Praxis: Exploding pumpkin faces
By Medicine Hat News on October 27, 2018.
With the tremendous weather we have been having this week, it is hard to believe that Halloween is just days away now. I hope all of the ghosts and goblins out there have their costumes ready! I cannot wait to see all of them. If you are having a party of your own, Halloween is a fantastic time to throw some science learning in there. Who doesn’t love a good fizzing exploding science experiment? Here is a great one for you. Let’s get started! *Remember to ask an adult before doing this experiment. Materials – orange food colouring – water – measuring cup – measuring spoon – toilet tissue – vinegar baking soda – zip top sandwich bags – outdoor location (or anywhere you are OK with a mess!) – markers Procedure 1. Using the marker, draw a scary jack o lantern face on the outside of the zip top bag. 2. Pull one square of toilet tissue off of the roll and set it on a flat surface to work. 3. Measure one tablespoon (15 mL) of baking soda and place it in the middle of the square of toilet tissue. 4. Fold the toilet tissue into a nice little square package, holding all of the baking soda in. Be careful, this can be tricky. Set aside for now. 5. Measure 1/4 cup (60 mL) of water and pour it into the zipper bag. 6. Add 1/2 cup (120 mL) of vinegar to the water. 7. Add a couple of drops of orange food colouring so it really looks like a pumpkin. 8. Take all of your supplies, and now it is time to go to the area you can make a mess! 9. Place the package of baking soda you made into the water/vinegar mixture. 10. QUICKLY zip it up and throw the baggie AWAY from you. 11. Observe! What is going on? The bag should have got bigger and bigger until KABOOM!, it popped. This reaction is quite quick, so do not stand around if you do not want to get drenched in orange goo! When you mix vinegar (acetic acid) and baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), a chemical reaction takes place producing CO2 or carbon dioxide. As the bag fills up with this gas, it eventually has nowhere to go any longer and as a result the bag explodes! Patty Rooks is senior scientific consultant at PRAXIS, “Connecting Science To The Community.” Contact Praxis at praxis@praxismh.ca, http://www.praxismh.ca, Tweet or follow us @PraxisMedHat, or friend us on Facebook. 29-28
