Making a Silver Mirror?
The process went like this:
- Take a test-tube
- Add 8 drops of glucose
- Add 4 drops of silver nitrate
- Add 4 drops of ammonium nitrate
- Shake for a while
- Add 8 drops of sodium hydroxide
- Cover the top of the test-tube and shake the test-tube slowly
- Make sure the solution contacts the whole interior to ensure an even deposition of the silver layer
I got mine done, and was quite amazed by it. The residual black solution was emptied away.
It's very nice, but I had one question: why? Why do these chemicals react to form silver (I know it came from the silver nitrate). The inclusion of glucose is also very strange.
Can anybody provide a reason or even equations? This looks real complex. I also think that 8 drops and 4 drops mean 2 parts and 1 part respectively, only in drops now because we were using a mini test tube.
Answer:
i would wait for the bang .
It's an oxidation reduction reaction:
the aldehyde of glucose is oxidize to the carboxylic acid
and the silver is reduced to Agº
R-CHO (aq) + 2[Ag(NH3)2]+(aq) + 2OH-(aq) -->
R-COOH(aq) + 2Agº(s) + 4NH3(aq) + 2H2O(l)
Note: the nitrate ion doesn't even take part in the reaction
ref: http://www.uni-regensburg.de/fakultaeten...
Because of the oxidation reaction with these mixtures, Silver is liberated in ionic form, alkali ( NaOH ) helps in this reaction some by - products along with CO2 are liberated.
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