Activity: Colonial- Style Ink
Materials Needed:
- 2 iron capsules (iron 50 mg as ferrous sulfate, do not use time release)
- 2 tea bags
- 1 small paper cup for hot liquids
- 1/4 cup hot water
- 1 pair safety scissors
- 1 drinking straw
- paper towels
- an old T-Shirt or apron
The ink you are making is permanent and will stain clothes - be careful. ( For an alternate version of Colonial Ink, use real cranberries, crush and strain the juice or use cranberry juice concentrate.) See also, How To: Make A Colonial-Style Pen from a Feather.
What you get to do!
Step 1 Dump the contents of the 2 iron capsules into a small paper cup, and add 2 tea bags. Have an adult add 1 inch of boiling water. (Be careful not to burn yourself!) This mixture should sit and cool for 5 minutes.
Step
2 While the ink is cooling, you can make you "quill" pen from the
drinking straw. With adult supervision, use a pair of scissors to cut the end at
an angle. The cut at the end must be sharp and tapered, as in the diagram.
Or, make a quill pen from a feather.
Step 3 After the ink has cooled, carefully remove the tea bags from the cup and throw them in the garbage can. CAUTION: The tea bags may still be hot and the liquid can stain your clothing.
Step 4 Now practice some writing with your pen. Start by copying this quote:
If your pen does not work well, wash it off and re-cut it. When your pen works well, use it to write down what you did in your lab notebook.
Clean Up!
Carefully pour any leftover ink into the sink and flush it down with water. This is permanent ink and will stain clothing. Avoid spilling it on clothes. Cups and leftover tea bags go into the garbage cans or other solid waste containers.
http://www.acs.org/ncw/experiment3.html