KRAZY KITCHEN SCIENCE!
Liquids, Solids and Gases
Ever wonder what matter is? Matter is most easily
understood as anything that weighs something and
takes up space. The three most common forms of
matter are liquids, solids and gases.
Ever wonder what a liquid is? A liquid flows and
takes the shape of its container. Examples are water,
milk and orange juice.
Ever wonder what a solid is? A solid is stiff and
holds its shape regardless of its container. Examples
are ice, ice cream and popsicles.
Ever wonder what a gas is? A gas, which you usually can’t see, expands out in
all directions to fill its container – such as steam in a tea kettle or air in a balloon.
Ever wonder whether matter can change its form? Yes, matter can change
from one form to another. This is called a “phase change.” Examples include
melting an ice cube into water, or boiling water into steam.
Ever wonder how a phase change happens? Matter can change in two ways:
through a physical change or a chemical reaction. The most common physical
change occurs when an increase or decrease in temperature causes matter to
freeze (become a solid), melt (become a liquid), or vaporize (become a gas). A
chemical reaction occurs when two or more types of matter combine to create a
new type of matter. This happens, for example, when baking soda (a solid) and
vinegar (a liquid) are combined; a chemical reaction produces the gas carbon
dioxide.
Ever wonder what dry ice is? Dry ice is the solid form of the gas carbon
dioxide (which is the gas we breathe out with our lungs). It is an interesting type
of matter, as it has no liquid form. When dry ice warms up, it does not melt, but
immediately becomes a gas. That’s why it’s called “dry” ice! When solid matter
changes directly into a gas form, this is called sublimation.
You Can Do It!
Make a Gas Head.
Procedure:
Decorate a 2 liter plastic bottle to look like a body. Be creative! You can use any size bottle, but will
need to adjust the ingredients to fit the container if you change the size.
Next, draw a face on a party-size balloon. Drawing the face is easiest if you inflate the balloon
without tying it shut, draw the face on with a permanent marker, then deflate the balloon again.
Pour approximately 1 c. white vinegar into the “body.”
Pour approximately 1 Tbs. baking soda into the balloon “head.” A funnel is helpful.
Very securely attach the bottom of the balloon “head” to the bottle “body,” being careful not to let any
of the baking soda drop down into the bottle yet. The balloon will sit drooping off to the side.
To blow up the gas head, tip the balloon upward and allow the baking soda to slowly slide out of the
balloon and into the vinegar. BE CAREFUL TO HOLD ON TO THE BOTTOM OF THE
BALLOON WHERE IT ATTACHES TO THE BOTTLE AS THE BALLOON CAN INFLATE VERY
QUICKLY AND CAN GO FLYING.
The Science: The vinegar (a liquid) and the baking soda (a solid) have combined to produce carbon
dioxide gas. This is a chemical reaction. Though gases are usually invisible, you can see the gas here
because it expands and fills the balloon.
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Extensions: Experiment with different sizes of bottles, different amounts of the ingredients or different
temperatures to change the rate and amount of gas released.
Make a Dry Ice Balloon. Dry ice is now fairly commonly sold in grocery stores, such as Harris Teeter. It
is about $1/pound. Please be sure to heed these safety warnings before working with dry ice:
DO NOT leave dry ice unattended around children. Dry ice is extremely cold. It freezes at -109.3°F
(-78.5°C) and must be handled with care. Wear leather gloves or oven mitts and protective eyewear
whenever handling it. More than a second or two of contact can freeze cells and cause injury similar
to a burn.
It is also important to follow these rules when storing dry ice:
o Store dry ice in an insulated container. The thicker the insulation, the slower the ice will
sublimate.
o Do not store dry ice in a completely airtight container. The sublimation of dry ice to carbon
dioxide gas will cause any airtight container to expand and possibly explode.
o Make sure the storage area is properly ventilated. The sublimated carbon dioxide gas will
sink to low areas and replace oxygenated air. This could cause suffocation if breathed
exclusively.
o Do not store dry ice in a refrigerator or freezer for a long period of time. The extreme cold
temperature will cause your thermostat to turn off the freezer.
To dispose, unwrap and leave the dry ice at room temperature in a well-ventilated area. It will
sublimate from a solid to a gas. Do not leave it on a tiled countertop as the extreme cold could crack
the tile. Do not leave dry ice that is to be disposed of in an area where it could be mishandled.
Procedure:
Place an open container of dry ice on a table. It will be “smoking.” Ask: What is producing the
“smoke”? Unlike ice, dry ice goes from being a solid to a gas without ever becoming a liquid. This is
called sublimation. The “smoke” is carbon dioxide gas.
Now place a few small pieces of dry ice into a party-size balloon using a funnel and tie off the balloon.
The balloon will begin to inflate. Be sure to hold the balloon away from yourself and others, as the
pressure of the gas could become so great that the balloon will pop.
The Science: When the dry ice (a solid) warms and sublimates, carbon dioxide gas is generated, which
is captured by the balloon.
Make an Underwater Volcano
Procedure:
Fill a tall, narrow glass container about a third full of white vinegar. Add a few drops of red food
coloring (or the color of your choosing).
Next, consider what will happen when oil is added. Will there be a reaction? Will it combine with the
vinegar? Sink to the bottom? Float on top? Pour in a thick layer of oil and observe what happens.
(It will float on top of the vinegar).
Pour approximately ¼ cup baking soda into a medium sized cup. Add enough water to create a thick
paste and set aside. Ask: What will happen when the baking soda is added?
Drop a few spoonfuls of the baking soda paste down into the vinegar and watch the volcano bubble
up into the oil.
The Science:
The eruption occurs because of a chemical reaction between vinegar (a liquid that is an acid) and
baking soda (a solid that is a base). Acids are substances that taste sour. For example, it is the citric
acid in a lemon that gives a lemon its sour taste. Bases are substances that feel slippery. For
example, many soaps are bases. When mixed together, vinegar and baking soda create a chemical
reaction that produces the gas carbon dioxide. It is the gas bubbling up that makes the water churn.
Liquids have different densities. Oil is less dense than vinegar; that’s why it floats on top. The oil
adds a thicker layer to the volcano that helps trap the gas bubbles and keeps the volcano from
erupting and oozing down the sides, as in a more traditional volcano experiment.
Though real underwater volcanoes have nothing to do with the chemical reaction created in our
model, they are very interesting. Underwater volcanoes are just like land volcanoes except that they
erupt down in the ocean, and their lava eventually cools and forms large underwater mountains. Over
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time, some mountains get higher and higher until they break the surface of the ocean and form
islands. The Hawaiian Islands, for example, started as underwater volcanoes.
Dry Ice Volcano
Procedure:
Please see the warnings regarding dry ice in the Dry Ice Balloon experiment above.
Make a soapy solution consisting of about 1 Tbs. dish soap per gallon of water. Add food coloring if
desired.
Pour the solution into a large bowl or tub.
Use tongs to add chunks of dry ice. The solution will begin to bubble rapidly.
When the bubbles pop, “smoke” will appear. This is not heat or steam, but the CO2 gas emerging. It
is fun and safe to pop the bubbles yourself!
The Science: The solution is not boiling, even though it is bubbling. The bubbles are created from the
pressure of the carbon dioxide sublimating (turning into gas) in the water. The carbon dioxide gas
becomes “trapped” in the soap that is dissolved in the water. When you pop the soap bubbles, the carbon
dioxide gas is released into the air.
Mentos®/ Diet Coke® Geyser
Procedure:
Open a bottle of Diet Coke®. (Though other brands of diet cola may work, Diet Coke® by far works
the best.) Listen carefully as you unscrew the cap – what makes that noise? What makes the
bubbles in the soda? It’s the soda releasing carbon dioxide gas.
Place the bottle in a tray/pool. What will happen when mint Mentos® are added to the bottle? (They
must be mint Mentos®; the fruity ones don’t work.)
Quickly drop in 2 (or more) Mentos® and watch the reaction! The larger the bottle of Diet Coke®, the
more Mentos® you will need to add; be sure to add them all at once. If you add more Mentos® after
the first eruption, the bottle will likely not erupt again because most of the gas has already escaped.
The Science: Scientists are not completely sure how the Mentos® geyser works, but most think it is a
physical reaction, not a chemical one. When a Diet Coke® bottle is first opened, you can hear gas
escaping. This is carbon dioxide; it’s what makes soda fizzy. Scientists think the Mentos® candies cause
the gas to escape more quickly, causing an explosion. This primarily happens because Mentos® have
dimples all over their surface (like a golf ball), which allows the carbon dioxide bubbles to form far more
easily and quickly.
Chemical Reaction Rocket
Procedure:
Using a plastic film canister as the rocket’s base (you can find them at the film counter at most drug
stores or buy them on eBay), tape a tube of paper or foam around the canister to make a rocket body.
Be sure the canister is placed in the tube upside-down, so that the lid is at the very bottom. It also
helps to wrap the bottom of the rocket where it meets the canister in something waterproof, like duck
tape. Decorate your rocket with a nose cone, fins, etc., as desired. Be creative!
To blast off your rocket, turn the whole thing upside-down and remove the canister lid. Place a small
piece (about ¼) of an effervescent tablet (such as Alka Seltzer®) in the canister, and fill about
halfway with COLD water. Quickly replace the lid, turn your rocket over and place it on the ground. (If
you are doing this inside, put your rocket on a towel.) BE SURE TO STAND BACK!
Count how many seconds pass before your rocket blasts off. There are many variables, but the
rocket should shoot about 4-6 feet into the air in about 5-10 seconds. Now try making the water
warmer or colder and see how this changes your launch time.
The Science: The effervescent tablet contains both an acid and a base. As it dissolves in water, the
acid and base combine to cause a chemical reaction that releases carbon dioxide gas. The gas slowly
builds up inside the canister until the canister can’t it hold anymore; the pressure then makes the lid pop
off. The colder the water, the slower the reaction. The hotter the water, the faster the reaction, and the
faster the rocket will blast off. As the lid is forced off, it pushes down on the ground. This causes the rest
of the rocket to shoot up. This demonstrates one of the Laws of Motion: for every action (pushing down),
there is an equal and opposite reaction (shooting up).
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UP NEXT AT DISCOVERY THEATER…
Halloween Harvest
Thurs.-Fri., Oct. 27-28 at 10:15 and 11:30
Sat., Oct. 29 at 11:00 and 1:00 (includes a Fall Festival outside of
the theater!)
Recommended for ages 3-8
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