Summary

In this lab, students will create a homemade “wax” from honey, sugar, and lemon juice and compare its properties to real wax samples. They will also learn about the chemical changes that occur when bees create beeswax for honeycomb and why it makes a great building material for beehives.

Grade Level

High School

NGSS Alignment

This lab will help prepare your students to meet the performance expectations in the following standards:

• HS-PS2-6: Communicate scientific and technical information about why the molecular-level structure is important in the functioning of designed materials.
• Science and Engineering Practices:
  • Engaging in Argument from Evidence
  • Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information

Objectives

By the end of this lab, students should be able to:

• Identify the signs of a chemical change that occurs as bees convert nectar into beeswax.
• Create homemade “wax” and determine if it is suitable for hive construction.

Chemistry Topics

This lab supports students’ understanding of:

• Chemical Reactions
• Organic Compounds
• Physical and Chemical Properties
• Intermolecular Forces

Time

Teacher Preparation: 30 minutes
Lesson: 45 minutes

Materials (per lab group)

• 65 grams sugar
• 10 mL lemon juice
• 10 mL water
• 10-mL graduated cylinder
• Balance
• Beaker
• Hot plate
• Thermometer
• Stir rod (or wooden splint)
• Cooking spray
• Freezer paper

Safety

• Always wear safety goggles when working with chemicals in a laboratory setting.
• Do not consume lab solutions, even if they’re otherwise edible products.
• Food in the lab should be considered a chemical not for consumption.
• Exercise caution when using a heat source. Hot plates should be turned off and unplugged as soon as they are no longer needed.
• Students should wash their hands thoroughly before leaving the lab.
• When students complete the lab, instruct them how to clean up their materials and dispose of any chemicals.

Teacher Notes

• This lab may get messy. Have soap on hand for students to wash off any “wax” they spill. It can be sticky.
• For the prelab question, bring in samples of wax such as beeswax, soy wax, esthetician wax, paraffin wax, etc. If possible, bring in samples of actual honeycomb! Before completing the lab, pass the samples around to students to compare and contrast some of the samples. After completing the lab, talk about whether any of them would make better building materials than the homemade “wax.” Be sure that students understand that the mixture they create today is not a true wax in the chemical sense, even though it behaves similarly in some ways.
• For the protection of your drains, it is recommended that you have students place the majority of their “wax” in the trash once it has cooled before washing their lab equipment in the sink.
• True beeswax and the “wax” created in this activity vary in several important ways. Bees gather nectar and convert it into honey and then wax using enzymes in their bodies and a special process that involves passing the nectar back and forth, which removes excess water to help it to become both malleable and strong. The resulting wax is primarily composed of various kinds of esters. However, the “wax” made from the sugar, lemon juice, and water mixture in this activity is more the texture of honey, as there are no bee enzymes to complete the process of converting the honey to wax. This activity can help students make the connection to bees making a building material from nectar, though it does not resemble the material of a beehive.
• In analysis question 4, students are provided a skeletal structure of myricyl palmitate (also called triacontanyl palmitate), an ester which is typically the most abundant individual compound in beeswax. If they are not familiar with interpreting large organic skeletal structures, you may want to provide an overview of how to interpret these structures (carbon at each “corner” with enough hydrogens attached to fulfill the octet rule) or a Lewis structure with the hydrogens and carbons drawn explicitly. The close-up Lewis structure of the ester functional group is also provided.
• The following resources provide more background information on bees and the wax making process and are provided as a starting point for research questions in the student handout:
  • Drop by Drop: How Honey Happens – Chicago Botanic Garden
  • The Complex Composition of Bee's Wax – Agriculture Institute
  • How Bees Make Honey – Australian Honey Bee Industry Council
  • How Do Bees Make Beeswax? – Flow Hives
• A possible extension could be brainstorming ways to make the homemade wax solution a better building material. This is the basis for question 3, but consider taking it one step further and trying it out in the classroom, if feasible and time allows.
  • Possible ideas could include heating the mixture for longer (make sure it does not burn) to remove more water, shaping the mixture in silicone trays and freezing it, or adding cornstarch while boiling.