A. Project Plan/Problem Statement This experiment will test if salt increases how fast water comes to a rapid boil. I will determine if water will boil faster once salt is added to it. The experiment will use identical pots, amounts of water, temperature settings, starting temperatures, and the same stopwatch to ensure valid and accurate results. This experiment is relevant to the real world because it tests if water will come to a boil faster if a common house hold ingredient, salt, is added to it.
A1. Literature Review
I referenced two studies before completing my experiment. The first is from the Museum 4 Kids website, which asks the question if salt is added to boiling water will it increase the temperature. The experiments objective is to bring water to a boil (212 degrees Fahrenheit) and then add in the salt to see if this will see an increase in temperature. The study used two cups of boiling water and had their control temperature at 212.9 degrees Fahrenheit. The study added one tablespoon of salt to the boiling water at two separate points. The first when the water first came to a boil and the second when the temperature steadied after adding the first tablespoon of salt. The outcomes did show an increase in the boiling temperature. First raising it from the 212.9 degrees F to 215.6 degrees F and then 218.3 degrees F.
The second study I used looked at the starting temperatures of water to see if hot or cold water would come to a boil faster. Their hypothesis was that hotter water would boil faster than colder water because it is closer to the boiling point of 212 degrees Fahrenheit. The study used 3 cups of water in their experiment and they used hot tap water and cold tap water with the room temperature at 69 degrees F. It was found that the hot tap water boiled faster than the cold tap water. The hot tap water took 3 minutes four seconds to come to a boil while the cold water took 4 minutes 17 seconds to boil. A2a. Experimental Design Steps
To duplicate this experiment you will need the following:
• A six-cup cast iron pot. I do not recommend using separate pots as you will then also be using separate burners on the stove and a different pot and burner may alter the results.
• A measuring cup to ensure an equal amount of water is being used during each experiment.
• A thermometer to check the temperature of the water.
• Room temperature water (I used a large gallon jug of tap water, filled the day before and left out overnight, to ensure all water for the experiment was the same temperature for each experiment).
• A stopwatch to record the time between the pot being placed on the stove burner and the water beginning to boil.
• Electric stove top
• One tablespoon measuring spoon
• Iodized salt
• Paper and a pen for recording your results

A2b. Reasoning
I chose this method of experimental design because I was able to control the variables and record the information easily. This experiment also lent itself for easy duplication. I did not find other experiments that tested my question exactly the same way that I did. I chose to modify experimental ideas I had found so that I could conduct the experiment without having to purchase expensive cooking equipment or other boiling tools to measure the outcome. I don’t believe that my way of performing the experiment was a “better way” of testing the question; though I do believe it will yield results that are just as accurate. 


A2c. Sequence of Events: I collected my quantitative data by using a glass measuring cup with a 2 cup capacity and a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon to measure the iodized salt. I used a stopwatch to measure the time starting when the pot with 2 cups room temperature water was placed on the hot burned and ending when the water in the pot came to a boil. I relied on the electric stoves top burners heat setting of 7 to provide consistent heat for both tests. 


A2d. Tools The quantitative data was collected using a stopwatch to measure time in seconds and minutes, and a thermometer to measure the temperature of the resting and boiling water.

A3. Variables
The independent variable is what is changed when conducting an experiment. The dependent variable is what is measured. The controlled variables are constants that must remain the same among all groups in the study. In this study the independent variable was adding the salt to the water. The dependent variables were the amount of time it took each test to come to a boil. The controlled variables were the resting temperatures of the water, the pot and heating source used, and the amount of water being used.
A4. Threat Reduction to Internal Validity
To reduce the threats to internal validity I monitored the cause-effect relationship between the independent and dependent variables. I ensured I had a solid experimental set up and procedure by choosing a simple, testable question and properly indentifying my variables. My experimental design was driven by what comparisons were going to be made and which type of data analysis would be done. My experimental design will focus on if the addition of salt to water will make the water come to a boil faster then water without salt added to it. I have used a one-shot experimental design—this experiment is the simplest form containing a single group, applying the experiment on the subjects and measuring the outcome by recording the dependent variable results.
I have no preconceived notion regarding the outcome of the experiment. I have not set up my experiment to produce any ‘favored’ results and feel confident that my experiment, results and conclusion are free from bias. 


A5. Hypothesis:
I predict that adding salt to water will make it come to a boil faster then water without salt added to it. I came up with my hypothesis after doing some research online for experiments that suggest adding substances to water can increase waters boiling point.

B. Process of Data Collection
To collect the date for my experiment I first collected a gallon of water from my tap I allowed this water to sit overnight to gain a uniformed room temperature reading for this experiment. I then gathered my materials: a 2 cup measuring cup, a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon, a 6 cup cast iron pot, a container of iodized salt, a thermometer to measure the temperature of the resting water, a stop watch to record the time it took the water to come to a boil and a pen and paper to record my results.

Data Table Base V1 V2
(Time in Minutes) 5 minutes
10 seconds 5 minutes
9 seconds 5 minutes
9 seconds

Graph (Time in Minutes) B1. Appropriate Methods
I feel the methods I used to conduct my experiment and record my results were sufficient to test my question because they are easily duplicated and simple to perform. It was also inexpensive and only moderately time consuming. I feel that those two things also invite other experimenters to try this study. The instruments that were used (a stop watch, measuring cup and spoons, water, salt, a pot, pen and paper, and a stove) are readily accessible in local stores and inexpensive to purchase and every home has a heating source. I used measurements of time in seconds and minutes because the stopwatch used those methods, and cups and tablespoon because they are standard measurements in the United States.
C. Results
As seen in the Data Table and Time Chart, there was a negligible difference in the time it took water without salt to come to a boil and water with 2 different amounts of salt to come to a boil. During the base test, water with no salt added to it took 5minutes and 10 seconds for the water to come to a boil. During variable test one; adding 1 tablespoon of salt caused the water come to a boil at 5 minutes and 9 seconds. During variable test 2, adding 2 tablespoons of salt caused the water to come to a boil at 5 minutes and 9 seconds. There is only a 1 second difference between the base test and both variable tests.

D. Conclusion The study has proven to be insufficient in proving if adding salt to water will actually cause water to come to a boil quicker.

D1. Confirmation of Hypothesis Based on my findings I do not believe that adding salt to water will cause the water to boil faster, therefore I reject my initial hypothesis.
D2. Experimental Design as Key Factor Experimental design is a key factor in science inquiry because it allows us to test the questions we have concerning our surroundings. Forming a plausible question based on observations allows one to come up with a hypothesis for that question and then come up with experiments to test your hypothesis to prove or disprove it. D3. Replication Replication is a very important basis of science. A scientists’ works is not considered reliable if someone else cannot duplicate the results using the same methods. Replicating the work ensures that there was no bias exhibited in the experiment, that controls were not tainted and that there was no threat to internal and external validity. Replication also helps determine whether the results are an accurate description of a population because a wide sample was used, or if the experiment was too narrow to produce reliable results. While I believe that this experiment produced valid results there are areas that can be improved upon in replication. For instance, replacing the tap water with purified water could sway the results of the tests. Using a gas burner stove and an aluminum pot may change the results, as may using sea salt or coarse salt instead of iodized salt. If I were to conduct this experiment again I would change the tap water used to purified water to ensure that there were no chemicals in the water to alter the experiments validity. I would also have liked to do several additional tests, seeing if an increase in the amount of salt from 3 tablespoons, to 4 table spoons to 5 and so on would effect the outcome of the test. Lastly I would change the hypothesis of my experiment to see if adding salt increased the boiling point of water using a thermometer verses relying on human error to gage what counts as boiling water.

E. References
Science Project: The Effect of Salt on the Boiling Temperature of Water http://www.museum4kids.net/pdf/Exper%20Science%20Project%20Sample.pdf

Hot Vs. Cold Water: Boiling Experiment
http://www.scientificameriken.com/yr1/boil.asp