1. EL I will learn to describe how acidic or basic a substance is by using the numbers on the pH scale.

2. Red Cabbage pH Indicator
Make sure you wear safety glasses
Acids & Alkalis can irritate or burn
Your skin and eyes
Materials
Red Cabbage
Large Test Tubes
Small Test Tubes
Test Tube Tongs
Household Solutions
Hydrochloric Acid
Sodium Carbonate
Procedure
Collect some finely sliced red cabbage in a pestle
Add a small spatula of sand and grind the cabbage and sand together
Place this into a large test tube
Add 20ml of distilled water
Using the test tube tongs hold your test tube in the Bunsen burner and gently boil the solution.
Make sure you don’t point the test tube in anybody’s else’s direction; it could spit…
Place in a test rack and allow to cool.
Test your known acid and alkali – hydrochloric acid and sodium carbonate
Note the colour your indicator goes in each of these solutions and record it in a table.
In another rack collect a small test tube for each of the household solutions test tubes.
Add 1 cm of distilled water to each small test tube
Add 5 drops of the household solution.
Take note of the colour
NOW add 5 drops of your red cabbage indicator to the test tube and note the colour.
Record the colour change in your table.

3. Colour in distilled water Colour with Red Cabbage indicator
Results Table pH 2 4 6 8 10 12
Red Cabbage Indicator Color
Red
Purple
Violet
Blue
Blue/Green
Greenish/
Yellow
Solution
Colour in distilled water
Colour with Red Cabbage indicator
Hydrochloric Acid -
Test Solution
Sodium Carbonate -
1. Lemon juice
2. Butter milk
3. Lux flakes
4. Sodium bi-carbonate
5. Dishwasher Pdr.
6. Alka Seltzer
7. Shampoo
8. Vinegar
9. Soda Water
10. Coke
11. Coffee
12. Windex