Spirit burner experiment

Spirit Burner Experiment
Aim: To perform an experiment in the labs to determine the heats of combustion of selected alcohols and then to use this information and the gathered data from chemical data sources to determine trends in the longer chain alcohols. The Variables that MUST be controlled throughout the experiment are:
• The height from spirit burner nozzle to the base of the water filled beaker
• Air drafts around the room must be kept to minimum so as to keep the heat on the base of the beaker a constant Temperature.
• Keeping room temperature constant will enable the results to be a little more accurate and reliable
The Variables that MUST be measured and recorded before the experiment are:
• The weight of the beaker before and after the water has been added to it.
• Initial temperature of the water.
• The weight of the spirit burner before and after the alcohol has been added.
Equipment
The equipment needed to perform this experiment is:
• Spirit Burner (Lengthen the wick as to allow for a greater flame produced).
• Beaker
• Tripod (Preferably wide bottoms as to allow the raising of the spirit burner).
• Retort stand
• Boss head clamps
• Thermometer
• Water
• Alcohol
• Accepted figures from chemical data sources
• Estimate heat of combustion on breaking and formation of chemical bonds
• Pen/pencil for recoding results
• Results table.
• Safety glasses
• Matches
• Scales
• Measuring cylinder
Method
In the experiment that follows the dependent variable is the heat energy in the water while the burning of the different types of alcohol is the independent variable. Variables that must be measured but not necessarily controlled during the experiment are:
• Weight of the alcohol and spirit burner before and after they have stopped burning in grams (g).
• Final Temperature of the water in degrees Celsius(C°)
• Mass of the water and beaker in grams (g)
Make sure to read through the whole experiment and be familiar with it before