Kate Song

Section 107

Formal Lab Report: Polymers Lab
Abstract
In this experiment, physical and chemical properties of seven different types of
plastic commonly used in consumer goods will be examined. The properties will be used to
infer the reasons certain plastics are used for different consumer goods. Using each
plastics density, a method of separation or sorting will be determined by placing the
plastics in acetone or water. Plastics 1 and 7 sink in water; however, plastic 1 sinks in
CaCl2, while plastic 7 floats in CaCl2. The other five plastics float in water, and all but plastic
3 sink in ethanol. The most common types of plastic are plastics 1, 2, and 5. Only plastics 1,
4, 6, and 7 are affected by thermal energy (heat). Plastics 6 and 7 are affected by acetone.

Introduction
Using ethanol (CH3CH2OH), water (H2O), and aqueous calcium chloride (CaCl2),
seven different types of plastic will be separated by density. The seven types of plastic are:
polyethylene terephthalate (PET/PETE), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polyvinyl
chloride (PVC), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS),
and polylactic acid (PLA). This process will create and image of how plastics are recycled
and separated on a large scale. By producing a procedure for a few pieces of plastic, the
same procedure can be used on a large scale using machinery and specialized equipment.
Because the plastics vary by density, they will be able to be separated by being placed in
different solutions of ethanol, water, and aqueous CaCl2. Plastics 1, 3, 6, and 7 should sink in
water, plastics 1 should sink in calcium chloride, and plastics 2, 4, and 5 should sink in
ethanol. Also, to determine which plastics can be used in heat, each of the plastics will be
placed in hot water; those that did not change shape are most suitable for use in processes
that require the plastics to contain hot materials. Plastics that are affected by acetone
((CH3)2CO), will be determined by placing each strip of plastic in a small amount of acetone.

Methods
After obtaining beakers of ethanol, water, and aqueous calcium chloride, determine
the densities of each by measuring its mass and volume. After finding the densities, obtain
a strip of each of the plastic, and place the plastic strips into the beaker of water. The strips
that float will be removed and placed in ethanol, and the strips that sank will be removed
and placed in aqueous calcium chloride. Further the separation by creating mixtures of the
three solutions and placing the plastic strips in them. Place seven different strips of plastic
in heated water to observe the thermal stability of the plastics. Place each strip of plastic in
a small amount of acetone to observe the changes caused. More detailed lab procedures
are listed in the lab notebook.

Results
The densities of ethanol, water, and calcium chloride are .80584 g/mL, .99626 g/mL,
and 1.30654 g/ml, respectively. When the seven plastics were placed in water, PET/PETE
and PLA sank. PET/PETE sank in calcium chloride, and PVC floated in ethanol. HDPE floats
in a solution of 40. mL water and 10. mL ethanol, while PS sinks in that mixture. LDPE
sinks in a mixture of 20. mL water and 15 mL ethanol, while PP floats in the mixture.
Unlike the hypothesis, plastics 3 and 6 did not sink in water. However, plastic 1 did sink in
calcium chloride, and plastics 2, 4, and 5 did sink in ethanol. Plastics 1, 4, 6, and 7 were
affected by heat, and plastics 6 and 7 were affected by acetone.

Density of mixtures calculations
ETHANOL WATER CALCIUM CHLORIDE
EMPTY BEAKERS (g) 107.848 94.334 105.464
BEAKERS W/ 50.ML
(g)
148.140 144.147 170.791
M2-M1 (g) 148.140-107.848=
40.292
144.147-94.334=
65.327
170.791-105.464=
49.813
V (mL) 50 50 50
D=m/v (g/mL) 40.292/50 = .80584 65.327/50 =
1.30654
49.813/50 = .99626





























Discussion and Conclusions
The results were not the same of the hypothesis because the densities of the
solutions might have been calculated incorrectly. Also, the density of the different plastics
vary, which could result in an incorrect prediction of which plastics will float. However,
with this information, the process of treating plastics in recycling centers is discovered.
Also, the properties of the plastics are used to discover which properties are needed to be
considered while using certain plastics for certain consumer goods. For example, for
storing milk, a plastic affected by heat should not be used because milk is stored while it is
Plastics 1-7 in
H2O
Plastics 1 & 7
in CaCl2
Plastics 2-6 in
ethanol
Plastic 1 Plastics 2,
4-6 in 10.
mL
ethanol 20.
mL H2O
Plastic 3
Plastics 2 &
6 in 10. mL
ethanol 40.
mL H2O
Plastics 4 & 5
in 15 mL
ethanol 20.
mL H2O
sink
sink
sink
sink
sink
sink
Plastic 7
Plastic 5 Plastic 4 Plastic 2 Plastic 6
sink
float

float

float

float

float

float

still hot. Different properties of the plastics can be tested to further gain information about
the uses of different types of plastics. For example, permeability and flammability can also
be tested. The flowchart above shows how the plastics were separated by density, as the
strips of plastic were placed in different solutions.