Silver/ Copper Replacement

This experiment was a process for silver formation.

Day 1

A 30 cm piece of wire was cut and twisted into a "spring" form to be put into a test tube with silver nitrate  to sit over the next couple days.

Day 2 & 3
A piece of filter paper was weighed and placed into a funnel for separating the silver. Copper wire was removed from the test tube and rinsed with distilled water over filter paper. Silver was rinsed into the funnel and rest of liquid mixture emptied into a tube (which funnel was set into above to leak into). This was left to fully empty out. Silver was collected in the paper filter, which was weighed.
Data was recorded.

Seen in picture is silver going through "filter paper process" to be separated from the mixture.

Mass of silver nitrate                                      1.025 g

Mass of copper coil before reaction                 3.408 g

Mass of copper coil after reaction                   3.193 g

Mass of copper reacted                                   0.215 g

Mass of filter paper and silver                        1.726 g

Mass of filter paper                                        1.420 g

Mass of silver produced in reaction                0.306 g


Number of moles of silver produced              0.0028 mol

Number of moles of copper                           0.0033 mol

Mole ratio of copper to silver                         1 : 1


Balanced equation for the reactions               14 : 10 : 108

The copper was not "transmuted", but basically switched places with the silver.

2AG NO3 + Cu -> Cu (NO3)2 + 2Ag

.65 g AG should be formed in grams

.77 g Cu became Cu (NO3)2 in the reaction