to be filled in to balance the equation.
Balance the equation
__Al+__CuSO4
> Al2(SO4)3+3Cu
1. What are the reactants in this reaction?
2. What are the products in this reaction?
3. What element caused the CuSO4 solution to change color?
4. What element caused the foil to change color?
5. What type of chemical reaction is this? How do you know?
6. What happened to the foil when it was placed in the solution?
7. What is a catalyst? What was the catalyst in this reaction?