You notice that when water boils over it causes of the gas burner to turn bright orange. How would you explain the appearance of a color in the flame?
2007-09-26 08:37:39 · 5 answers · asked by student00 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
When the electrons in the element are excited, they jump to higher energy levels. As the electrons fall back down, and leave the excited state, energy is re-emitted, the wavelength of which refers to the discrete lines of the emission spectrum.
This just happens to be the energy that is released when Na+ is heated in a flame which corresponds to orange light.
ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emission_spectrum
2007-09-26 08:48:26 · answer #1 · answered by Dr Dave P 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The easiest explanation of this has to do with something calleed a "flame test" in chemistry. This is a test that is sometimes used to tell what ions might be present in an unknown sample of something. The idea is that, when ions (especially of metals) are heated, the electrons in those ions absorb the energy from the added heat and get "excited" or "boosted" to a higher energy level than they were in previously (which is called the "ground state"). Well, when they are in those higher energy levels, the ion is unstable. It would rather be in its ground state, so those boosted electrons fall back to thier ground state (to the orbitals they were in to begin with). When they fall back, they give up that extra energy that they had absorbed as visible light of a given color. Each ion gives off a characteristic wavelength of light, and that is why each has a different color. For sodium ions (from the salt in the water), the energy is given off as visible light in the wavelength that corresponds to orange in the visible light spectrum. Thus, that is why the flame turns bright orange when the salt water hits it....it is from the excitation of those sodium ions from the table salt in the water (NaCl...which, when dissolved in water becomes Na+ and Cl- ions). If that doesn't make sense..email me at john_r820@yahoo.com and I will try to explain further.
2007-09-26 08:49:15 · answer #2 · answered by john 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Flame Test
Sodium give you yellow flame.
Potassium give you purple flame.
The color is due to the electron transition of the s electron in the outermost shell.
2007-09-26 08:44:17 · answer #3 · answered by Carborane 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Look up "flame test for sodium" - this is the colour sodium ions give to a flame.
2007-09-26 08:44:12 · answer #4 · answered by Gervald F 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Nacl Color
2016-10-15 05:59:50 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋