What makes an oil runny?

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Chemistry Investigation

Title: - What makes an oil runny?

Plan

I am going to investigate what properties make oil runny and also the viscosity of oils.

There are a number of variables that could influence my test some of which include,    

  • The temperature
  • Length of slope
  • Gradient of slope
  • Amount of hydrocarbons present
  • Amount of oil on the slide

I am going to test the amount of hydrocarbons in the oil. I am testing this because the other four variables would be to hard to control, such as the temperature and if I were to test the gradient I would have to measure the exact degree and have a reliable stand or propping device  to hold it. Therefore the amount of hydrocarbons is the simplest because I just use a different oil each time.

 I predict that the lower number of hydrocarbons present, the faster the oil will reach the bottom of the slide. I think this because if you think of a tray at an angle, and then it had a layer of sand over the whole of the tray (but the sand doesn’t move) then a bag of single marbles were tipped onto the top of the tray and let to roll down. Some would get stuck in the sand but most would just roll freely to the bottom. Then picture another bag of marbles the same size but this time each marble was super glued to another marble so that they were in pairs. Then this bag was tipped at the top of the tray, (with fresh sand and free of single marbles) the marbles wouldn’t roll as freely as they have a double bond and there is more friction present on the two marbles. This time, more would get stuck but most would still reach the bottom. Then if I carried on doing this for a lot more of the marbles up to about ten then in the end no marbles would roll and they would all get stuck due to the amount of friction.

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To make my test a fair one I will keep all the variables that are above the same such as keeping the slide at a constant height and doing the test in the same part of the room to keep the temperature the same. Also I will use the same dropper, keeping the same aperture and therefore having the same size drop each time.

For my apparatus I will need:

  • Several slides
  • A time keeping device
  • Different types of hydrocarbon oils
  • A dropper/pipette
  • Something to hold the slide secure
  • Paper towels (for mopping up)

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