Oxidation: How Can It Be Proved?
 
Henderson, Connie                  Eli Whitney Elem. School
                                   1-312-542-3560
                              

OBJECTIVES

1. Students will learn basics facts of oxidation.
2. Students will participate in some phenomenological activities illustrating 
   oxidation. 
3. Students will be able to understand oxidation reduction reaction.   

Materials needed
   1 tall glass                                cotton ball
   1/2 ball of steel wool(composed of iron)    glass container
   a small bowl filled with water              matches
   paper towels
   vinegar
   bleach
   potassium hydroxide 
   dextrose
   methylene blue                             

Recommended Strategies
                                                                    
     Run water over the steel wool until it is thoroughly soaked, then squeeze the 
water from it. Pull out the steel wool so that it is fluffy instead of firmly packed, 
then put it in the glass.  It should occupy about half of the space.  Invert the 
glass, making sure the steel wool does not slip from the top half of of the inverted 
glass.  Stand the glass in the bowl.  Fill the bowl halfway with water.  No water 
should enter the glass. Let the glass stand undisturbed in the bowl for 48 hours. How 
much of the glass is filled with the water now? Remove the steel wool and dry it off 
with the paper towels.  What comes off on the towels?    

     Put two small steel wool balls of equal size in two glasses. Cover the balls 
with equal amounts of water. To one glass add a tablespoon of vinegar. To the other 
glass add a tablespoon of vinegar and one of bleach.  After half an hour, the steel 
wool in the glass without bleach is unchanged, while the ball in the glass with the 
bleach is rusted. 

     Weigh 8 grams of potassium hydroxide and 10 grams of dextrose. Put these two 
things into a 300 mL glass container with a few drops of methylene blue.  Shake the 
container vigorously and note blue solution. Wait a few minutes and note the solution 
turns clear.  Ask questions about the chemical reaction. 
 
     Put a cotton ball in a container and use matches to ignite the cotton ball. What 
happened?  Was there a chemical reaction? If so, explain.