Red cabbage – the natural pH indicator
You will need about one cabbage leaf per cup of water. Blend about 5-6 leaves, and 5-6 cups of water in a blender. If you do not own a blender, you can tear up the leaves into small pieces, add to a pan with water, and heat until it turns purple. Let it cool and then you can use.
Pour the cabbage/water mix through a strainer to filter out the big chunks, and save the liquid. You can toss the chunky parts.
Label your cups with the test chemicals you will be using.
Distribute the cage liquid evenly between your cups.
Start with vinegar as it’s a known acid. Add a little to your cup labeled vinegar. Stir and notice the color change. Record your color in the data table. This color indicated you have an acid.
In another cup add a teaspoon of washing soda. Record your observation on the data table, this color indicates you have a base.
Now experiment with the other test chemicals to determine if they are known acids or bases.
Line your test cups up, from 0 to 14, left to right and use your phone to snap a photo. You can email the photo to yourself and upload it in the data sheet.
Once complete, the liquids in the cups are safe to be disposed of in the sink with running water.
If you used household glasses, be sure and wash thoroughly before using for consumption.