Candle Observation Essay

Based on this experiment, the rate at which a birthday candle burns is 0.1368 grams per minute. Observation showed the decrease in mass through the melting of the wax. The evidence was shown in the beaker with cold water, in which the melted was collected. The data collected supported the observation in the decrease of mass. As the time the candle was burned increased, the mass of the candle decreased. The graph demonstrates this relationship through the negative slope. Using the graph, the time at which the candle would completely burn off would be eight minutes, because that is the x-intercept in this graph. The equation of the graph can also be used to calculate the mass of the candle after singing “Happy Birthday”. In order to calculate

the mass, the time of the song, which is on average 22 seconds (11/30 of a minute), is multiplied by the slope and added to 1.1082. The answer then needs to be subtracted from the initial mass of the birthday candle, which is 1.16 grams. The mass of the candle by the end of the “Happy Birthday” song is 1.11 grams.
In this experiment, the decrease of mass resulted from a physical change. When the candle was heated, the wax was not turned into a new particle, because after the melted wax solidified in the cold water, it kept its original properties. The wax in the candle and the wax in the beaker shared the same properties such as blue color, smooth texture, and remained a solid. Also, the particle diagram demonstrates that no new particles or bonds were formed in the process of the melting of wax, but instead the spacing between the particles changed. During the process of burning the candle, the solid wax liquefies, meaning that the spacing in the particles change, but when the hot wax solidifies, the same particles are still in the system, but the spacing between the particles in changed. Since the data collected and the graph both demonstrate the decrease of mass in the candle, the particle diagram also shows that some particles exited the system. Even after the particles exited the system, there was still the same total number of particles in the diagram. The less particles are in the system of a particle diagram, the less the mass of the object. Even though the mass of the candle decreased, the particles in the candle were not destroyed. The particle diagram above shows the Law of Conservation of Mass, because the particles that were no longer in the candle itself, were represented by the particles outside the system. The number of total particles did not change. The Law of Conservation of Mass in this experiment can also be supported by observation. In this lab, the wax was dripping from the candle and was collected in a beaker. This evidence supports that the particles were not destroyed, because the wax which dripped from the candle was still visible in the beaker.
The data from this experiment cannot be described as accurate, because there was no data provided to which the results were being compared to.

In order for a set of data to be accurate, there needs to be another set of data from prior researchers that was concluded to be the only correct rate at which a birthday candle burns. Also, the data from this experiment cannot be identified as being precise, because if this experiment were to be repeated, due to the experimental error, the results would not be exact from the first time the experiment was performed. The first most important step of the procedure for data collection is the time that was recorded after lighting the candle. The time was important, because time was a factor in determining the answer to the experimental question, which was the rate at which the candle burns. Recording the time accurately is significant to the final results, because if the time was not recorded in this experiment, it would be impossible to answer the experimental question. The second step that contributed to data collection was the massing of the candle. If it wasn’t done properly, the rate of the burning candle would have been slightly off. These two steps were the most important in gathering the data, because the time and the mass were both needed in order to calculate the

rate.
One of the experimental errors in this lab was the inconsistency of the angle at which the candle was held while it was lit. For instance, the birthday candle burns at a faster rate when it is tilted at a 90° angle compared to when it is placed upright. Although in this experiment the candle was held at an approximately 90° angle, it was not always exactly the same each time. If the candle was held at a less than 90° angle, the change of mass would increase, causing the rate at which the candle burns to increase as well. This would affect the slope, and the rate, of the line on the graph. In order to fix this problem, a candle holder could be used at which the candle would be placed at exactly the same angle each time. The second error in this experiment was the exact time for which the candle was lit. When the candle was blown off, the timer might have been stopped several seconds late. If the timer was stopped slightly too late every time, it would increase the change in time, therefore decreasing the rate. The data would have been more precise if the timer was stopped at the exact moment the candle was blown off. An automatic candle snuffer that was connected to the timer could be used to solve this experimental error. By correcting these errors, the experiment can be more precise.