"Experiment with a Candle" without a Candle

• Dusan Krnel ^[1] ; Sasa A. Glazar ^[1]
  1. [1] University of Ljubljana

     University of Ljubljana

     Eslovenia

     
• Localización: Journal of chemical education, ISSN 0021-9584, Vol. 78, Nº 7, 2001, pág. 914
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • In the popular experiment in which a burning candle in an airtight cylinder purports to demonstrate the percentage of oxygen in the air, the main reason for the change in volume is the expansion and contraction of gases because of warming up or cooling down, not because the oxygen is used for burning. To support this explanation we have devised two experiments, the results of which are similar to the classic experiment with a candle, although a candle is not used. The experiments demonstrate that burning cannot be the only reason for the reduction of volume of gases in the cylinder.