Why do quarters turn green

No it shouldn't have lowered the weight, unless something ate into the coin. You can soak it for a few hours, or overnight, and then rinse. It may or may not come off. This coin is worth 25 cents going in and 25 cents coming out. Damaged by the environment. It spent too much time on the ground. Welcome to CT. Collecting Nut , Apr 19, Show Ignored Content. Draft saved Draft deleted. Try the green penny experiment. For our last science invitation we turned pennies green! In this science […].

There is also a free printable to track your […]. This simple science activity will show you why! Looks fun and […]. Have you ever found an old penny on the ground that looked green?

See how this happens with this turn a penny green activity! From: Buggy and Buddy […]. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Follow our Science for Kids Pinterest board! Place the pennies on top of the paper towel. The pennies placed on the paper towel. Pennies with vinegar ready to be observed. Comments What a great science activity!

Thanks for linking up to Science Sunday! What is the reaction that is taking place to tarnish the pennies? Is the blue greenish toxic or dangerous to our health in anyway?

I did it experiment magic pencil the children love it. When the atoms of silver come into contact with oxygen, a film of silver sulphide forms on the coin surface, with the underlying layers not being affected. Black — Unearthed ancient silver coins are often black caused by the sulphides formed by organic matter in the earth. Green — Silver coins can turn green if they are alloyed with copper, the green colour resulting from copper carbonate or copper chloride.

Rainbow - The yellow colour can progress to magenta to cyan to black. This results from the refracting of different wavelengths of light through the film, and resembles the rainbow effect that appears when a layer of oil lays on top of water. The best way to protect coins is to limit their exposure to air and the elements.

Storing coins in tight-fitting capsules in a dry atmosphere, free from humidity, and refrain from handling them. Silver coins that were originally used as currency were never stored in capsules. Little thought was given to the fact that they would tone, whereas modern coins marketed for collectors and investors are usually packaged and stored to help protect them from the elements and handling. Plastic capsules are often used, and can reduce the rate of toning but will rarely stop it from happening completely.

This is usually done by using concentrated chemicals to quickly tone a coin. These coins are relatively easy to detect as they usually have extreme colouration featuring unnaturally dramatic contrasts of colours. Artificially toned coins should be avoided where possible, as coin collectors prefer coins to be natural and have untampered surfaces. The value of these coins decrease dramatically when altered in this way, and will be worth no more than the silver weight.