Effects+of+Temperature+on+the+Intensity+of+Chemiluminescence

ABSTRACT:


 * INDIVIDUAL LAB PROJECT – THE EFFECTS OF TEMPERATURE ON INTENSITY OF LIGHT. Maddie Butler and Ambrosia Smith.** The purpose of this lab was to determine the effects of changing temperature on the intensity of the light produced in s chemiluminescent reaction, with the hypothesis that as the temperature increased, so too would the intensity of the light, and vice versa. The chemical luminol was a main component of the solution, and allowed for the illumination of the chemical reaction. A large quantity of the solution was prepared, and kept separately form the hydrogen peroxide, which was later added to trigger the reaction. Through the utilization of a laptop with LoggerPro software, a spectrometer, and a dark room, graphs showing the intensity of the light for each trial of each temperature were obtained. The three temperatures investigated were 0 degrees Celsius, room temperature, and 50 degrees Celsius, with three “trials” occurring at each temperature. The results were analyzed in two distinct fashions. First, the median intensity of each trial was determined by looking at the most dense section of the graphs. It was found that the average intensity of light in the cold reactions was 0.00101 rel, the average for the room temperature reactions was 0.00113 rel, and the average of the hot reactions was 0.00123 rel. The other method of analysis was done by looking only at the intensity of the light at the most relevant wavelengths (480 to 500 nm), and finding the peak intensity of each trial between these wavelengths. In this method, it was found that the average intensity of light in the cold reactions was 0.00118 rel, the average for the room temperature reactions was 0.00124 rel, and the average of the hot reactions was 0.00151 rel. Although these numbers do not correlate, they show the same general trend. In both methods of analysis, the data supports the notion that as temperature increases, so too does the light intensity, and as temperature decreases, the intensity of light does as well. These results can be used in everyday applications such as emergency lighting, the forensic detection of blood, and glowsticks, as well as to support more uncommon uses of chemiluminescent reactions, such as the analysis of the purity of other chemicals. Key words: chemiluminescence, temperature, light intensity.