Candy Cane Lab

Purpose: To work cooperatively as a group,

following correct lab procedure and safety rules

to produce candy canes from disaccharides

with proper physical characteristics

in a specified time frame.

Safety:

Goggles

Hot Temperatures (use hot pads in ALL circumstances)

ALL safety guidelines apply

Materials:

2/3 cups Sucrose (Table Sugar) – C6H12O6

2 teaspoons Corn Starch – C6H10O6

2 Tablespoons Water – H20

¼ teaspoon Cream of Tartar – Potassium hydrogentartrate- KC4H5O6

Plant Extract (Flavorings) DO NOT MIX FLAVORINGS

3 drops of food coloring (your choice, you may mix colors if you like)

Thermometer

Beaker

Cookie Sheet

2 Hot Pads

Butter Knife

Vegetable Oil

Procedure:

Measure and combine 1st 4 ingredients into a 500 mL beaker, stir. Cook at 375°C.
When mixture starts to boil, turn down to low and continue to heat gently. DO NOT STIR. (This process takes 15-20 minutes)
The quantity of heat is directly related to the viscosity of your product. This is an important factor in determining the physical characteristics of your product. When the thermometer reaches 132° C, a sufficient quantity of heat has been added to break the appropriate number of covalent molecular bonds. Remove from heat.
Let solution cool for 3 minutes, then add 2mL flavoring and gently stir. Your product will be VERY HOT, but it will cool rapidly. As the product cools, lightly coat aluminum foil with cooking spray. When the product has become viscous, but still fluid enough to pour, pour half of the mixture on to each opposite sides of the sheet. You need to have a butterknife with an oiled blade ready to “cut” the viscous substance into 2 separate sections. Add different food colors to each section as you desire and begin to fold the color into the mixture with a buttered utensil.
As soon as the substance is cool enough to handle, roll each “blob” of candy into 2 separate coils about the length of the foil. Place them side by side on the foil and cut both cords into 4 equal sections. Each member then takes their 2 equal sections of different colored candy and twists them together forming a rope-like single coil. Shape the candy into a cane and place it on lightly sprayed wax paper to cool and harden.
Clean up all candy and sticky surfaces. Note the water temperature which works best for clean up.
When the station is clean, gather group members together, each member must hold his own product to have a photograph taken.

Candy Cane Pre-lab (minor grade)

Name ______Date______Period______

READ your Candy Cane Lab and answer the following questions:

1) What type of bonds hold table sugar and corn starch together? ______

2) You are not allowed to mix ______, however you may mix ______if

you like.

3) You should cook the ingredients at ______°C.

4) You should stop stirring your product when ______.

5) It will take approximately ______minutes to heat your product to ______°C.

6) Heat enables us to make candy by ______molecular bonds.

7) You should remove your beaker from the heat when ______.

8) You should use hot pads any time you ______.

9) You add _____mL of flavoring after allowing the solution to cool for ______minutes.

10) Your aluminum foil and your butter knife should both be coated with ______.

11) Define viscosity(p.417) How does this term apply to your candy?

12) You should pour your mixture into ______separate sections on the piece of foil. You will need to use your ______to mix food coloring into your mixture.

13) You are allowed to roll your candy into a coil when ______.

14) You and your partner will need to cut each coil in half so that ______.

15) Draw a picture to represent how the following steps will look: (consider you’ll have 2 different colors.)

product poured 2 coils made 2 coils cut in half candy cane completed

on opposite sides

of foil