creativeminds
Investigate!
Balloon Busters!
As a party organiser, you have to blow up a lot of balloons and
that takes a lot of puff!
Investigate other ways of inflating balloons using chemical and
biological reactions. You may like to try this experiment with a variety
of shapes of balloons.
You have
Balloons or Ziploc bags,
Water
Lemon juice
Sugar
Bicarbonate of soda or similar.
Plastic water bottles or similar
Thermometer
Vinegar
Yeast
Activity
1.
To begin with, half fill a small, plastic, water bottle with vinegar, drop in an a
tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda, or similar and, as quickly as possible, stretch a
balloon over the neck of the bottle, creating an air tight seal.
2.
What can you see happen as the powder dissolves?
3.
Experiment with different quantities of vinegar and bicarbonate until you find the
combination that inflates the balloon the most.
4.
You may wish to try different liquids (water mixed with lemon juice, cola or lime
juice) or different temperatures of liquid..
In this chemical reaction, as the bicarbonate (sodium bicarbonate) reacts with the
vinegar (acetic acid), carbon dioxide, the colourless, odourless gas that is present
in our atmosphere, is released and inflates the balloon.
5.
Can you think of a way of adding the bicarbonate to the vinegar with no loss of
gas. (Try putting the powder in the balloon before putting the balloon on the
bottle!)
6.
Repeat this experiment using warm water, sugar and yeast.
7.
Begin with half a bottle of warm water, a teaspoon of sugar and a tablespoon of
yeast.
8.
Make sure the ingredients are well mixed. You will have to leave this biological
reaction a little longer to work.
creativeminds
9.
Investigate!
Do this experiment again different quantities of yeast, water and sugar?
In this biological reaction, the yeast is a micro organism that feeds on the sugar
solution and produces carbon dioxide as a by product of the fermentation process.
10. You will need to find a way to measure the amount of 'inflation' of the balloon. (You
could try measuring around the middle of the inflated balloon with a tape
measure.)
11. Remember to record your results.
12. Which method causes the greatest inflation of balloons?
13. Another way to experience the pressure of the gas production is to put the
ingredients in a balloon, (you may need a funnel) or Ziploc plastic bag and see if
you can make it burst! (Do this in a sink or outside!)
Useful Questions
•
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Where do you think the bubbles come from?
(This is a very interesting question to ask as it allows the children to be creative and
become more fluent in their scientific explanations)
•
What other life processes is the gas Carbon Dioxide involved in? (respiration,
photosynthesis.)
•
•
What is yeast usually used to make?
•
•
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How can you be sure that you are conducting a fair test? (Only change one variable at
a time.)
Are some balloon shapes easier to inflate than others? Why do you think this is?
Can you think of any other ways to inflate a balloon.
If you inflate a balloon and release it, what happens to the balloon? Why do you think
this is?
Research Opportunities
•
Balloons are often filled with other gases, so that they are lighter than air and will fly.
They are often sold at fun fairs. Find out what these gases are and what properties
that they possess.
•
Hot air balloons can fly as they have burner that heats the air up. As hot air rises, this
causes the balloon to rise too. Using a atlas, plan a route around the world, travelling
over as many countries as possible. Use the internet to find out lots of hot air balloon
facts to help you plan your voyage. Can you find out when and where the first hot air
balloon flight was made?
creativeminds
•
Investigate!
Find a simple bread recipe to experience the yeast fermentation in a more appetizing
way! You could add your own ingredients to make your bread special! You can make
sweet or savoury bread. Why not have a bread stall for charity at your school.
Useful Websites
Find out about hot air ballooning around the world:
http://www.hot-air-ballooning.org/
Lots of interesting balloon facts
http://www.balloonhq.com/
Find out about the history of flour and bread making at this site
http://www.flourandgrain.com/flourandgrainfacts.asp
The Creative Minds project works with museums libraries and
archives across the Yorkshire region, to provide young people with
learning opportunities in Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths
(S.T.E.M.). This ground-breaking project is the first of its
kind in the country and is managed by MLA Yorkshire. This
pack was developed by Creative Minds and Eureka! The
Museum for Children with funding from Yorkshire Forward.