Steel wool in copper sulphate solution?i am doing an assignment atm and i need to hypothesis what will happen when i add steel wool to copper sulphate solutioni need a decent answer. a hypothesis, like what will happenfor eg. the steel wool will react with the copper sulphate and it reacts, (what happens)blah blah blah happens and it becomes copper somthing idk please help
The copper sulfate in water dissolve to form these ions (charged particles): CuSO4 (s) → Cu +2 (aq) + SO4 -2 (aq) You could then hypothesize that the copper ions (Cu+2) will react with the iron in the steel wool. This does happen. Now for the result with accompanying reactions. What follows is classified as metal displacement. The copper displaces iron. Copper ions (blue in colour) have the ability to draw electrons off the iron (Fe) in the steel wool Cu +2 + Fe → Cu (s) + Fe +2 (aq) In other words, you will observe (brownish) copper (Cu (s)) metal forming on the steel wool. The blue copper solution (Cu +2) will gradually change to green as Fe +2 ions form. Later the solution becomes brownish as Fe +2 (ferrous ion) becomes oxidized into the Fe +3 ion (ferric ion). Fe +2 (aq) → Fe +3 (aq)
