Homemade Salt Crystals

Growing homemade salt crystals can be an inventive way to teach simple chemistry and mineralogy. It is also an excellent method to view the beauty and simplicity of natural crystal formations. Salt crystals are made up primarily of the elements sodium and chlorine. The sodium ion is positively charged while the chloride ion is negatively charged. In salt, the sodium and chloride ions are weakly bonded together by an ionic bond, which allows quick dissolution of salt in warm water, for example.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic cup
• Water
• Table salt
• String

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Instructions

1. • 1

     Fill half a cup with water.

   • 2

     Add plain table salt to the water and mix. Continue adding salt until the salt will no longer dissolve. This means the water-salt solution is supersaturated.

   • 3

     Place a long and thin string into the salt-water solution. Hang the top of the string on the lip of the cup.

   • 4

     Put the cup in a safe place and do not touch it for several days. You will begin to see salt crystals growing on the string and in the water.