Purple smoke! Aluminium meets Iodine
Aluminium and iodine powders do nothing until a single drop of water is added. Then they get so hot that clouds of purple iodine smoke billow out!
The result
- What it makes
- Aluminium iodide
- Equation
- 2Al + 3I₂ → 2AlI₃
- When it happens
- Add one drop of water to start it
Fun fact from Fizzy: Here water is a trigger that gets the reaction going, even though it is not used up.
🥽 Iodine smoke stings eyes and lungs. Only teachers do this, in a fume cupboard.