Admin Why do pennies turn blue?
A penny is made of copper. The vinegar on the paper towel helps the copper in the penny easily react with the oxygen in the air to form a blue-green colored compound called malachite.
How do you make a rusty penny?
Lay a penny in a bowl to experiment with rapid corrosion. Pour 1/2 tsp. salt on it and then cover the surface of the penny with vinegar or lemon juice. Wait five to 10 minutes and then remove the penny and place it on a paper towel or plate.
Why does a penny change color over time?
Chemical reactions are responsible for the change in a penny’s appearance over time. Kids will love trying their hand at the classic cleaning pennies science experiment to see if they can use a chemical reaction to make pennies shine brightly once again.
What makes the surface of a penny green?
Over time, pennies form a layer of copper oxide on the surface of the penny, which actually protects it from further corruption. After quite some time, or after exposure to an acid, pennies will form copper sulfate, carbonate, and chloride salts, which gives pennies a green color.
How to make a science experiment with pennies?
You need just a few things for this experiment: Create a solution of vinegar and salt using one teaspoon of salt and 1/4 of a cup of vinegar. Mix until the salt is dissolved (it helps if the vinegar is a little warm). Add the pennies. Wait about 5 minutes, then remove the pennies from the solution. Dry the pennies with a paper towel.
Why do pennies get dull when you put them in vinegar?
Pennies get dull over time because the copper in the pennies slowly reacts with air to form copper oxide. This is copper oxide Green patina forms when a shiny copper penny is removed from the salt/vinegar solution. Time lapsed photos of two pennies immersed in a salt/vinegar solution.