How to make Rock candy

            Rock candy is a sugar crystal made which is made using a very simple method since it only requires dissolving sugar in water. Rock candy is made by sugar crystals since when the sugar is dissolved in water and the liquid is supersaturated, crystals will grow (Ellie, 2015). Rock candy can be made at home or in a chemistry laboratory. In both settings, safety should be maximized by using clean apparatus and keeping all laboratory equipment from laboratory chemicals to avoid contamination (Ellie, 2015).  In general, material needed to make a rock candy are:

• Sugar
• Water
• Cooking pan
• Flavoring
• Funnel
• Wood spoon to stir  
• Thin wood stick
• Plain sugar
• Glass jar to keep the solution
• Waxed paper to cover the jar
• Measuring cups-to measure the sugar and water

 

 

 Procedures

• After assembling all the highlighted ingredients, wash them thoroughly.
• The first step in preparing the rock candy is to heat 2 cups of water until it boils.
• Add two 4 cups of sugar in the boiling water until there are large bubble
• Use the wooden spoon to stir the solution until it forms a clear smooth liquid syrup
• Add flavoring to the solution while it is out of the heat and stir until a smooth color is formed
•  Pour the solution into the glass jar using a funnel and wrap the jar using the waxed paper
• Wet the thin wooden stick and roll them into the white powdered sugar and insert them into the colored syrup
• Put the jar that contains the solution in a cool place
• Within 4-6, check the sugar syrup to see if there are sugar crystals formed on the thick wood stick
• If  crystals are forming, wait for one week so that the rock candy can be formed to the desired size
• After achieving the desired size, remove the sugar crystals and let them dry

 

In the procedure, water acts as the solvent while the sugar acts as the solute.  The mixture makes a solution and when the solution is heated, a supersaturated solution is formed. A point to note is that the solution must be heated at a medium heat so that the sugar can dissolve.  When the solution is allowed to cool, sugar crystals are formed or in other words, sugar crystals start to grow on the inserted wooded sticks (Ellie, 2015).  It is important to note that rock candy has different textures since some can be crunched using teeth while others have a chewy and gritty texture.  The reason as to why the texture differs is due to the procedure used when preparing the candies.  For example, the above procedure shows that in to order to prepare a rock candy, the sugar syrup is allowed to cool for a number of days until sugar crystals are formed on the wooded stick. However, to create a chewy texture, the cooled sugar syrup is stirred to prevent large sugar crystals from forming.  Other textures such as cotton and hard textures are produced by cooling the sugar syrup quickly to prevent the formation of crystals (Ellie, 2015).   The procedure has also helped learn that 4 or more cups of sugar can dissolve in two cups of water since sugar has sucrose molecules that combines with water molecules to form intermolecular bonds.  When the solution is heated, there is an energy that allows the sucrose molecules and water molecules to react. It is all-important to note that to make rock candy, the sugar crystals should be allowed to grow slowly to avoid crystals from forming on sides of the container.

 

 

 

 

Reference

 Ellie O'Ryan Ellie. (2015). The Sugary Secrets Behind Candy. Rob Mc Clurkan