
Place the piece of metal in a petri dish and pass around the class. They must NOT touch the piece of metal – tape the lid shut if necessary.Use the circuit to show that the metals conduct electricity well.Note the gentle impacts that reveal that the metals have a low density. Compare with a piece of iron of about the same size. Drop each metal from a height of a few centimetres on to a piece of filter paper on the bench.Wearing protective gloves, squeeze the remaining metal in your gloved hand to show its softness.Place any pieces that will not be used back into the oil. Cut the metal with a scalpel (lithium is the hardest to cut).Remove the metal from the oil bottle with tweezers.

Procedure Experiment 1: physical propertiesĭo the following with a small piece of each metal, lithium, sodium and potassium Universal indicator solution (FLAMMABLE) – see CLEAPSS Hazcard and CLEAPSS Recipe Book.2-methylpropan-2-ol, (CH 3) 3COH(l) – see CLEAPSS Hazcard HC084a.Ethanol, C 2H 5OH(l), (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE or, if IDA, HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, HARMFUL) – see CLEAPSS Hazcard HC040a.Lithium, Li(s), sodium, Na(s) and potassium, K(s), (all HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, CORROSIVE) – see CLEAPSS Hazcards HC058a.Pupils to be 2–3 m away and wearing eye protection. Demonstrator to wear goggles or a face shield.Read our standard health & safety guidance.Small pieces of alkali metal for disposal should be allowed to react fully with ethanol (for lithium and sodium) or 2-methylpropan-2-ol (for potassium) until fizzing stops, before washing away with water. Place any apparatus used to cut (and later handle) the metal (filter paper, scalpels etc) in a trough of water after use.Cut each alkali metal separately and return the larger piece to its bottle before starting the next one. Place the small pieces in separate bottles of oil, labelled with the metal name and the hazard symbol. Place the metal on a tile and, using a scalpel or sharp knife, cut pieces of lithium (5 mm cubes), sodium (4 mm cubes) and potassium (3 mm cubes). Using the tweezers, remove a large piece of the alkali metal from the oil. A technician should prepare the pieces of metal and store them under oil.Universal indicator solution (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE).2-methylpropan-2-ol (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, HARMFUL), 150 cm 3 (Note 2).Ethanol (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE) or Industrial denatured alcohol (IDA) (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, HARMFUL), 150 cm 3 (Note 2).Potassium (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, CORROSIVE), 3 mm cubes.Sodium (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, CORROSIVE), 4 mm cubes.Lithium (HIGHLY FLAMMABLE, CORROSIVE), 5 mm cubes.Small bottles of oil containing small pieces of the following metal (Note 1): Glass or Perspex sheets to cover troughs (optional).


