INVESTIGATORY

PROJECT ON
RED CABBAGE pH PAPER
SUBMITTED
CENTRAL BOARD OF SECONDARY
EDUCATION NEW DELHI

ACADEMIC YEAR 2021-2022

BY

JAYACHITRA.C
UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF
Mrs .ANISHA M S,
M.Sc.,M.Phil
(CHEMISTRY FACULTY)
DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY
SENTHIL PUBLIC SCHOOL AFFILIATED TO
(CBSE) NEW DELHI, AFFILATION NO:
 1930323 ADHIYAMAN KOTTAI,
DHARMAPURI – 636 807
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am here overwhelmed in all humbleness and gratefulness to

acknowledge my depth to all those who have helped me to put
these ideas well above the level of simplicity.
I would like to express my special note of gratitude to my teacher
Mrs.Anisha for spending many precious hours in helping me for
the quality of this, kindly providing valuable guidance, motivation
and his encouragement.
I would like to thank our senior principal Mr.C.Srinivasan.,
MSc,MEd.,Dip.in Montessori., and our principal Mr.Senthil
Murugan.P ,MSc ., B.Ed., GNIIT., our vice principal
Mr.Rajkumar.S., M.Sc., B.Ed., M.Phil., and our academic
coordinator Mrs.Gnana Kavitha. M., Msc.B.Ed., who gave me
this golden opportunity to do this wonderful project. It also
helped me in doing a lot of research and I came to know about
many new things.
I am really thankful to them. Any attempt at any level can’t be
satisfactorily completed without the support and guidance of my
parents, my friends and my lab in charge Mrs. Sharmila.,
M.sc.,B.Ed.
I would like to thank my parents who helped me a lot in
gathering information, collecting data and guiding me from time
to time in making this project, despite of their busy schedule.
They gave me different ideas in making this project unique.

NAME
 JAYACHITRA.C

RED CABBAGE pH
PAPER
S.NO TOPIC PAGE.NO

1 INTRODUCTION 5

2 MATERIALS 6

3 PREPARATION 7

4 ACTIVITY 9

5 TABLE 10

6 CONCLUSION 10

7 BIBLIOGRAPHY 11

CONTENT
 OBJECTIVE
Preparation of red cabbage pH paper to check whether the solution is acidic
or basic
 INTRODUCTION

Some of the most important kinds of chemicals in science are acids and
bases. Although you may not realize it, you use acids and bases in your home
everyday. You can recognize an acid because it makes food and drinks taste
sour. If you have ever tasted something chalky or ever felt a liquid that feels
slippery like soap, those substances are probably bases. One way to test if a
substance is an acid or base is to test its pH. pH is the scale used in science to
rate acids and bases. The scale is numbered from 1 – 12. Acids have a pH
between 1 and 6.
Bases have a pH between 8 and 12. If your pH is at 7, that means the
substance is neutral, and it is neither an acid nor a base. Just like we use a
temperature scale on a thermometer to find out if something is hot or cold, we
can use the pH scale to find out if something is an acid or a base. An easy
way to do this is to use pH paper, which is a piece of paper with a chemical
on it that will change colors if it is mixed with acids or bases.
Some fruits and vegetables contain this special type of chemical. One
example is red cabbage. In this activity you will learn how to make your own
pH paper using juice from red cabbage. Once you make your red cabbage
juice, you will want to know how to use it. If the color of your red cabbage
juice is a purple color, then you know that the pH of your solution should be
around 7, which means that your solution is neutral.
When you first make the red cabbage juice, the liquid should be this color.
When you begin to test the pH of other liquids, the juice will change different
colors if it is mixed with an acid or a base. Match the colors you get while
you are testing liquids to the chart below to see what pH you have.
 In this activity we will:
• Make red cabbage pH paper
• Use pH paper to test the pH of some common products around the house to
determine if they are acidic or basic
 MATERIA
LS
• One small head of red cabbage
• Large glass measuring cup
• Blender
• Chopping knife
• Strainer
• Coffee filters
• 2 large glass bowls
• Glass or plastic jar with lid
• Eye dropper or turkey baster
• Household products to test pH (feel free to choose your own. Here are some
examples to get you started)
o Orange juice
o Vinegar
o Milk
o Soap
o Baking Soda
o Stomach antacids
o Lemon/Lime juice
o Window Cleaner (see safety notes below)
o Bleach (see safety notes below)
o Powdered laundry detergent
o Aspirin tablet

SAFETY

This activity requires the use of sharp cutting utensils. Use caution when
handling knives or a blender. Ask an adult to help you if necessary. Red
cabbage juice may stain clothes and fabrics. Be sure to protect the area you
are working in with plastic or newspaper. Stains on hands and skin will wash
off with warm water and soap. This activity involves testing some potentially
toxic household chemicals.
Always use household chemicals with adult supervision. NEVER mix
household cleaning products together. This may cause a dangerous reaction.
Always test each substance separately. Do not eat or drink any of the
substances after you have tested them. Dispose of any liquids separately in a
sink with plenty of water.
 PREPAR
ATIONS

1. Begin by chopping the red cabbage into small pieces until you have
about 1 cup of the chopped cabbage.
2. Put the cabbage into the blender with about 1½ cups of water. Blend the
water and cabbage until finely chopped.

3. Place a strainer into a glass bowl and pour some of the cabbage mixture
into the strainer. Allow the liquid to separate from the cabbage. The solid
cabbage can be thrown away. Repeat until all of the liquid is separated from
the cabbage.
4. Store your red cabbage indicator in a labeled, sealed jar until you are ready
to use it.
 PRE-ACTIVITY
Making your pH paper

1. Cut some coffee filters into 2x6 cm strips. Place that strips onto several
sheets of paper towel.
2. Using an eyedropper or turkey baster, place a few drops of the red
cabbage indicator onto the coffee filter strips in order to cover the strips and
allow the pieces to dry before moving onto the next part. Do not drench the
strips because they will take too long to dry.
 ACTIVITY

1. Now you are ready to test different substances using your red cabbage pH
strips. First, choose a substance that you wish to test.
2. Using a clean dropper, add a couple drops of the substance to the red
cabbage pH paper. Do not dip the paper into the main container of your
substance. Also, do not add your substance to the main supply of your red
cabbage extract.
3. Record your results and throw away your pH strip.
4. Choose another substance to test and repeat steps 2 and 3.
 TABLE

Ph 1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11-12

Color Pink Dark Violet Blue Blue Greenish
Red green yellow
Acid/Base Acid Acid Acid Neutral Base Base
Base

Extension Activity
• Obtain Litmus paper from an aquarium supply store. This is a different type
of paper that measures pH.
• Test the same substances from the activity above with your litmus paper.
Compare the results. Of the two different types of paper, which do you think
works better and why?
 CONCLUSION:
Acid, bases and pH are an extremely important part of science. Acids and
bases affect almost everything around us. In nature, pH plays an important
role in survival. For example, if we changed the pH of our bodies by one
level, it could kill us. The same goes for most other animals and plants. The
environment is also affected by pH. Pollution can cause the pH of rain to be
lowered. This is what people call acid rain. Acid rain can ruin buildings and
stone, as well as affect plant and aquatic life. Manufacturers are also
concerned with acids and bases because they are used to make so many
things, including cleaning products and building materials.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. http://chemistry.about.com/library/weekly/aa012803a.htm
2. http://chemistry.about.com/od/acidsbases/
3. X-ray Structure Determination A Practical Guide, 2nd edition,
George H. Stout and Lyle H. Jensen, John Wiliey & Sons, New
York, 1989.
4. Fundamentals of Analytical Chemistry, 3rd. edition, Saunders
Golden Sunburst Series, Holt, Rinehart and Winston,
Philadelphia, 1976.
5. Chemistry and Crystal Growth, Hulliger, J. Angew. Chem. Int.
Ed. Engl. (1994) 33, 143-162.