The Chemistry of Color
The purpose of this experiment was to determine which bleach type, bleach concentration, and material type would be most effective in bleaching. Using these factors, a D.O.E., Design Of Experiment, was pursued. Seven pieces of cotton material and four pieces of polyester material were dyed using a royal blue dye. For each trial, a piece of material was added to 50 mL of bleach. After sitting overnight, the materials were removed and the darkness in color of the resulting solution was recorded. A liquid color scale was created as a way to measure these results. It was found that hydrogen peroxide bleach and cotton material produced the greatest color change. The bleach concentration had no effect on the results. From this, it was concluded that bleaches are more effective when used on natural materials. Also, oxidizing bleaches, in general, were found to be more effective at whitening, and thus are most commonly found on the market.
Research Done By:
Josh Kimball
Sterling
Kevin Mlutkowski
Warren Mott
Warren Consolidated Schools