Flame Test Lab
Name ____________________________ Period ____ Date ___________
Objective: To recognize that the color of light emitted by a heated element is unique and can be translated into energy that is
coming from the movement of electrons within the atoms.
Background: The natural position of an electron in an energy level is called its ground state. When an atom absorbs
energy, it is in its excited state. This happens when electrons are heated in a flame or electrocuted. These excited
electrons jump to higher energy levels. Eventually, the excited electrons fall back down to their ground state, releasing
their extra energy as a packet of light called a photon.
The color of light corresponds to a specific amount of energy. This color varies from one substance to another,
because the location of electrons within each substance is different. Just as we have unique fingerprints, each element has
a unique color of light (amount of energy) that it releases. As a result, the colors we observe when a substance is heated
may be used to identify the element.
Pre-lab Questions:
1. Fill in the blanks with the terms “excited, ground, or light.”
When an atom absorbs energy, the electrons move from their _____________ state to their _______________
state. Then, the electrons release energy, as they fall back down from their _____________ state to their
______________ state. This release of energy is in the form of _____________.
2. What is a photon?
Data: Hint: Each color will only be used once in the data table below.
Unknown Number ________
Post-lab Questions:
1. In this lab, you tested six different metal salts. Each metal salt contained one metal atom and one chlorine atom.
How do you know that the color observed for each salt came from exciting the metal atom and not the chlorine atom?
2. Identify your unknown metal atom in the space below. CHLORIDE should not be part of your answer!
Unknown Number
Identification
Metal Salt
Circle the Color of the Flame that You Observed:
Calcium Chloride
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
Copper Chloride
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
Lithium Chloride
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
Sodium Chloride
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
Barium Chloride
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
Strontium Chloride
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
Unknown
Yellow/Green Yellow Blue-green Orange Red Crimson (Darker Red)
A photon is a t iny particle t hat comprises waves of elect romagnetic radiat ion. As shown by
Maxwell, photons are just elect ric fields tr aveling through spac e. Photons have no char ge, no
resti ng mass, and travel at the speed of li ght.
