Candle Investigation - How Does the Volume of Oxygen in a Beaker Affect the Burning Time of a Tea-Light Candle

...

30,50

31,05

29,62

30.39

text in red could be possible anomaly

Volume of beaker (cm3)

Observations

1

2

3

1000

The heat became noticeable at around 20 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 21 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 15 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

600

The heat became noticeable at around 15 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 15.5 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 14.8 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

400

The heat became noticeable at around 4.5 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 3 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 4 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

250

The heat became noticeable at around 2 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 3 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 3.5 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

100

The heat became noticeable at around 1 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 1.5 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

The heat became noticeable at around 0.5 seconds, on the top of the beaker there was water vapor forming

Analysis:

I noticed that the beaker fogged up because of the carbon dioxide being produced, then the candle went out. I think this is because there is no oxygen because it has become carbon dioxide therefore the candle has no more oxygen to burn. But there it could also be because the carbon dioxide and some water vapor given off when the candle is burning accumulates at the top, pushing down other gases, like oxygen. This eventually stifles the flame.I also noticed that in my graph that the average time of 600cm3 beaker and the 1000cm3 beaker had only the slightest difference. Other than that the average time advanced as the beaker got bigger.

Conclusion:

My hypothesis was accurate, as the beaker got smaller the burning time of a tea-light candle became less due to the decreasing amount of combustion taking place as the beaker decreased in size. A few seconds into the experiment the burning candle inside the beaker started to produce , water vapor which explains the cloudy atmosphere inside the beaker. Besides the water vapor being produced, carbon dioxide was also being produced, and it accumulates at the top, pushing down the oxygen. This eventually stifles the flame. This is clear because after a matter of time the candle went out. Because when you burn a candle, carbon dioxide is being produced as well as water vapor because of combustion, this is when hydrocarbon, heat and oxygen are put together.

Evaluation:

A possible mistake I have made is I didn’t use a new candle for the experiment, this could affect the results because there might not be enough wax to use up all the oxygen in the beaker. There is also the mistake of not letting all of the carbon dioxide out of the beaker for the next test, this could affect the results because the carbon dioxide is left in the beaker, and that will make the burning time less therefore making my results wrong. Next time I should shake the beaker. A way I could fix this in the method is by adding a step telling you to shake the beaker till all the fog has disappeared from the beaker. Another mistake I might have made is using different candles. Next time I could prevent this mistake by making sure I use the same candle and throughout my whole experiment, and if I have to use another one, I should delete all the data recorded using the old candle and redo everything with the new candle.