# A student adds small pieces of four metals — calcium, lead, nickel, and gold — separately to cold water. Describe what the student would observe for each metal, and explain these observations using the reactivity series.

> Cambridge International IGCSE Chemistry (0620) — 9.4 Reactivity series · Describe · 4 marks

## Mark scheme (4 marks)

1. Calcium reacts vigorously with cold water, producing bubbles of gas (hydrogen)
2. Lead and nickel show no reaction / do not react with cold water
3. Gold shows no reaction with cold water
4. Calcium is high in the reactivity series so it reacts with cold water; lead, nickel, and gold are lower in the reactivity series / below calcium so they do not react with cold water

## Key terms

- [reactivity series](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/reactivity-series)

## Related

- [Revision notes for Cambridge International IGCSE Chemistry (0620)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Describe" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
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Source: [GradeNine](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/q/a-student-adds-small-pieces-of-20097521) · Published by Druglandscape Ltd.