How to make a crystal from copper. How to make a salt crystal and grow it at home. How to quickly grow a crystal from table salt and water

02.03.2020

At home, you can grow crystals of a wide variety of shapes, sizes and even colors. If you use salt or sugar as a material for crystallization, then you will have to use dyes to obtain a colored crystal. But growing a crystal from copper sulfate at home allows you to immediately get a crystal of a beautiful blue color.

The essence of the crystallization of copper sulfate is no different from the crystallization of sugar or salt. Copper sulphate is widely used in agriculture, is used as a fertilizer and is sold in garden supply stores.

To grow a crystal from copper sulphate at home, you will need:

Copper vitriol;
Water. It is better to use distilled water (you can buy it at an auto supply store) or use regular boiled water.
glass jar or jar;
Thread.
Stick or regular pencil;
Colorless nail polish.
Rubber gloves.

Instructions on how to grow a crystal from copper sulfate at home

Attention! When working with copper sulphate, it is better to wear gloves!

On the initial stage prepare a supersaturated solution. Pour about 300 ml of water into a jar or glass. We begin to add copper sulfate. Pour a tablespoon, stir. The vitriol will dissolve very quickly. Add another spoonful and stir again. We do this until the salt begins to settle at the bottom. The solution is supersaturated. Place the jar in a pot of water and put the pot on the fire. It is necessary to achieve complete dissolution of vitriol in water.
While the solution is cooling, prepare the "seed". The seed can be a large crystal of copper sulphate or a bead or button. We fix the seed on the thread.
The seed on the thread can be placed inside the jar with the solution. In this case, the seed should not touch the walls of the vessel or its bottom. Therefore, we tie the thread to a stick or pencil in the middle. Lay the pencil across the neck of the jar.
We leave the structure alone and wait until crystals begin to form. Copper sulfate crystals grow somewhat faster than salt or sugar crystals. When the crystal reaches the desired size, we remove it from the solution, cut the thread.
In order to give the crystal an even more attractive look, cover it with colorless nail polish.

Things to remember:

The more saturated the solution, the faster crystallization will proceed. After a day or two, you can carefully remove the crystal from the solution, and replace the solution with a new, more saturated one.

Keep the crystal away from small children. After all, copper sulfate crystals are so beautiful that children will definitely want to taste them.

And with your own hands you can grow crystals from sugar, copper sulfate and colored salt

To do this, you need to dissolve copper sulfate in hot water, cool the solution, dip a thread with a seed (or just a thread) into it and wait a few hours. Crystals of copper sulphate up to a centimeter in size will grow on a thread, which will form large growths, like mussels.

If you want to grow a large crystal, you will have to do something completely different. First you need to prepare a saturated salt solution, in our case, copper sulfate. A saturated solution is a solution that is in equilibrium with an undissolved substance (solid, liquid or gaseous). Therefore, a saturated solution contains the maximum amount of a substance that can dissolve at a given temperature. To prepare a saturated solution of copper sulfate, first calculate how much salt you need to take.

The solubility of copper sulfate at 20°C is 35.6 g in 100 g of water. For example, if you took 200 ml of water, then you need 35.6 200/100 = 71.2 g CuSO4 5H2O. But what about other temperatures? With increasing temperature, the solubility of copper sulfate first increases, then almost ceases to depend on temperature. Therefore, in order to exclude the influence of temperature fluctuations in the laboratory, weighing accuracy and other factors, take the amount of copper sulfate, one and a half times more than the calculated one. For example, in our case it is 71.2 1.5 = 107 g. Fill the salt with water and leave for about a day, stirring from time to time. When the dissolution of copper sulphate stops and equilibrium occurs, filter the solution through loose filter paper or cotton wool. Excess salt will remain on the filter - it can be dried again and reused. Pour the resulting solution into a glass or jar. Now select a large and well-formed crystal and tie it to a thread. The crystal will serve as a seed. Tie the other end of the thread to a pencil or glass rod and dip the seed into the solution. Cover the glass with gauze - to protect from dust. All that remains is to wait. After a few days, the growth of the crystal will be visible visually, in a week a crystal 1 cm long can grow, in three to five weeks - 5 cm. If a precipitate of small crystals forms in the glass, pour the solution into a clean glass and transfer our crystal into it. During our experiment, this procedure had to be done several times. Over time, small crystals also form on the thread, which begin to grow. It is difficult to avoid this, you can only raise the crystal higher so that a smaller piece of thread is in contact with the solution. During the experiment, the idea arose to use a thin copper wire or kapron thread instead of a cotton thread, but the seed grew much worse on them. The experiment lasts from several weeks to one or two months.

Unfortunately, in the air, copper sulfate crystals lose some of their water, and their weathering (destruction) occurs. To keep copper sulphate crystals longer, place them in a tightly sealed jar and store in a cool place.

If the seed dissolved in the initial stage of the experiment, it means that the solution was not saturated. There may be several reasons. First, the initial solution could not have been in contact with the crystals for long enough and did not have time to become saturated. Secondly, the solubility of copper sulfate increases with temperature. If you prepare a saturated solution and drop a crystal into it, and then the room gets warmer, the solubility will increase, and the seed may dissolve. In any case, add a few more tablespoons of vitriol to the solution, stir it, and let stand (and then filter again).

Growing crystals requires work and a lot of patience, but the result can surprise you very pleasantly.

Which can be done with children. Start exploring the magical world of crystals right now!

At home, you can grow crystals of almost all salts, but it is better to start with technologically simple materials. These include table salt, sugar, borax and blue vitriol. It produces the largest and most beautiful blue crystals. Growing them is easy, at the same time it is a very interesting and educational process. Our article will help you grow a copper sulfate crystal at home step by step.

What you need

blue vitriol

You can buy it at any gardening and hardware store. It is sold in packs of 100 grams. The blue color of household vitriol indicates a low degree of purification. Crystals from it are obtained lighter.

Copper sulphate of low purity

Copper sulfate can also be purchased at specialized laboratories. From such vitriol, a dark blue crystal will grow, similar to a precious stone.

Capacity for working solution

Glassware is used, as other materials enter into chemical reaction with a solution. A half-liter jar with a wide neck is perfect. After the experience, it is strictly forbidden to use it for food purposes.

Basis for crystallization

As a basis, a thin woolen thread of blue or black color is used. An adult crystal is translucent, and the base should not spoil the result. An alternative may be thin, pre-sanded with sandpaper.

Water

If you use blue vitriol from a hardware store in the experiment, the water will need to be boiled. For the experiment with purified vitriol, distilled water is used.

Means of protection

The vitriol is toxic, and it is impossible to work with it without gloves. It is advisable for children of primary school age to wear a medical mask.

Pencil or stick to secure the base

On it you will hang a thread on which the crystal will grow.

Clear nail polish

Disposable plastic spoon

Important! Work is carried out only under the supervision of adults. At the end of the process, hands must be thoroughly washed under running water. You can not taste the crystal or powder. In case of contact with copper sulfate in the eyes, they should be washed with plenty of water.

How to make a crystal: work steps

Working solution of high concentration

In water heated to about 80 degrees, add copper sulfate in a spoon. The liquid has to be constantly stirred so that the powder is completely dissolved. It is important to keep the water temperature constant, and a water or sand bath can help. If copper sulfate has ceased to dissolve and settles at the bottom, then the solution is ready. On average, 200 grams of the substance will go to 300 ml of water.

seed crystal

We rearrange the container with the hot solution on the cooling surface and wait until the liquid has cooled to room temperature. This is necessary to start the precipitation of small crystals. Having filtered the solution through gauze, we will consider the crystals and choose the largest and correct in shape. We will use it later as a seed.

Crystal Growth Medium

The decanted solution is reheated in a water bath, again bringing it to a supersaturated state. If the resulting precipitate has not dissolved, repeat the cleaning. We tie the seed and place it in the jar so that the thread is located vertically, without touching the bottom and walls of the container. To do this, we tie the thread to the pencil, and fix the pencil itself on the neck, for example, with plasticine. you'll find detailed instructions and scientific description of this experiment.

crystal growth

We cover the dishes with a cloth napkin and leave for seven days in a stationary state. Static design - required condition to start crystal formation. After a week, you can see that the thread is overgrown with small crystals ranging in size from a millimeter, and the seed has increased by about 1 cm. The larger the crystal, the faster it grows. When the result is satisfactory, dry the crystal and coat it with varnish - it will protect the product from white deposits during storage and give it extra shine.

From this experience, children will learn how and why crystals grow and will love making scientific discoveries.

The manufacturing process is no less attractive than the gift itself. Try to do it together with the children - there will be no limit to delight.

Read also:

Making a beautiful crystal

Here are the main steps.

Training

The tool can be purchased at any agricultural store. The use of this substance is found on the farm, with the help of it they fight pests. Using vitriol at home, you need to remember that it is toxic. When working with the substance, hands must be protected with gloves, and the respiratory tract with a bandage. It is best to wash your hands as often as possible.

Would need:

when carrying out the procedure, prepare the water, it should not be from the water supply, since it has a high content of chlorine, this substance will react with vitriol and only worsen the quality of the crystals. In extreme cases, boiled water can be used;
copper sulfate;
wire;
a thin thread or hair, the crystals become transparent when grown, so the thread should not be visible;

cultivation

For manufacturing, two methods are used. First for those who doesn't like to wait. It is made in 7 days, and the result will be many crystals attached to each other. Another method is long, but the result will surprise you, the resulting piece will be solid and like a gem.

Fast way

You will need a bank of 0.5 liters, you need to add 200 grams of copper sulfate to it, the mixture is poured with a glass of water. The jar should stand on a sand stove, when heated, the mixture should be constantly stirred, the grains of the powder should be completely dissolved;

After the mixture has become homogeneous, the dishes are removed from the bath and placed on a cold surface. The mixture should come to room temperature. The copper sulfate crystal will serve as a seed for the solution, it should be even and large;

Nothing should touch the walls of the glass. If everything does not dissolve in the liquid, then it's okay. When cooled, the solution gives off salt, in turn, it remains on the thread. Most of the vitriol settles at the bottom, since contact with the cold surface occurs fastest there. To make it more convenient to lower the thread into a glass, you can fix it on a pencil, and put it on the surface.

The thread with crystals must be removed from the solution.

The procedure with heating the mixture in a sand bath is repeated, after the precipitate has dissolved, the bath is turned off, the dishes must be covered with a lid and wait for the solution to cool.

The thread is placed in the solution and fixed so that the substance does not touch the bottom and walls of the glass. Leave the container overnight, in the morning formations of an interesting shape will be found in the dishes;

Crystal shape can be changed replacing the thread with a wire, because it can be bent into any shape, heart, square. The wire will serve as a good frame. If it is necessary to make sure that on some faces they stop growing, they must be greased;

Second method

To get a large crystal, it will take more time and the choice of seed must be approached responsibly, the larger and smoother the formation, the more beautiful the product will turn out.

It will take 200 ml of water and 100 grams of vitriol.

Vitriol is mixed with water in a jar or glass and left for a day. The substance must be stirred so that it dissolves. Next, the solution is filtered, and what remains at the bottom can be used again to prepare the solution;

The solution that was obtained is poured into another container;

For seeding, you need to tie a “pebble” to a thread, the other end is best fixed on a stick and placed horizontally on a glass. Then you need to lower it vertically, the dishes should be covered with a cloth to prevent dust from entering;

After a few days, the product will grow, increase every day;

It may be difficult to make a crystal, but to avoid this, you should:

If you want to get a single pebble, then the solution should be poured into a clean container and a large crystal should be placed there;
Crystals can also form on the thread, and to prevent this from happening, you need to raise the main one higher so that the thread does not come into contact with water;
Instead of a woolen thread, you can use nylon or thin wire, but if you change the base, the formation will grow longer;
Important follow temperature regime, otherwise when elevated temperatures the crystal can dissolve, if this happens, then you should add a couple of tablespoons of copper to the solution and let it brew for 6 hours, while stirring the mixture. The solution is drained so that there is no residue in it, then the experiment is repeated;

The product loses moisture under the influence of air and after a while collapses, so you need to store the substance in a cool place in a tight container.

One of the most mysterious and most beautiful creations of nature are crystals. They attract with their unusual shape and amaze with their strength. Have you ever wondered how to grow a crystal at home without resorting to complex technologies and high costs? After all, this is a real experiment that can be carried out without harm to yourself and the environment. This is an interesting, exciting adventure, in the final of which you will receive a crystal as a reward.

There are several ways to grow an exquisite crystal:

using salt;
sugar crystals;
growing a crystal from copper sulphate.

The first two methods are completely safe, so they can be used without resorting to the use of protective equipment. However, in all cases, you must be attentive and patient, and then you will receive your own unique crystal, which will become a symbol of your efforts and labors.

So, for starters, we will learn how to grow a crystal from salt at home and without much effort. To conduct this unusual experiment, you will need quite a common set:

water (plain and drinking);
pot;
2 glass jars;
1 pack of salt (regular, table);
silk thread (as well as wire or lace).

And now we begin our magical actions that will lead us to the treasured crystal.

Choose the largest grain from a pack of salt - it will serve as a seed or embryo for the future crystal.

And now we stock up on patience, wait and watch how our crystal grows. It will happen within 2-3 weeks. To accelerate the growth of the crystal, it is necessary to periodically prepare a new saturated salt solution and lower the crystal into it.

We grow a crystal from copper sulphate: magic in a glass

Consider another incredible way to grow a crystal at home. This time we will get something like a ruby (if you look at the shape) and a topaz (if you look at the color). And the basis for creating this crystal will be copper sulfate, which you can buy at a farm store.

Remember that a substance such as copper sulfate is used in horticulture to protect plants from fungi and other diseases, so it is toxic. Take precautions when purchasing and preparing crystal growth solution. Check the integrity of the package containing copper sulfate. Shake it and examine it carefully, make sure that the powder is bright blue in color and has a loose, crumbly texture that does not clump. When working with copper sulphate, use non-food containers and protect your hands with rubber gloves. If the substance comes into contact with your skin, wash it with plenty of water.

And now we begin to grow the crystal. To do this, you will need 300 ml of water and 300 g of copper sulfate, 2 jars, a deep bowl, hot water for a water bath and for preparing a solution.

We put the jar in a water bath (in a bowl of hot water) and add 100 grams of copper sulfate. Pour 100 ml of hot water.

We wait 10 minutes, and then pour the liquid into the second jar.

At the bottom of the jar, small blue crystals should form, which we will use to seed our future crystalline masterpiece.

We select the crystals of the correct shape, pull them out with tweezers and dry them.

We prepare a concentrated solution of copper sulfate: gradually dissolve 100 grams in 50-100 ml of hot distilled or drinking water, stirring gradually. If for the first time you didn’t get a crystal, dissolve the vitriol until small crystals settle at the bottom. Now we pour the solution into the second container and leave it overnight. The next day, seed crystals should form at the bottom of the dish.

We make another solution in which we will place our seed. Dissolve 100 g of vitriol in 100 ml of hot water. Pour the solution and let it cool.

We tie the seed to the thread and place it in the solution so that it does not touch the bottom and walls of the dish. We tie the second end of the thread to a pencil and lay it on top of the jar. We cover the container with paper and leave it in a room with a constant temperature.

We follow the growth of the crystal. In a week it will look something like this. He grew by almost 2 cm.

It is time to change the solution so that the crystal grows faster. We prepare the solution according to the recipe from point 2, cool it and place the crystal there.