How to grow a crystal. Easy to grow salt crystals

Growing crystals. What you need to know!

Growing Crystals- The process is very interesting, but it can be quite lengthy. It is useful to know what processes control its growth; Why do different substances form crystals? various shapes, and some do not form them at all; what needs to be done to make them big and beautiful.
If crystallization proceeds very slowly, you get one big crystal(or single crystal, for example when growing artificial stones), if quickly - then many small ones (or polycrystal, for example metals).

Growing crystals at home produce different ways. For example, cooling a saturated solution. As the temperature decreases (mainly for anhydrous salts), they are said to precipitate. First, tiny crystal nuclei appear in the solution and on the walls of the vessel. When cooling is slow and there are no solid impurities in the solution (say, dust), few nuclei are formed, and they gradually turn into beautiful crystals of regular shape. With rapid cooling, many small crystals appear, almost none of them have correct form, because there are a lot of them growing and they interfere with each other.

Sugar crystal

Growing Crystals can be done in another way - by gradually removing water from a saturated solution. And in this case, the slower the water is removed, the better the result. Leave the vessel with the solution open at room temperature for a long time, covering it with a sheet of paper - the water will evaporate slowly and dust will not get into the solution. The growing crystal can either be suspended in a saturated solution on a thin strong thread, or placed at the bottom of the vessel. In the latter case, the crystal must be periodically turned to the other side. As the water evaporates, fresh solution should be added to the vessel. Even if our initial crystal had an irregular shape, sooner or later it will correct all its defects on its own and take on the shape characteristic of the given substance, for example, it will turn into an octahedron if you use chromium-potassium alum salt, or a rhombus if you use copper sulfate.

Crystals
potassium-aluminum alum

Growing Crystals- the process is entertaining, but requires a careful and careful attitude to your work. Theoretically, the size of the crystal that can be grown at home in this way is unlimited. There are known cases when enthusiasts received crystals of such size that they could only be lifted with the help of their comrades.

But, there are some features of their storage (of course, each salt and substance has its own characteristics). For example, if a crystal of alum is left open in dry air, it will gradually lose the water it contains and turn into an inconspicuous gray powder. To protect it from destruction, you can coat it with colorless varnish. Copper sulfate and table salt are more stable and you can safely work with them.

How to grow a crystal

Potassium iodide crystal
(KI)

Grow a crystal can be made from different substances: for example, from sugar, even stone - artificial cultivation of stones, subject to strict rules on temperature, pressure, humidity and other factors (artificial rubies, amethysts, quartz, citrines, morions).
At home, of course, we won’t be able to do all this, so we’ll do it differently. We will grow salt crystals. We all have regular table salt at home (as you probably know, its chemical name is sodium chloride NaCl). Any other salt will also work (salt from a chemical point of view), for example, you can get beautiful blue crystals from copper sulfate or or any other vitriol (for example, iron sulfate). You can use alum (double metal salts of sulfuric acid), sodium thiosulfate (formerly used for making photographs). For all these salts (and for salt in general) no special conditions are required: they made a solution, dropped an “embryo” into it (all this is described in detail below) and it grows, increasing in height every day.
Yes, you should not paint the solution where your crystal grows, for example with paints or something similar - this will only spoil the solution itself, but it will not color the crystal! The best way to get colored crystals is to choose the right color of salt! But be careful: for example, crystals of yellow blood salt have a red-orange color - and the solution turns out yellow.
Now we can get started!

Growing table salt crystals

Table salt crystals
(NaCl)

Table salt crystals- the growing process does not require any special chemicals. We all have table salt (or table salt) that we take into our food. It can also be called stone - everything is the same. Table salt crystals NaCl They are colorless transparent cubes. Let's begin. Dilute the table salt solution as follows: pour water into a container (for example a glass) and place it in a pan with warm water (no more than 50°C - 60°C). Of course, ideally, if the water does not contain dissolved salts (i.e., distilled), but in our case, you can use tap water. Pour table salt into a glass and leave for 5 minutes, stirring first. During this time, the glass of water will heat up and the salt will dissolve. It is advisable that the water temperature does not drop yet. Then add more salt and stir again. Repeat this step until the salt no longer dissolves and settles to the bottom of the glass. We have a saturated salt solution. Pour it into a clean container of the same volume, getting rid of excess salt at the bottom. Choose any larger crystal of table salt you like and place it at the bottom of a glass with a saturated solution. You can tie the crystal by a thread and hang it so that it does not touch the walls of the glass. Now we need to wait. After just a couple of days, you can notice significant growth for the crystal. Every day it will increase. And if you do the same thing again (prepare a saturated salt solution and drop this crystal into it), then it will grow much faster (remove the crystal and use the already prepared solution, adding water and the required portion of table salt to it). Remember that the solution must be saturated, that is, when preparing the solution, salt should always remain at the bottom of the glass (just in case). For information: approximately 35 g of table salt can dissolve in 100 g of water at a temperature of 20°C. With increasing temperature, the solubility of salt increases.
This is how table salt crystals are grown (or salt crystals, the shape and color of which you prefer)

Growing copper sulfate crystals

Copper sulfate crystals- are grown in the same way as with table salt: first, a saturated salt solution is prepared, then the small crystal of copper sulfate salt you like is dropped into this solution.
Attention! Copper sulfate is a chemically active salt! Therefore, for the experiment to be successful in this case, you need to take distilled water, i.e. containing no other salts dissolved in it. It is also better not to take tap water, since it firstly contains dissolved salts, and secondly it can be highly chlorinated. Impurities (especially hard carbonates) enter into chemical reactions with copper sulfate, which causes the solution to deteriorate greatly
If everything is in order, we will continue. If you decide not to pour the solution from the container in which the small crystal originally grew, then hang the crystal so that it does not touch other crystals remaining at the bottom!

Crystals are grown not only from solutions, but also from molten salts. A striking example yellow opaque sulfur crystals shaped like a rhombus or elongated prisms can serve. But I especially don’t recommend working with sulfur. The gas produced during its evaporation is harmful to health.
The growth of individual crystal faces can be avoided. To do this, these edges must be applied with a solution of Vaseline or fat.

: Copper crystals (Cu)

Liquid crystals- these are substances that behave both as liquids and as solids. Molecules in liquid crystals, on the one hand, are quite mobile, on the other hand, they are arranged regularly, forming something like a crystalline structure (one-dimensional or two-dimensional). Often already with slight heating correct location molecules are disrupted, and the liquid crystal becomes an ordinary liquid. On the contrary, at low enough temperatures they freeze, turning into solids. The regular arrangement of molecules in liquid crystals determines their special optical properties. Their properties can be controlled by exposing them to magnetic or electric field. It is used in LCD displays on watches, calculators, computers and late-model televisions.

Stage 1: Dissolve salt in heated water

Step 2: Stir until completely dissolved (until the salt no longer dissolves)

Stage 3: Tie a thread and lower it into a supersaturated solution

Stage 4: Let the solution cool and wait for small crystals of copper sulfate to appear

Stage 5: Copper sulfate crystal - if you wait longer!

Experiences such as growing a crystal with your own hands will help you feel like a jack of all trades - you will learn how to do beautiful jewelry for the home, sweet candies and help your children learn the basics of chemistry.

Using Crystals

Such an idea how to grow a crystal- this is a great opportunity to explore Chemical properties different substances. If you have children at home, be sure to set them the task of growing a crystal at home - with your help, of course. The children will be interested in watching the progress of work, comprehending chemical science in such a fascinating way.

Some experiments will also help you obtain decorative details for decorating individual compositions - for example, salt crystals can become excellent decorative materials.

However, we must remember that many of the materials used are extremely toxic - they should not be touched with hands or inhaled. Such substances are not suitable for use in Everyday life- they can only be used for experiments.

Growing crystals can be chosen as a hobby, an exciting activity, because in fact the creator never knows what kind of crystal the end result will be.

Types of chemicals

At home, you can grow a crystal from a variety of substances. Some of them require special processing: you can work with them only under certain conditions - at a special temperature, lighting, etc. These include the following materials:

• Mohr's salt;

• blood salt;

• various alums;

• nickel sulfate;

• Ammonium nitrate.

If you are just starting to learn how to grow a crystal at home, it is better to hold off on using them.

However, many working mixtures, such as table salt, can be found in any home. It is recommended that beginners start working with them.

Salt

There is nothing easier than growing salt crystals at home!

You do not need any special accessories or equipment to operate this product. workplace with supernatural conditions.

Copper sulfate

Another simple option. Before growing a crystal from copper sulfate, the substance can be purchased at an amateur gardening store - it is sold as a fertilizer.

From the master classes presented below, you will understand that working with vitriol is as easy as growing a crystal from salt. The only difference is that the mixture is an active saturated salt substance, so it is not advisable to conduct experiments using running or any other water - only distilled water, which you can find in a pharmacy, is suitable.

Sugar

The only substance that can be eaten after the experience! Experiments with sugar are absolutely harmless, so you can safely teach children how to grow a crystal using his example.

The end result should be delicious sugar candies in the form of frosty crystals - an original replacement for cockerels on a stick.

Safety regulations

Despite the fact that novice chemists mainly use usual solutions, like salt or sugar, everyone must follow certain precautions - instructions are presented below.

1. Allocate special dishes for experiments that you will not eat from in the future. Neglecting this point can lead to serious food poisoning.
2. Each substance must be stored in a separate, hermetically sealed package with a mandatory label for the contents on the bottle. Keep substances out of the reach of children and pets, in a cool and dark place.
3. Wear protective clothing and gloves.
4. Working with chemicals that release vapors into the air should only be carried out near powerful hoods.
5. If acid gets on the skin, be sure to sprinkle the area with a weak alkali (water diluted with baking soda) and vice versa - alkaline solutions can be easily neutralized with an acid like citric acid.

Such skills are very useful when working with hazardous chemicals. Over time, you will bring the implementation of these instructions to automaticity and will not have to worry when you want to use dangerous mixtures instead of ordinary salt or soda to grow a crystal.

Salt crystals at home

After the theoretical tips, you can move on to the part where you will learn how to grow a crystal from salt. Prepare unlimited quantities of water - it is better to use distilled water (purified of any additives) so that the substance does not react with any impurities. However, regular running water will do.

In addition, you will need a small saucepan, a glass container (jar, glass), silk thread, and a pack of salt.

• Place a saucepan of water over medium heat. Heat the water, but do not bring it to a boil.

• Start adding salt to the water in small portions, stirring constantly. Each time, add a new handful after the previous one has completely dissolved.

• The preparation of the solution ends when the salt has completely stopped dissolving in water - this means you have prepared a concentrated mixture.

• Pour the concentrated composition into a transparent glass container and leave to settle for about a day.

• Free time is necessary for all the smallest, undissolved particles to settle to the bottom. In the photo you can see how the salt sediment turns out.

• Take a thread or string and tie it around a long thin stick that you can place on the neck of a glass container.

• The length of the string should be less than the height of the vessel, so cut off the excess.

• Dip the thread into the water in a suspended state so that it does not touch the walls of the jar or the sediment at the bottom.

• Leave the experiment in this state for 1-3 weeks.

• Within a couple of days you will notice an increase in small crystals on the thread. Experience in in this case It is interesting precisely by observing how much the crystal grows over a certain period of time.

• Instead of a regular thread, you can drop a large piece of salt suspended on a thread into a glass. In this case, the substance will grow around it.

You can either grow a crystal of a certain shape or an arbitrary one. To control appearance substances, apply a thin layer of fat or Vaseline on one side of the crystal - you will see that there will be no growth here.

If desired, salt can be replaced with other substances - for example, using the same technology it is easy to prepare crystals from soda or copper sulfate.

How to grow a crystal from sugar?

If you have set yourself the goal of learning how to grow a crystal from sugar, you will be pleasantly surprised by the result - beautiful sweet candies that will delight children and pleasantly surprise adults during a tea party. Interesting option Their use is to stir tea. This gives you both a stir stick and a sugar sweetener.

• Prepare a concentrated sugar solution in the same way as in the experiment with salt - the sugar should completely stop dissolving in warm water. After this, pour the hot syrup into a transparent container.

• When the solution is ready, start preparing the base sticks. Tie one stick to the other crosswise so that the first is lowered into the vessel, and the other is held by its neck.

• Dip the stick into the syrup - it should not touch the bottom.

• Leave the structure in a dry and warm place - you will notice within a day how crystals will begin to appear in the liquid.

• In about a week you will have finished sugar skewers. Bon appetit!

If you want your candy to be colored, add a little food coloring to each jar when pouring the hot syrup.

Such sweets can be a pleasant gift for loved ones during the holidays - such sweet sticks can be added to a gift for New Year or Birthday.

To find out how to grow a crystal from copper sulfate, watch the following video.

Take it for yourself and tell your friends!

Read also on our website:

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You can do an unusual experiment on growing crystals from salt with your children. This process is completely safe, since only salt and water are used and no additional reagents are required. Making such a craft with your own hands is quite simple, but you need to take into account several rules.

How to grow a crystal from salt - preparing tools and material

Before you start making crafts, prepare necessary tools and determine a location for the container. The maturation process of the product will take some time, and the dishes cannot be moved or tilted.

• The main component for the formation of a crystal is salt. To obtain a smooth and transparent surface on your craft, use sea salt. It does not have impurities and small debris, like table salt.
• Crystal formation will occur in water. It must also be well cleaned of impurities. It is best to pour distilled water or boil the liquid and filter.
• The dishes for the experiment should not be metal. Since it can oxidize due to the action of the saline solution. The volume of the growing container does not matter and is limited only by the size of the desired crystal.
• Keep the container free of debris and debris. They will prevent salt from growing on the main crystal. Therefore, before the experiment, the dishes should be thoroughly washed and dried.
• As a base, you can use thread, fluffy wire, dried twigs or a large piece of salt.
• Additionally, you will need: a wooden spoon for stirring, a piece of gauze or bandage, paper towels, clear nail polish, a saucepan and a pencil.

How to grow a salt crystal with many facets

The initial stage of the experiment involves boiling the liquid. So help children warm up the liquid so they don't get burned.

• Prepare 120 ml. purified or distilled water. Pour it into a saucepan, place it on the stove and bring to a boil.

• Decide on the type of salt to form the crystal. So, with the help of ordinary table salt, the craft is formed within a few days, sea ​​salt forms a crystal in 1-2 days, and with iodized salt you will have to wait a very long time for the product to grow.

• Prepare a saturated salt solution. You can tell if it’s ready by the grains that couldn’t dissolve in the water. To do this, add salt to warm water and stir the solution thoroughly. First add half a glass of salt. If the water is clear without grains, then add another quarter glass.

• Pour the solution into a dry and clean container. Make sure that the sediment remains in the pan, otherwise it will fall to the bottom of the jar and reduce the growth of the main crystal.

• At this stage, you can add dye to change the color of the crystal. But do not add too much of it, as in large quantities the product will make the craft brittle.

• Prepare the thread for the warp. It is desirable that it be thick with a rough surface. Tie it to a pencil or long skewer. Their size should be larger than the diameter of the container for growing the crystal and with edges for stability.

• Measure the required length of thread and cut it. Do not let it touch the bottom of the container.

• Place the pencil on top of the container. Make sure that the thread does not stick to the walls of the jar.

• Place the container with the saline solution on a flat surface. If you want to grow a crystal with large branches, then keep the liquid with the thread in a warm place. To form a crystal with smooth surfaces, place the container in the cold.

• Now all you have to do is watch the crystal grow.

How to grow one big crystal from salt

To obtain a large crystal with smooth edges after the experiment, it is necessary to use a slightly different technology.

• Prepare a concentrated salt solution as in the previous paragraph. Pour it into a container. But for this method When growing crafts, choose a flat and wide container. So the large crystal will not be able to connect with the rest, smaller parts.

• Leave the container with the solution for 2 days for small crystals to form. Then pour out the water and select the most suitable piece to grow.

• Tie a small crystal onto the fishing line. In this case, it is necessary to use a smooth thread or thin wire (fishing line) so that salt grains cannot attach to it.

• Prepare the saturated salt solution again. But this time, do not bring the water to a boil, but just warm it to room temperature.

• Place the crystal on a fishing line into the prepared container and pour in a thin stream brine. Secure the fishing line to the surface of the container with a pencil. In this case, the crystal should be located in the center of the container.

• Growing a crystal this way will take much longer than the previous option. Therefore, prepare a new salt solution every two weeks and be sure to filter it before pouring it into the container.
• When the crystals grow to the desired size, remove them from the liquid, dry them and be sure to cover them with a thick layer of colorless nail polish. It will prevent the water from evaporating, which will make the craft more durable for a long period.

Conducting an experiment on growing a crystal from salt at home is very simple and safe. But to obtain the desired effect, strictly follow the rules specified in the article and do not forget about finishing the product.

Artificial stones have long gained popularity in jewelry. After all, for a jeweler, the value of a stone is determined not only by its scarcity in nature. Important role plays a number of other characteristics:

• color;
• light refraction;
• strength;
• carat weight;
• size and shape of edges, etc.

The most expensive artificial gemstone is cubic zirconia (synonyms: daimonsquay, jevalite, zirconium cube, shelby). Its price is low - less than $10 per 1 carat (that's 0.2 grams). But it is worth noting that as carats increase, the price increases exponentially. For example, a 10 carat diamond costs 100 times more than a 1 carat diamond.

Artificial crystals of jewelry stones can be grown at home. Most such experiments do not require special training, you don’t need to set up a chemical laboratory or even purchase special reagents.

To gain experience in growing crystals, start small. We will share techniques for growing beautiful crystals from anything you can actually find in your own kitchen. You won’t need any additional equipment at all, because everything you need is right on the shelves. We will also consider the technology of growing artificial rubies at home!

How to grow ruby ​​crystals synthetically?

Growing ruby ​​crystals may even be an option home business. After all, beautiful synthetic stones are already in great demand among buyers, so if the project is successfully implemented, they can bring you a good profit. Synthetically grown stones are used by jewelers and also have wide application in technology.

Ruby crystals can be grown using standard methods by selecting the right salts. But this will not be as effective as in the case of salt or sugar, and the growth process takes much longer. And the quality will be questionable. After all, a natural ruby ​​on the Mohs hardness scale is second only to Diamond, occupying an honorable 9th place. Naturally, when it comes to business, in most cases they use a different method, developed more than 100 years ago in France.

You will need a special apparatus named after the inventor of this method, i.e. the Verneuil apparatus. With its help, you can grow ruby ​​crystals up to 20-30 carats in size in just a few hours.

Although the technology remains approximately the same. Aluminum dioxide salt with an admixture of chromium oxide is placed in the accumulator of an oxygen-hydrogen burner. We melt the mixture, watching how the ruby ​​actually grows “before our eyes.”

Depending on the composition of the salt you choose, you can adjust the color of the crystals, obtaining artificial emeralds, topazes and completely transparent stones.

Working with the device will require your attention and some experience, but in the future you will have the opportunity to grow crystals that fascinate with their beauty, transparency and play of colors. In the future, such masterpieces are well suited for cutting and polishing, and accordingly, they can be used for their intended purpose.

It is worth noting that artificially grown crystals are not precious stones, so even if you decide to engage entrepreneurial activity to grow them, this will not require additional licensing from you.

The design of the device is simple, you can easily make it yourself. But on the Internet there are already enough craftsmen offering drawings of the original installation, as well as its improved versions.

Kit for growing ruby ​​crystals at home

The very principle of ruby ​​production technology is quite simple and is schematically depicted in the figure below:

Understanding the principle of operation, any device no longer seems so complicated. One of the sample drawings of the Verneuil apparatus:

Using this technology, you can also grow other expensive artificial stones, such as “Blue Topaz”, etc.

Growing salt crystals at home

The easiest and most accessible experiment you can do is to create beautiful salt crystals. To do this you will need several items:

1. Regular rock salt.
2. Water. It is important that the water itself contains as few of its own salts as possible, preferably distilled.
3. The container in which the experiment will be carried out (any jar, glass, pan will do).

Pour warm water into the container (its temperature is about 50°C). Add kitchen salt to the water and stir. After dissolving, add again. We repeat the procedure until the salt stops dissolving, settling to the bottom of the vessel. This suggests that saline solution became saturated, which is what we needed. It is important that during the preparation of the solution its temperature remains constant and does not cool down, this way we can create a more saturated solution.

Pour the saturated solution into a clean jar, separating it from the sediment. We select a separate salt crystal, and then place it in a container (you can hang it on a thread). The experiment is completed. After a few days, you will be able to see how your crystal has increased in size.

Growing sugar crystals at home

The technology for producing sugar crystals is similar to the previous method. You can dip a cotton swab into the solution, then sugar crystals will grow on it. If the process of crystal growth has become slower, then the concentration of sugar in the solution has decreased. Add granulated sugar to it again, then the process will resume.

Note: if you add food coloring to the solution, the crystals will become multi-colored.

You can grow sugar crystals on sticks. To do this you will need:

• ready-made sugar syrup, prepared similarly to a saturated saline solution;
• wooden sticks;
• a little granulated sugar;
• food coloring (if you want colorful candies).

Everything happens very simply. Dip a wooden stick in syrup and roll in granulated sugar. The more grains stick, the more beautiful the result will be. Let the sticks dry thoroughly, and then simply move on to the second phase.

Pour the saturated hot sugar syrup into a glass, and place the prepared stick there. If you are preparing multi-colored crystals, then add food coloring to the hot finished syrup.

Make sure that the stick does not touch the walls and bottom, otherwise the result will be ugly. You can secure the stick with a piece of paper, putting it on top. The paper will also serve as a lid for the container, which will not allow any foreign particles to get into your solution.

In about a week you will have beautiful sugar lollipops. They can decorate any tea party, bringing complete delight not only to children, but also to adults!

Growing crystals from copper sulfate at home

Crystals are obtained from copper sulfate interesting shape, while having a saturated Blue colour. It is worth remembering that copper sulfate is a chemically active compound, so crystals from it should not be tasted, and care must be taken when working with the material. For the same reason, only distilled water is suitable in this case. It is important that it is chemically neutral. Be careful and careful when handling copper sulfate.

In this case, the growth of crystals from vitriol occurs virtually according to the same scheme as in previous cases.

When placing the main crystal to be grown in a solution, you need to make sure that it does not come into contact with the walls of the container. And do not forget to monitor the saturation of the solution.

If you place your crystal at the bottom of the vessel, then you should make sure that it does not touch other crystals. In this case, they will grow together, and instead of one beautiful large sample, you will end up with a mass of indistinct shape.

Helpful advice! You can independently adjust the size of the faces of your crystal. If you want some of them to grow more slowly, you can lubricate them with Vaseline or grease. And to preserve the sky-blue beauty, you can treat the edges with transparent varnish.

There are 3 weight categories of diamonds:

1. Small. Weight 0.29 carats
2. Average. Weight from 0.3 to 0.99 carats
3. Large. Diamonds weighing more than 1 carat.

Popular auctions accept stones weighing over 6 carats. Stones weighing more than 25 carats are assigned proper names. For example: “Winston” diamond (62.05 carats) or “De Beers” (234.5 carats), etc.

How to grow crystals at home and make money from it? We will tell you how to make money from this interesting business a little later in our article. First, we will touch on the issue of growing crystals and what you need to know for this.

How to grow a crystal?

What is a crystal? And everyone immediately saw a beautiful polyhedron, all iridescent and sparkling. There are two ways to grow crystals at home: by cooling the solution and evaporating the water. The method of cooling a solution is that when cooled, the dissolution of salts in the solution slows down and they precipitate. If the solution is cooled quickly, then many small crystals are obtained; if it is cooled slowly, then several large ones are obtained. The second method is the gradual removal of water from a saturated solution by simple evaporation of the liquid.

Growing crystals is quite an interesting process. Cases are described on the Internet when enthusiasts grew crystals of such a size that they invited their friends to lift or move them. When working with growing crystals, you should remember your own safety and do not neglect some rules:

You cannot use unknown reagents for experiments;

You cannot eat at the same time during the experiment;

You cannot keep reagents for growing crystals in an open and accessible place, especially if you have small children and animals;

It is advisable to use rubber gloves during the experiment; if a solution of salts or acid gets on your skin or eyes, you should rinse everything with running water, and if necessary, consult a doctor.

Such instruction will help you be somewhat more attentive to your health and the health of your family members. Also, to grow crystals you will need patience, a place where the solutions will be placed (preferably away from the battery) and a desire to do something that will make everyone gasp.

Crystal growing technology

Now let's see what we can grow? Let's start with something simple, with sugar.

How to grow a crystal from sugar.

Such crystals are often served along with expensive types of tea in cafes and restaurants. It looks simple, sugar crystals, with different flavors and color palettes on a stick. The cost of such sticks starts from 100 rubles, depending on the size. They are served for stirring tea, very beautiful. It will be interesting to grow such crystals with children at home, because after the crystals grow they can be dissolved like a lollipop.

For 5 crystal sugar sticks you will need:

Two glasses of water;

Five glasses of sugar;

Five wooden chopsticks (you can use Chinese chopsticks or toothpicks);

Pot;

Food coloring for color;

Take a quarter glass of water, two tablespoons of granulated sugar and make syrup by heating it over a fire. Take a stick, dip it in syrup and roll in granulated sugar. Let the grains of sugar stick well, leave the stick overnight. In the morning, take a pan, pour two glasses of water and two and a half glasses of sugar into it and put it all on the stove. When all the sugar has dissolved, pour in the remaining sugar (2.5 cups) and mix. And all this is cooked over low heat until completely dissolved, then leave it for 20 minutes to cool. You can add food coloring during the cooking period. Next, the syrup is poured into glasses and sugar sticks are dropped into them; we secure them with clothespins so that they do not touch the walls of the glass and its bottom. Cover the tops of the glasses with film to prevent dust from getting in. After seven days we can see beautiful sugar crystal sticks. Delicious!

Crystals from sodium chloride or table salt.

This is the second ingredient after sugar that is found in every kitchen. The only thing is, do not take “Extra” salt or iodized salt, you will waste your time. Crystals cannot be obtained from this salt. You can dissolve the salt at room temperature; you can heat the solution a little to speed up the dissolution, but do not boil, be sure to filter it. You can also use food coloring or watercolors to add color to the solution. Gouache cannot be used; crystal growth will stop.

So, take a glass of water, dissolve salt in it in small portions until the dissolution stops. Pour the solution into a glass jar and leave for a day. After a day, at the bottom, you will notice small crystals, select one of them with tweezers and tie it to a silk thread. This is how you get the so-called “seed” for growing a crystal.

Next, strain the solution again and remove all the small crystals from the bottom. Dip the “seed” into the saline solution and begin to observe the growth of our crystal. On average, it will take two to three weeks to grow a small crystal. By the way, any object covered with frozen grains of salt can also act as a “seed”.

Crystals from copper sulfate.

This chemical reagent produces excellent crystals. Copper sulfate or copper sulfate can be purchased at any gardening store. Take 70-100 grams of copper sulfate (enough for the first time), a glass jar, and warm water. Pour vitriol into the jar and begin to slowly pour water until our ingredient stops dissolving. We filter the solution to remove any impurities and place it on the window. After a day, several crystals will fall out at the bottom, take the largest ones, and filter the solution again.

The crystal was tied to a thread and hung, the main thing being that it did not touch the walls or bottom of the jar. You can put the crystal on the bottom and turn it over for the first time and then tie it on. As a result, bluish-blue crystals grow, the shape is a parallelogram.

Crystals made from table salt and copper sulfate are very fragile. After you remove them from the solution, dry them with a towel and coat them with colorless varnish. After this, you can freely pick them up and use them for souvenirs and crafts.

What else can crystals be made from?

For example, calcium chloride. This is known to everyone chemical drug also sold at gardening stores. The crystals have the shape of a parallelepiped; you can also add dye. The next ingredient for growing crystals is iron sulfate. It is also found in gardening stores. With the addition of sulfuric acid, changing its concentration, crystals from iron sulfate can be obtained in various colors and shapes.

You can also use nickel sulfate, copper carbonate, aluminum-ammonium sulfate, aluminum-potassium sulfate, chromium-potassium sulfate, iron-ammonium sulfate, manganese sulfate (react only in the presence of an industrial hood or outdoors), zinc sulfate, sodium sulfate, sodium iodide. Almost all of these crystals quickly erode and turn into powder, so they are not very suitable for crafts.

But crystals from ammonium dihydrogen phosphate are a completely different matter. They are very similar to rock crystal and if you cover them with varnish, then for a long time will please the eye. Dihydrogen phosphate itself is sold in fertilizer stores and is not at all expensive.

Crystals from potassium sulfate also grow in very interesting shapes. The shape resembles a large-cut diamond. Potassium sulfate is also sold at gardening stores, called potassium sulfate. The crystal does not need to be coated with varnish; it is stored well.

Very beautiful crystals are obtained from red blood salt and sulfur. Not bad crystals are obtained from citric acid, however, they do not last long.

Well, this is probably the entire list of substances that we know for making crystals.

What can be done from grown crystals. How can you make money growing crystals?

This is the question of why this article was written. The first thing that comes to mind is the recruitment of a young chemist. Not just a set, but a set with a disk attached detailed instructions on growing crystals. The main thing in this matter is not to overprice. Since many ingredients are sold in gardening stores and do not cost much money.

Secondly, these are sets for adults. They’re called “wishing jars,” you grow crystals and make a wish. It will grow up, which means it will come true; if it grows up small, it means it will not be the way you wanted it to be. Well, if it doesn’t grow at all, then the answer is immediately known.

Third. Sugar sticks for cafe and restaurant owners. They will be a pleasant surprise for customers and will diversify children's leisure time.

Fourth. This is the making of various souvenirs; when growing crystals, you can use various beads and rings. Gluing crystals together will be especially beautiful if the colors of the crystals are slightly different. different shades. You can combine them with semi-precious stones, decorate them with various cold porcelain products, etc.

And finally, fifth. This is growing large crystals for custom gifts.