Reactivity of Metals
Introduction:
Metals have common properties among this class of matter, such as high luster
(shiny), ability to conduct heat and electricity well. Chemically, they have similarities
but also differences.
Purpose:
The student will investigate reactivity of metals in aqueous solutions of various
ionic compounds.
Materials / Equipment:
Copper turnings
Zinc metal
Magnesium metal
Aluminum foil
0.20 M AgNO3 aqueous solution
0.20 M Mg(NO3)2 aqueous solution
0.20 M Cu(NO3)2 aqueous solution
0.20 M Zn(NO3)2 aqueous solution
3.00 M HCl (hydrochloric acid)
microplate
spatula
Safety:
 Always wear safety glasses and apron in the chemistry lab.
 Never eat or drink in the chemistry lab.
 Avoid contact of all chemicals with eyes and all body tissues.
 Always dispose waste chemicals according to approved practices.
Procedure:
Part A:
1. Use the microplate shown above. Each well should be used for one reaction.
2. Use distilled water to wash each cell carefully.
3. Put each nitrate solution into three separate wells in a column. Each well should
be half-filled. Make sure the contents of each well can be easily tracked. Devise
a table if needed.
4. Use the spatula to carefully transfer small amount of metal into each well. Metals
are copper, zinc and magnesium. Each metal is mixed separately with each of the
four nitrate aqueous solutions. Note: do not put too much metal into the wells.
5. Observe and record.
6. Dispose the waste according to instruction by the teacher.
7. Wash the microplate thoroughly first with tap water, then rinse 3 times with
distilled water.
Part B:
8. Put each nitrate solution in separate 4 wells. Each well should be half-filled.
9. Put in small pieces of aluminum foil in each well.
10. Observe and record.
11. In separate 4 wells, put in small amount of copper, zinc, magnesium, and
aluminum separately.
12. Put half-well full of 3.00 M HCl solution on top of the metals.
13. Observe and record.
14. Dispose the contents according to instruction by the teacher.
15. Wash the microplate thoroughly first with tap water, then rinse 3 times with
distilled water.
Pre-lab questions:
1. When salts of ionic compounds dissolve in water, what actually happened on the
ionic level?
2. Why is water a great solvent for many salts?
3. Draw the data tables that will enable easy tracking of reactions.
Data Analysis:
 Carefully record all observations.
 Attempt to find trends in the data in terms of reactivity.
Post-lab Questions:
1. Why is the instruction given at the beginning of the lab to wash the microplate
with distilled water?
2. Did all mixtures produce signs of chemical reactions? Summarize your
observations in a tabulated, easy to understand format.
3. What is the key difference among those nitrate aqueous solutions?
4. Which metal reacted with most of the aqueous solutions? Which metal reacted
with least? Note: do not include aluminum in the discussion.
5. Can the reactivity of metals (copper, zinc and magnesium) be ranked? Explain
your answer.