Chemistry Issue or Topic
How do you make iron sulfide, FeS2, otherwise known as Fool's Gold, in the lab?
Answer the Question
Blend 5.5847 grams of Iron powder (0.1 mole) with 6.412 grams sulfur flour (0.2 mole). Add this blend into a platinum crucible until 1/4 full. Cover with silica sand. Heat in a muffle furnace at 900 deg C with a lid. You will have to play with the time (synthetic rubies take about 3 months from aluminum oxide). After proper roasting, cool down over a period of about one week in a glass tempering kiln. If air was properly excluded, you should have iron sulfide crystals under the sand. If you don't care about crystals, repeat the above procedure at 450 deg C for 24 hours and you will have amorphous iron sulfide.
