Does wax color affect the burning time of a

candle?

9-2 Project 1

Purpose

• The Purpose of my project is to find out if the color in wax affects the amount of time a candle burns.

Hypothesis

• I think the white candle will burn the quickest because its all wax and does not contain any dyes, and the candles with dyes will take longer because they have more contents to burn.

Materials

• The Materials I used in my project are:- 4 candles, 3 colored and 1 white.- Timer.- Measuring Tape- Black Marker- 4 Candle Holders- Lighter.

Method

- First I took the 4 candles and placed them in candle holders.

- I then took a black marker and marked them 3 inches from the top of the candle.

- Next I placed the candles on a hard, flat surface 4 inches apart from each other.

- Then I lit them and waited for them to burn down to 3 inches, then recorded the results.

- I repeated my project 2 more times to be sure the results I got were accurate.

Variables

• Manipulated: the color of the candle.• Responding: the length of time it

took the candles to burn.• Controlled: the height and width of

the candles, the brand of the candles, and the number of inches I let them burn.

ResultsColor Blue Pink White Purple

1st 1:28 1:38 1:23 1:35

2nd 1:25 1:42 1:19 1:37

3rd 1:31 1:36 1:21 1:35

Average 1:28 1:39 1:21 1:36

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Blue Pink White Purple

1st

2nd

3rd

Average

Analysis

Conclusion

• In conclusion I found that the color of wax does affect the burning time of candle according to my results. Also the hypothesis I stated was correct and the white candle did burn the fastest.

Sources of Error.

• Some sources of error are:1. When I lit the candles I lit them one after the

other instead of all at once this may have affected my results because one candle may have gotten a longer burning time then the other.

2. I also set my project up in a kitchen area and people did walk past my project several times and could have given one or more candles oxygen or dimmed the flame on them.

3. When I measured and marked 3 inches on the candles I could have been off by 2-3 millimeters because it was hard to mark on the candle.

Ways to Improve.

• Some ways I could have improved my project are:

1. When I lit the candles I should have lit them all at once instead of one after the other.

2. I could have compared different brands of candles to see if one brand would be better then another.

Pictures