Metal or Nonmetal Lab Report

Nina Gabbay
Summer Chemistry
Dr. Forman 
Group Lithium: Nina, Nicolette, Makena

Metal or Nonmetal Lab Report

It's no myth, just call us Lith. 

Abstract: 

The purpose of this lab was to closely examine each unknown elements and reach a conclusion of if each element was a metal, nonmetal, or metalloid, according to our many tests. These tests were appearance, conductivity, reactivity, and malleability. We began this lab by labeling our well plate from A-G on the paper which allowed us to not get confused where each element was. After that, we were ready to begin the procedure. The answer of whether each element was a metal, nonmetal, or metalloid was not completely clear; we had to use our knowledge and make our best guess to determine what each element was. Some groups came to different conclusions than other groups which is some of the data for the groups was different. 

Procedure: 

We first made sure we had all the needed materials. We gathered two plastic well plates,  a notebook, a pen, a hammer, copper (II) chloride, and hydrochloric acid. We made sure to clean our well plate because in past experiences our results differed from other groups because of our contaminated well plate which was not cleaned well enough by the previous lab group. Like the other labs, we each had one specific job and worked together at the same time to carefully and sufficiently preform our lab. My job was to take pictures, record data, and use the conductivity apparatus. Nicolette was the team member who collected one of each element. When we had one of each element, we were ready to begin. 

We first wrote down the appearance of each element; we examined the color, luster, and form. From this data, we had a slight understanding of whether each element was a metal, nonmetal, or metalloid, but we still were not sure considering there were still more tests that had to be done. Element A was grey and silver, slightly shiny, flat, and round. Element B was silver, very shiny and metallic, flat, and bendable. Element C was like graphite, a foggy silver color , not shiny, hard, and like a flat rectangle. Element D was like a dull charcoal color, slightly shiny, rocky, and hard. Element E was mostly grey with a bit of silver, very shiny, rocky, and hard. Element F was a copper color, slightly shiny, and in a wire form. Element G was silver, semi-matte, not shiny, and lumpy. 

After recording the appearance of each element, we were ready to use the electrical conductivity apparatus to see if each element is a conductor or a nonconductor. We carefully placed each small element in the two claws, and looked to see if the apparatus light up or not. If the element was a conductor, we knew that it probably is a metal. If the element was a nonconductor, we knew that it probably is a nonmetal. All of the elements were reactive except element E. 

After seeing if each element showed conductivity, we crushed each sample to see if it’s malleable or brittle. The element either flattened without shattering, or shattered into pieces. Elements A, B, C, and F were malleable so we assumed they were metallic. Elements D, E, and G were brittle so we assumed they were nonmetallic. 

After checking the malleability we were ready to test each element’s reactivity. Before starting the lab, we labeled the well plate from A-G on the paper under it. So we placed each element in it’s proper spot. In the first well plate, we added about 18 drops of .1 M copper (II) chloride to each sample. We waited about four minutes and most of the changes were drastic. After these four minutes, we analyzed each sample. Elements A, B, C, and G were all reactive. Element A turned rusty and brown, element B turned foggy, element C became rusty and had a copper odor, and element G turned black. Elements D, E, and F were non-reactive.  

We then got our second well plate and put each element in it’s place according to the labels. We dropped about 18 drops of 0.5 M hydrochloric acid into each proper spot and again, waited about four minutes to see if the samples were reactive. All the samples were non-reactive, except element G which formed bubbles around it. These bubbles indicated that a chemical reaction has occurred. 

After all of these tests, we were ready to determine if each element was a metal, nonmetal, or metalloid. We decided that elements A, B, C, and F are metals, elements D, and G are metalloids, and element E is a nonmetal. 

Results: 

Significance: This lab was significant to me because it made me realize that you need to examine many factors before reaching a final conclusion. Although these many tests may take a long time, in order to reach a “correct” result you must preform every test. Also,  you might think that your conclusion is right; nevertheless, other groups may have gotten different results so working together to figuring out the result is a helpful tool. 

Data Analysis: 

1. 

color: physical 
luster: physical
form: physical 
conductivity: physical 
reactivity: chemical 
hammer: physical 

2. 

Group one: Physical
D, E, F.
Group two: Chemical 
A, B, C, G. 

3. Elements D, E, and F fit into the physical group of elements  because they are non-reactive and have a distinctive appearance. Elements A, B, C, and G fit into the chemical group of elements because they are reactive. 

4. 

Metal: A, B, C, F
Nonmetal: E
Metalloid: D, G 

Data Table:

Elements	Color	Luster	Form	Hammer
A	Grey/silver	Slightly shiny	Flat and round, size of an iphone home button	Does not break: malleable
B	Silver	Very shiny and metallic	Flat and bendable	Does not break: malleable
C	Like graphite, foggy silver.	Foggy, not very shint	Hard and flat rectangle	Does not break: malleable
D	Dull charcoal with small shiny parts	Slightly shiny	Rocky and hard	Does break: brittle
E	Mostly grey with a little silver	Very shiny	Rocky and hard	Does break: brittle
F	Copper color	Slightly shiny	Wire form	Does not break: malleable
G	Silver	Semi-Matte, not shiny.	Lumpy, not smooth	Does break: brittle

Elements	Conductivity	Reactiveness to copper chloride	Reactiveness to hydrochloric acid	Metal, Nonmetal, or Metalloid
A	Yes	Reactive; rusty, dirty, brown	Non-reactive	Metal
B	Yes	Reactive; foggy	Non-reactive	Metal
C	Yes	Reactive; copper odor, rusty	Non-reactive	Metal
D	Yes	Non-reactive	Non-reactive	Metalloid
E	No	Non-reactive	Non-reactive	Nonmetal
F	Yes	Non-reactive	Non-reactive	Metal
G	Yes	Reactive; turned black	Reactive; bubbles formed	Metalloid

Class' aggregated data:

There was aggregated data because each group determined if the element was a metal, nonmetal, or metalloid differently. They were not sure how to really decide what each element was because of the different results from each test. For example, since the element was non-conductive, they just reached the conclusion that the element is a nonmetal. Nevertheless, they did not realize that the element was reactive and had a shiny appearance.