Food Science

Rock Candy Lab Report

Date: 10/02/15
Name: Preme, Ravisara Karnjanolarn
Earn, Pemika Sritong-in
Putter, Yanaj Budhijalananda
Non, Tanarut Lerdsuwanrut
Introduction:
Rock candy or Rock sugar is a type of sugar which made up of many large
sugar crystals. This candy is formed by a process called Crystallization. It allows
sugar and water to crystallize on the surface for a form of crystal around the
center which this experiment we used a rope. In this experiment by the steps of
Crystallization, we did the formation of solid crystals by dissolving the sugar to
make a supersaturated solution and then waiting for the larger crystals to be
produced after a week.
Purpose:

To find out how sugar crystallize by the supersaturated solution and

crystallization. Observe how they grow.
Materials:
-

1 cup of Water
2 cup of White granulated sugar
Food coloring/ flavoring
Rope
Plastic cups
Beaker
Glass Stirrer

Procedures:
1. Boil the water up to 100C and then turn down slightly
2. Add half cup of sugar into boiled water and a half following
3. Stir until the sugar is dissolved
4. Keep stirring and adding sugar
5. Continue adding and stirring until the sugar is dissolved
6. Wait for 15 minutes for cooling it down
7. Cut the rope in a proper size, depends on the height of plastic glass
8. Dip the rope into the water
9. Roll it with white extra sugar
10. Let it dry and doing it continuously
11. Prepare for coloring and flavoring by dropping 1 drop into each glass
12. Transfer sugar that was cool down already into another container
13. Pour sugar (Water mixed with sugar) into a glass of food coloring
14. Stir the to make it conform with food coloring
15. Put the rope in but do not make it touch its bottom
16. Wait for a week
17. Break the surface of the sugar around the rope
18. Pump out the sugar left over
19. If the rope got stuck with the glass, use hot water to make it easier
for taking it off

Analyzing Results:

1. Discuss the different properties of sugar and how these properties vary among
types of sugars.
There are many properties of sugar. First, Caramelization is when you
heating the sugar and its turn to brown color like when you melt the sugar before
doing rock candy, Solubility when you melted the sugar, Crystallization when you
wait for a time until the sugar turn into the crystals, and Sweetness is when we
measure how sweet the sugar is which depends on Concentration, Consistency,
Temperature, and pH level. For the example, Fructose is the most sweetest and
solubility sugar. However, Lactose is the most less sweet sugar ever which make it
is less soluble.
2. What property of sugar is being observed in this lab?
There are many properties of sugar but for this lab, we observed just
three of them which are Caramelization, Solubility, and Crystallization. First, the
Caramelization is when the sugar was heat, making the water molecules leave.
Second, the Solubility which we especially focused on the Supersaturated Solution.
Supersaturated solution are the solution that have more sugar than solution would

normally dissolved. The Supersaturated solution are very necessary to form the
crystals. Third, the Crystallization is when the sugar solution is boiled and the
water evaporates, thus crystals are left behind.
Hence, observing and identifying these properties make we analyzing the
Rock Candy easier by comparing to the others and know how they were formed.
3. Discuss the end product for each member of your group. How did they compare
in size, shape, texture, flavor?
In size Putters rock candy is the biggest then Non then Earn and Preme.
In shape every rock candy is the one and only rock candy.
In texture all of rock candy are the same.
In flavor Putter and Preme used the same flavor which is strawberry but Non used
Pandan and Earn used. such a shame that we didnt test each order rock candy but
everyone said their rock candy tested good like the face of the owner of it LOL.

4. Who in your group was the most successful? What might be the reason for their
success?
Putters rock candy was the most successful and we think its because Putters rope
had the perfect length and when Putters rope attached to sugar more than other
person in our group.
5. If you were to perform this lab again, what might you do differently?
We going to use more accurate and convenient equipment, so we can grow a better
rock candy.
Conclusion:

In this experiment, we made our own rock candy with different colors and
flavors by the processed called Supersaturated Solution and Crystallization. We
had learned much more about the sugar, especially how the processes work and the
properties of sugar. The special properties of sugar lead to the methods of
forming the crystals. Our results are very successful because all of the rock candy
were grew and sticked to the rope.
The rock candy with the red color which had the most successful is Putters
candy, he had a group of nice big crystal attached around the rope. We do not have
the exact same size, shape, and texture because it depends on the movement of a
cup when we were touching and moving, also the amount of sugar that we kneeled to
the rope before we placed it into the cup.
For the next experiment, we can make the improvement by using the
equipment that is more accurate and convenient for any processes. For the
example, we can use a wooden stick to dip it into the sugar water instead of the
rope, which make candy stick nicely and do not move when it was shaking.
Furthermore, we can change the cup into a stronger one such as Glasses, it gives a
better results.