metal sodium experiment

“Sodium and water” experiment

Pieces of sodium rapidly run on water

Can we make met­al run across wa­ter? Let’s find out!

Safe­ty pre­cau­tions

Only work in pro­tec­tive gloves, glass­es and a mask. Ob­serve safe­ty rules when work­ing with flame and flammable ob­jects, and when work­ing with ac­tive met­als such as lithi­um, sodi­um, potas­si­um, ru­bid­i­um and ce­sium.

Reagents and equip­ment:

• metal­lic sodi­um;
• 1% sol. phe­nolph­thalein4
• 1% sol. in­di­go carmine;
• 1% sol. thy­mol blue;
• glass bowls

Step-by-step in­struc­tions

Pour wa­ter into the glass bowls, then add the in­di­ca­tor so­lu­tions – phe­nolph­thalein to the first, in­di­go carmine to the sec­ond and thy­mol blue to the third. Add a piece of metal­lic sodi­um. Watch the change of col­or in all three bowls.

Pro­cess­es de­scrip­tion

Sodi­um is a very re­ac­tive met­al , and can force hy­dro­gen out of wa­ter. When wa­ter makes con­tact with sodi­um the re­ac­tion of­ten takes place with an ex­plo­sion .

If you throw a small piece of sodi­um into a bowl of wa­ter con­tain­ing an acid base in­di­ca­tor, you’ll see an im­pres­sive ef­fect: the sodi­um starts to speed across the sur­face, and it also dis­solves, form­ing a bead which can even ig­nite, turn­ing into a fiery ball!

Why does sodi­um run

When it re­acts with wa­ter, hy­dro­gen is re­leased, which makes the sodi­um start “run­ning”.

Why does sodi­um dis­solve and ig­nite

The re­ac­tion of sodi­um with wa­ter takes place with an enor­mous re­lease of heat, which is suf­fi­cient to melt met­al and turn it into a bead, which is ac­tu­al­ly a ball of dis­solved met­al. Ad­di­tion­al­ly, the en­er­gy of this re­ac­tion is suf­fi­cient to ig­nite the hy­dro­gen re­leased!

Why does the col­or in the bowls change

Phe­nolph­thalein, in­di­go carmine and thy­mol blue are acid base in­di­ca­tors, i.e. sub­stances that change their col­or when the hy­dro­gen in­dex of the medi­um changes. When sodi­um re­acts with wa­ter , sodi­um hy­drox­ide is formed, which is a very strong base, and the medi­um be­comes al­ka­line. In­di­ca­tors change their col­or in the fol­low­ing way: phe­nolph­thalein from col­or­less to crim­son, in­di­go carmine from blue to green, and thy­mol blue from yel­low to blue:

2Na + 2H₂O = 2NaOH + H₂

Dozens of experiments you can do at home

One of the most exciting and ambitious home-chemistry educational projects The Royal Society of Chemistry

• Science, Tech, Math ›
• Chemistry ›
• Projects & Experiments ›

Sodium in Water Chemistry Demonstration

Learn How to Perform This Experiment Safely

Ajhalls / Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

• Projects & Experiments
• Chemical Laws
• Periodic Table
• Scientific Method
• Biochemistry
• Physical Chemistry
• Medical Chemistry
• Chemistry In Everyday Life
• Famous Chemists
• Activities for Kids
• Abbreviations & Acronyms
• Weather & Climate
• Ph.D., Biomedical Sciences, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
• B.A., Physics and Mathematics, Hastings College

The sodium in water chemistry demonstration illustrates the reactivity of an alkali metal with water. This is a memorable demonstration that creates a spectacular reaction for students. Still, it can be performed safely.

What to Expect

A small piece of sodium metal will be placed in a bowl of water. If a phenolphthalein indicator has been added to the water, the sodium will leave a pink trail behind it as the metal sputters and reacts. The reaction is:

2 Na + 2 H 2 O → 2 Na + + 2 OH - + H 2 (g)

The reaction is especially vigorous when warm water is used. The reaction may spray out molten sodium metal and the hydrogen gas may ignite, so use proper safety precautions when conducting this demonstration.

Safety Precautions

• Never use a piece of sodium larger than a pea or pencil eraser .
• Wear safety goggles.
• Perform the experiment behind a clear safety barrier or at a distance from the students.
• Sodium metal stored under mineral oil
• A 250 mL beaker, filled halfway with water
• Phenolphthalein (optional)
• Add a few drops of phenolphthalein indicator to the water in the beaker. (Optional)
• You may wish to place the beaker on an overhead projector or video screen, which will give you a way to show the reaction to students from a distance.
• While wearing gloves, use a dry spatula to remove a very small chunk (0.1 cm 3 ) of sodium metal from the piece stored in the oil. Return the unused sodium to the oil and seal the container. You can use tongs or tweezers to dry the small piece of metal on a paper towel. You may wish to allow the students to examine the cut surface of the sodium. Instruct the students that they can look at the sample but must not touch the sodium metal.
• Drop the piece of sodium into the water. Immediately stand back. As water dissociates into H + and OH - , hydrogen gas will be evolved. The increasing concentration of OH - ions in the solution will raise its pH and cause the liquid to turn pink.
• After the sodium has reacted completely, you can flush it with water and rinse it down the drain. Continue to wear eye protection when disposing of the reaction, just in case a bit of unreacted sodium remained.

Tips and Warnings

Sometimes this reaction is performed using a small piece of potassium metal instead of sodium. Potassium is even more reactive than sodium, so if you make the substitution, use a very small piece of potassium metal and expect a potentially explosive reaction between the potassium and water. Use extreme caution.

• How to Do the Color Change Chameleon Chemistry Demonstration
• Interesting High School Chemistry Demonstrations
• Alchemy Experiment: Turning Water Into Liquid Gold
• Water - Wine - Milk - Beer Chemistry Demonstration
• Create a Magic Genie in a Bottle Effect (Chemistry)
• Halloween Reaction or Old Nassau Reaction
• Color Change Chemical Volcano Demonstration
• Make Potassium Chlorate from Bleach and Salt Substitute
• The Blue Bottle Chemistry Demonstration
• 10 Cool Chemistry Experiments
• Create an Endothermic Reaction
• 10 Fun Chemistry Demonstrations and Experiments
• Briggs-Rauscher Oscillating Color Change Reaction
• Color Change Chemistry Experiments
• 10 Cool Chemistry Demonstrations for Educators
• Sulfuric Acid and Sugar Demonstration

How To : Do a sodium and water experiment

In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to do a sodium and water experiment. Sodium is a silver metal that is very reactive. When exposed oxygen in the air, an outer coding of sodium oxide will form. Simply drop a piece of sodium into a cup of water. When dropped in water, sodium reacts to form sodium hydroxide and hydrogen gas. The sodium will constant move around in the water. Sometimes the heated reaction will cause the nitrogen gas to ignite. Under the right condition, it may even cause an explosion. This video will benefit those viewers who are interested in science and experimenting and would like to learn a new experiment to try.

Just updated your iPhone to iOS 18? You'll find a ton of hot new features for some of your most-used Apple apps. Dive in and see for yourself:

• Control Center
• Home Screen
• Lock Screen

Be the First to Comment

Share your thoughts, make slime without borax : 5 easy recipes for gooey homemade ooze, how to : build a simple paper bridge as a science experiment, how to : make a crazy foam explosion science experiment, how to : make a chemiluminescent reaction with home chemicals, how to : make elephant toothpaste with detergent, hydrogen peroxide & potassium iodide, how to : make this amazing 9-layer density tower from things found in your kitchen, how to : the best investigatory projects in science: 16 fun & easy ideas to kickstart your project, how to : make a monster dry ice bubble, how to : turn milk into strong natural glue with baking soda and vinegar, how to : extract dna from a strawberry with basic kitchen items, news : vortex cannon demolishes house, how to : make your own homemade glow sticks, how to : calculate electrical power, how to : use baby powder to reveal latent fingerprints, classic chemistry : colorize colorless liquids with "black" magic, aka the iodine clock reaction, how to : make a paper plate speaker that actually works for under $1, how to : determine the empirical and molecular formulas for a compound in chemistry, how to : make fake blood from iron, chloride, and potassium, how to : make a permanent, reusable glow stick, how to : make diy nitrogen triiodide from ammonia & water purification iodine crystals.

• All Features
• All Hot Posts