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Metals with acid sim

Each tube holds 10 cm³ of 2.0 mol/dm³ hydrochloric acid.

Metals with acid · covers the GCSE, IGCSE, O-Level topic

Live, not a video. Anyone can unlock 2 figures free; a free account unlocks up to 5 and keeps them in your dashboard.

What the sim shows

Each tube holds 10 cm³ of 2.0 mol/dm³ hydrochloric acid. A metal above hydrogen in the reactivity series gives a salt and hydrogen: the metal is oxidised and the hydrogen ions are reduced, so the chloride ions are only spectators. The higher the metal, the faster it fizzes. Iron(II) chloride makes the solution pale green. Copper is below hydrogen, so it gives no gas at all. The chart is a race to 10 cm³ of hydrogen: the sooner a metal gets there, the faster it reacts (a bigger piece only gives more gas in the end, which says nothing about speed). The masses are 0.024 g of magnesium ribbon and 0.10 g each of the others; how fast each one reacts is this figure's estimate of a school result. The clock runs 20 times faster than real time.

  • Bubbles of hydrogen
  • Iron(II) chloride: pale green

Use it in your lessons

  • Try it here: anyone can unlock 2 figures free, and a free account unlocks up to 5. Runs on a laptop, a Chromebook or a phone; nothing to install.
  • Present it and share student links with the teacher plan, from US$5 a month, billed yearly.
  • Put it on your own website or LMS for US$9, paid once, or every sim from US$29 a month.

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