SimpleChemist-238 - 18-12-2014 at 18:28
I got this idea from a friend, it is not my own. I only added to it.
A friend of mine came up with a very interesting idea for a challenge for the amateur chemist. I great way to think about using resources and planning
reactions.
To start the challenge, go to your local dollar store. Use only $4.24 to purchase 4 items from the location and use the things you purchased to do as
manny reactions as possible. Some examples of chemicals sold at a dollar sore are,
Isopropyl Alcohol 50%
Hydrogen peroxide 3%
Sodium hydroxide
Sulfuric acid
Sodium Hypochlorite
Sugar
Methanol
Polyethylene glycol
Rules,
No other reagents are to be used except in drying liquids
All Equipment such as glass ware or heat sources can be used and they are not included in the 4 items
Proof of reactions must be presented
No illegal products or reagents obviously
Zyklon-A - 18-12-2014 at 18:43
I dont get the point of this pole, but the idea is cool.
Why the $4.24 limit, seems too low?
Several thing I can think of just from the list you gave (and some things I know can be found.)
NaOCl + H2O2 --> O2
NaOCl + NaCl + H2SO4 --> Cl2 (might take two seperate reations)
Sucrose + yeast --> ethanol (considered illegal?)
Methanol + mouth --> dead
[Edited on 19-12-2014 by Zyklon-A]
SimpleChemist-238 - 18-12-2014 at 18:48
The alcohol is legal in the states as long as the distillery is not in font of a park and you are not giving out free samples.
PS I may have accidentally made it a pole.
Tdep - 18-12-2014 at 18:49
This is just a challenge to mock other countries isn't it 
I could probably buy those 8 chemicals for under $80, if I could find them all that is
Still. Always love a challenge
Zephyr - 18-12-2014 at 19:06
you could get some transition metals, copper for example from wiring , then use the sulfuric acid to make the sulfate, make the hydroxide with the
sodium hydroxide, and decompose into the oxide. Then get salt, react it with sulfuric acid and get a HCl solution, add the copper oxide to achieve
copper chloride, then slowly add sodium hydroxide solution without stirring to make copper oxychloride. In addition Sodium hydroxide can be reacted
with sulfuric acid to make sodium sulfate. That is seven reactions with only four reagents.
[Edited on 12-19-2014 by Pinkhippo11]
SimpleChemist-238 - 18-12-2014 at 19:09
Any ideas for organic chemistry? ethyl acetate to Ethy and sodium acetate, then combustion of the ethanol, esterification with sulfuric acid,
combustion of the ethyl acetate.
j_sum1 - 18-12-2014 at 20:11
As Tdep stated, this challenge is limited to a particular region.
Dollar stores are a thing round here only they are not called that. You can buy scented candles, toothpaste with Asian writing on it and plastic
containers with lids that fit poorly. I could burn some of that crap and get a bunch of different reactions but I think it would be a waste of my
$5.18 AUD. I don't see the point.
I think that the thing that has been discovered with competitions and challenges so far is that the more explicit the rules and the wider the scope
the better. This fails on both counts.