Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hi. I was assigned this project to do for my science fair project. After reading about the project over and over, I still cannot figure out what this is exactly trying to prove when the project is done as is. I'm not coming up with any sort of hypothesis.
https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... p036.shtml

As the basic project shows, I would be measuring efficiency using various amounts of ferrofluid. Without doing the project, wouldn't I think that the larger amount of ferrofluid would naturally have more oil picked up by the magnet? It almost seems like this would be just a demonstration experiment. In my research, I cannot find anything about ferrofluid being toxic to the environment, so I don't think I'm proving that a lesser amount would be better.

I am allowed to change the variables with the "make it your own" section, but I would need to get approval from her. This has to fall into energy/conservation (NEED National Energy Education Development) project.

As it is now, I cannot come up with what I'm proving, what my hypothesis is, and what I would even title my project. I appreciate any help!
Thank you!

cottoncandyrainbow4 wrote:After reading about the project over and over, I still cannot figure out what this is exactly trying to prove when the project is done as is. I'm not coming up with any sort of hypothesis.

Hi,

The purpose of the project that you are working on is to test a technique that uses nanotechnology and magnetism to remove oil from water. This might save time, money, and resources used to clean oil spills. Will this be more effective than current methods? By doing this experiment you will determine the amount of ferrofluid needed to separate oil from water. Does this method work to clean oil spills in water? How much ferrofluid is needed for the most efficient cleanup? What do you observe when using different amounts of ferrofluid? Can using too much ferrofluid be ineffective? What are the current methods used to clean oil spills in water? Why would using ferrofluid and a strong neodynium magnet be better than the current methods? Are there problems using this method? Do you think that this method is better than other ways to clean up oil spills? why or why not?

These are some things to think about when doing the experiment to help you figure out what exactly you want to prove.

Hope this guides you to reach a hypothesis. Let us know if you need further guidance.

MrsDez

Thank you for the reply! I think you made the project goal more clear to me.
So I'm thinking this should be my hypothesis:

If three different amounts of ferromagnetic fluid are added to three oil samples, then the oil sample with the greatest amount of ferromagnetic fluid will be picked up more efficiently by the neodymium magnet than the oil samples that were introduced to less ferromagnetic fluid, This is because, the more nanoparticles with magnetic properties in a liquid, the stronger the magnetic field is.

Hi,

This hypothesis sounds great! Depending on what your teacher is looking for, you could make it more generalized, like "If ferrofluid is added to oil samples, then the samples with the most ferrofluid will be picked up more efficiently by a magnet." However, your hypothesis does fit very well with the project.

Allison

allisontu wrote:Hi,

This hypothesis sounds great! Depending on what your teacher is looking for, you could make it more generalized, like "If ferrofluid is added to oil samples, then the samples with the most ferrofluid will be picked up more efficiently by a magnet." However, your hypothesis does fit very well with the project.

Allison

Yes! Thank you for this suggestion because it sounds a little less "wordy". I will add my "because" statement because she wants an "If, then, because" statement. Thank you again!