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The Reactivity Series

Science · Matter & Materials · ages 12-14

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Which metal is at the bottom of the reactivity series, meaning it is the least reactive?
- Zinc
- Gold
- Iron
Which metal is at the top of the reactivity series, meaning it is the most reactive?
- Potassium
- Gold
- Iron
A more reactive metal can displace a less reactive metal from its compound.
Circle one: True False
Why can carbon be used to extract iron from iron oxide?
- Carbon sits above iron, so it can grab iron's oxygen
- Carbon is less reactive than iron, so it leaves iron alone
- Carbon melts iron oxide without any chemical reaction
Iron is dropped into a solution of copper sulfate. What happens?
- Nothing happens; iron and copper don't react
- Copper displaces iron; iron metal appears
- Iron displaces copper; copper metal appears
Why did people extract iron from its ore long before they made aluminium on a large scale?
- Aluminium reacts with carbon just as easily as iron does, so there was no reason to extract it sooner
- Iron sits below carbon, so carbon and fire extract it; aluminium needs electrolysis for large-scale production
- Iron is a man-made metal, while aluminium only exists in nature
A student says: 'We could use carbon to extract aluminium from aluminium oxide, the same way we extract iron.' What is wrong with this claim?
- Aluminium is above carbon, so carbon cannot take its oxygen
- Carbon works the same way with every metal oxide
- Aluminium oxide contains no oxygen to remove
A student says: 'Copper will displace zinc from zinc sulfate solution, because copper is a metal too.' What is wrong with this claim?
- Copper is more reactive than zinc, so the claim is correct
- Displacement only happens between two non-metals
- Zinc sits above copper, so copper cannot displace zinc

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

The Reactivity Series W1-mt_zsYW61cn_q-s1

Gold · Gold sits at the bottom. It barely reacts with anything, which is why it stays shiny.
Potassium · Potassium sits at the top of the reactivity series. It is the most reactive common metal.
True · In a suitable compound, that is the rule of displacement: the more reactive metal takes over from the less reactive one.
Carbon sits above iron, so it can grab iron's oxygen · Carbon sits above iron in the reactivity series. It grabs the oxygen from iron oxide, leaving iron behind.
Iron displaces copper; copper metal appears · Iron sits above copper in the reactivity series, so iron pushes copper out of its compound.
Iron sits below carbon, so carbon and fire extract it; aluminium needs electrolysis for large-scale production · Iron sits below carbon in the reactivity series, so heating it with carbon works. Aluminium sits above carbon, so carbon cannot extract it. Large-scale aluminium production needed electrolysis, which came much later than the first small amounts obtained by chemical reduction.
Aluminium is above carbon, so carbon cannot take its oxygen · Carbon can only take oxygen from metals below it in the reactivity series. Aluminium sits above carbon, so this method fails for aluminium.
Zinc sits above copper, so copper cannot displace zinc · Being a metal isn't enough. Only a more reactive metal can displace a less reactive one, and zinc is higher than copper in the series.