1. Instant Snow
(from http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/content/experiment/00000044)
Materials
- Insta-Snow Powder (ordered from stevespanglerscience.com)
- Measuring cup
- 2 plastic mixing cups
- Water
Experiment
- Use the blue scoop that came in the Instant Snow package to measure out 1 scoop of Insta-Snow® powder into the empty mixing cup.2
- Measure 2 ounces of room temperature water into a second cup.
- Quickly pour all of the water into the cup with the Instant Snow powder. Don't take your eyes off the erupting snow!
- Go ahead... put your fingers in the fluffy fake snow. It looks so real that special effects artists are now using it in movies.
- If you let the snow sit out, the water will evaporate and the once fluffy snow will turn back into the dry powder. That's right... it's reusable!!!
How does it work?
Insta-Snow, the original Instant Snow, is an amazing superabsorbent polymer that turns ordinary water into a fluffy substance that looks like real snow. This faux snow is so realistic that it is now being used on movie sets and in indoor snowboarding parks.
The word polymer simply means long chain of molecules ("poly" means many and "mer" is a unit or molecule). Instant Snow soaks up water using the process of osmosis (water molecules pass through a barrier from one side to the other). When water comes in contact with the polymer, it moves from outside the polymer to the inside and causes it to swell. The polymer chains have an elastic quality, but they can stretch only so far and hold just so much water.
2. Baby Diapers Revealed
(from http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/content/experiment/00000064)
Materials
- Disposable baby diapers (several brands)
- Zipper-lock bag
- Scissors
- Water
- Newspaper
Experiment
- Place a new (unused is your first choice) diaper on a piece of newspaper. Carefully cut through the inside lining and remove all the cotton-like material. Put all the stuffing material into a clean, zipper- lock bag.
- Scoop up any of the polymer that may have spilled onto the paper and pour it into the bag with the stuffing. Blow a little air into the bag to make it puff up like a pillow, then seal the bag.
- Shake the bag for a few minutes to remove the powdery polymer from the stuffing. Notice how much (or how little) powder falls to the bottom of the bag.
- Carefully remove the stuffing from the bag and check out the dry polymer you just extracted from the diaper. Amazing stuff!
- Grab a new diaper and slowly pour about one-fourth cup warm tap water into the center. Hold the diaper over a large pan or sink and continue to add water, a little at a time, until it will hold no more. Keep track of how much water the diaper can absorb before it reaches its limit.
How does it work?
The secret, water-absorbing chemical in a diaper is a superabsorbent polymer called sodium polyacrylate. A polymer is simply a long chain of repeating molecules (monomers). If the prefix poly means many, then a polymer is a large molecule made up of many smaller units, called molecules, that are joined together. Some polymers are made up of millions of monomers. Superabsorbent polymers expand tremendously when they come in contact with water because water is drawn into and held by the molecules of the polymer. They act like giant sponges. Some can soak up as much as 800 times their weight in water! The cotton-like fibers you removed help to spread out both the polymer and the, uh, "water" so that baby doesn't have to sit on a "gooshy" lump of water-filled gel. It's easy to see that even a little bit of powder will hold a huge quantity of water, but it does have its limits. At some point, baby will certainly let you know when the gel is full and it's time for new undies!
3. Water Gel
(from http://www.stevespanglerscience.com)
Materials
- Can of water gel (from stevespnanglerscience.com)
- 2 clear plastic cups
- salt
- Water
- Waxpaper
Experiment
- Place ½ teaspoon of the water gel powder in a clear plastic cup.
- Fill another plastic cup with approximately 4 oz of room temperature water.
- Quickly pour all of the water into the cup containing the powder.
- Watch what happens – after just a few seconds you can turn the cup upside down
- Place some of your gel on the wax paper and add a little bit of of salt. Again, watch what happens.
How does it work?
The water gel powder is a polymer. Everything in the world is made up of thiny groups of atoms called Molecules. Some molecules are very large and others are small. A single molecule is called a monomer – mono means one and mer is the suffix for unit So, a monomer is molecule of a single unit. If the prefix poly means many, then a polymer is a large molecule made up of many smaler units, called molecules, that are joined together. Some polymers are made up of millions of monomers.
Now that we know what a polymer is, what can a polymer do? Polymers play a large role in our everyday lives. Synthetic polymers have a multitude of uses from something as simple as a styrofoam coffee cup to plastics, adhesives, fabrics, paints, rubber, polyester, gelatin, or even a life-saving artificial heart valve. The world as we know it today could not exist without these long chains of molecules called polymers.
When you add water to a polymer the water molecules get in between the powder molecules and make the polymer expand. Also, the water gets stuck there so that it actually remains in a solid state.
4. Magic Sand
(from http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/00000082)
Materials
- The Magic Sand (stevespnanglerscience.com)
- Regular Sand
- Water
- Plastic cups
- Liquid soap
- Spoons
Experiment
- Fill 2 cups 3/4 full with water.
- Slowly pour Magic Sand or regular sand in a continuous stream into the water. Look closely at the sand. What is that silver-like coating on the magic sand sand?
- Pour off the water from the sand into a second container. Let them touch the sand and see what they find. To everyone’s amazement, the sand is completely dry!
How does it work?
Hydrophobic substances do not mix with water. The term “water-fearing” is often used to describe the word hydrophobic. Hydrophilic substances, on the other hand, are “water-loving”. The surface of sand grains is made wet by water, which means that water molecules are attracted to sand grains. Remember, this water-loving property of sand is called a hydrophilic property. Magic Sand is regular sand that has been coated with an oil- like substance that is water-hating or hydrophobic.
Making Magic Sand Wet
Pour a small amount of Magic Sand in a cup of water. As expected, the Magic Sand stays dry. Add about 12 drops of liquid detergent to the water and use a spoon to stir the mixture. Soap breaks down the oil coating on the sand and lowers its hydrophobic properties. Adding soap removes the “magic” from Magic Sand and causes it to behave like regular sand. The secret is revealed!
5. Quicksand Goo
(from http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/00000088)
Materials
- One box of cornstarch (16 oz.)
- Large mixing bowl
- Cookie sheet, square cake pan, or something similar
- Pitchers of water
- Spoon
- Gallon size zipper-lock bag
- Newspaper or a plastic drip cloth to cover the floor
- Water
- Toy animal
Experiment
- Pour approximately 1/4 of the box (about 4 oz.) of cornstarch into the mixing bowl and slowly add about a half a cup of water. Stir.
- Continue adding cornstarch and water in small amounts until you get a mixture that has the consistency of honey. It may take a little work to get the consistency just right, but you will eventually end up mixing one box of cornstarch with roughly 1 to 2 cups of water. Notice that the mixture gets thicker or more viscous as you add more cornstarch.
- Sink your hand into the bowl of “quicksand” and notice its unusual consistency. Compare what it feels like to move your hand around slowly and then very fast. You can’t move your hand around very fast! In fact, the faster you thrash around, the more like a SOLID the gooey stuff becomes. Sink you entire hand into the goo and try to grab the fluid and pull it up. That’s the sensation of sinking in quicksand!
- Drop a plastic toy animal into the cornstarch mixture and then try to get it out. It’s pretty tough even for an experienced quicksand mixologist.
- Slap Test Pour the mixture onto the cookie sheet or cake pan. Notice its unusual consistency when you are pouring it into the pan. Stir it around with your finger, first slowly and then as fast as you can. Skim you finger across the top of the glop. What do you notice? Sink you entire hand into the glop and try to grab the fluid and pull it up. That’s the sensation of sinking in quicksand!
- Try to roll the fluid between your palms to make a ball. You can even hold your hand flat over the top of the pan and slap the liquid glop as hard as you can. Most people will run for cover as you get ready to slap the liquid, fearing that it will splash everywhere.
- According to theory, the mixture should stay in the pan. Yeah, right! If your cornstarch water mixture inadvertently splatters everywhere, you will know to add more cornstarch. When you are finished, pour the glop into a large zipper-lock plastic bag for later use.