The sugar reduces the contact angle more than pure water and causes more mass to be lost from the seltzer during the reaction, but more mass is lost by the beverages with potassium benzoate and aspartame. (Compare the volcanic explosions of Mt. Big news media outlets like The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone and GQ Magazine wrote about the experiment which helped it become known worldwide like we see today (Grobe & Voltz, n.d.). 2.) (2021). This made the diameter of the candy too large to fit into the mouth of the soda bottle. WebWhen Mentos candies are dropped into a bottle of Diet Coke, a foamy fountain jets out of the beverage container. What is the conclusion of Mentos and Coke experiment? What soda has the biggest reaction to Mentos? With 5 or 6 mentos the explosion went only 330 and 310 cm high. To compare two systems, we calculate a ratio of the works required for bubble formation: We used this technique to compare the work required for formation of a bubble in deionized water to other liquids, as summarized in Table IV. Test your dog's preferred diet in this fun experiment. Here's a classic celery science experiment that uses celery and food coloring to demonstrate how plants absorb water. WebThis product walks you through the scientific method using two different experiments: -- How different types of soda react when Mentos is added to them- How Coke reacts to Mentos vs. how it reacts to baking sodaStudents will make an observation, ask a question, create a hypothesis, conduct an experiment, record results, and write a conclusion. Learn all about the science of seeds and have fun getting your hands in the dirt. Place one bottle in the refrigerator and let it sit there overnight. http://www.eepybird.com/featured-video/coke-and-mentos-featured-video/science-of-coke-mentos/. If we assume that LV is similar for Diet Coke and Caffeine Free Diet Coke, then the work required for bubble formation for Diet Coke is 90% of the work required for bubble formation for Caffeine Free Diet Coke. Drop one Mentos candy into the first bottle and record the height by counting the wet bricks or by using your own scale. One method for doing this is to roll a piece of paper into a tube just big enough to hold the loose Mentos, like a roll of coins. What happens when you put Mentos in soda? Thats my final answer.. This all boils down to the presence (or lack thereof) of sugar. The Mythbusters also correctly identified the roughness of the samples as one of the main causes of the reaction. What is inside Mentos and cola that reacts with each other causing the eruption? Since diet sodas lack the sugar that regular ones do, it has lower viscosity and surface tension. Note that the contact angle for the aspartame and potassium benzoate solutions is less than the contact angle for pure water, indicating a decrease in the surface tension. As the Mentos candy sinks in the bottle, the candy causes the production of more and more carbon dioxide bubbles, and the rising bubbles react with carbon dioxide that is still dissolved in the soda to cause more carbon dioxide to be freed and create even more bubbles, resulting in the eruption. When the candy hits the bottom of the bottle, the gas is released and pushes the soda from the bottle up in the air in an amazing eruption! The lack of change in the pH supports the conclusion that the Mint MentosDiet Coke reaction is not an acid-base reaction. Notice how bubbles immediately form on the surface of the object. For the MentosDiet Coke reaction, the carbonic acid and carbon dioxide are not products of a chemical reaction but are already present in the Diet Coke, whose equilibrium is disturbed by the addition of the Mentos. The demo went from relative obscurity to an internet sensation! Make your Mentos drop easier and your geyser spray higher with the Geyser Tube! What happens when you drop Mentos in a bottle of coke? However, the importance of the presence of surfactants in the Mentos cannot be denied. View the Mentos Geyser Experiment here! There are two safe ways to warm the other bottle of soda. This science kit seeks to challenge kids to solve problems in creative ways that will prepare them for future science classes and nurture their lifelong imagination. The video was titled Extreme Diet Coke & Mentos Experiments. This experiment investigates if small changes in your diet can alter your basal body temperature. In the Mythbusters episode1 a Mint Mentos and a brightly colored Mentos were dropped into Diet Coke, and although the Mint Mentos caused the expected eruption, the brightly colored Mentos did almost nothing. KUSA-TV News posted that original video on their website along with my blog post titled, News Anchor Gets Soaked! Within a few weeks, links to the video and my blog entry numbered in the thousands. The pH of the diet Coke prior to the reaction was 3.0, and the pH of the diet Coke after the mint Mentos reaction was also 3.0. Conclusion: The Diet Coke reacted to the Mentos, which means the hypothesis was correct. This work was supported in part by the College of Arts and Sciences at Appalachian State University, the Petroleum Research Fund, Grant No PRF# 44936-GB5, and an NC Space Grant, New Investigations Award. In conclusion the hypothesis that the diet coke will have the greatest explosion because of the high level of CO2 gas contained in it was correct. Mentos and Coke Experiment How to Do It! [Full Guide] - Cool As the mentos candy sinks in the bottle, the candy You could use abeakeror agraduated cylinderto measure the remaining soda in milliliters. If you shake a bottle or can of soda, some of the gas comes out of the solution and the bubbles cling to the inside walls of the container thanks to the tiny pits and imperfections on the inner surface of the bottle called nucleation sites. Enough mass was deposited by the Hawaiian hot spot to form the islands, but the eruptions were comparatively gentle.) Then send your curated collection to your children, or put together your own custom lesson plan. Compare the contact angle results in Table V for pure water (=85), sugar water (=80), and aspartame dissolved in water (=77). The dependent variable is the the Diet Coke with the mentos because it depends on the mentos to have a chemical response. Beware of the 20-foot stream of soda that will erupt when you pull off this experiment. Le Chateliers principle states that, If, to a system at equilibrium, a stress be applied, the system will react so as to relieve the stress.6 In our experiment the stress we are applying increases the temperature of the Diet Coke. This hypothesis was also proven false as What is the independent variable in the Mentos and Diet Coke experiment? Conclusion: The Diet Coke reacted to the Mentos, which means the hypothesis was correct. This high school science fair project investigates if small changes in your diet alter the pH of your saliva. Grobe, F., & Voltz, S. The Science of Coke and Mentos. Invert the test tube, holding the cover in place. Coca Cola and Mentos Experiment | Kids Coke Experiment | Kids TV Mentos Geyser Experiment - Mentos & Coke Experiment - The Lab This conclusion is also supported by the ingredients in the Mentos, none of which are basic: sugar, glucose syrup, hydrogenated coconut oil, gelatin, dextrin, natural flavor, corn starch, and gum arabic. The dependent variable was the height of the rise of Coca-Cola. A soda geyser is a reaction between a carbonated beverage, usually Diet Coke, and Mentos mints that causes the beverage to be expelled from its container. Mentos and Diet Coke Experiment. WebFInally, the average height of the hot bottles' geysers was 19.5 inches and was the greatest. The other bottles were heated in a water bath on a hot plate for approximately 1020min. The carbon dioxide attaches throughout the bead, increasing the amount of time over which the reaction occurs. 2008 American Association of Physics Teachers. The lower magnification image of the Fruit Mentos has smooth patches in contrast to the lower magnification image of the Mint Mentos, but the candy coating is not uniform. What is the science behind Coke and Mentos for kids? Copyright 2023 Education.com, Inc, a division of IXL Learning All Rights Reserved. Next, some thought that the pH of the liquid was responsible for the vigorous reaction. And you may not have a friend for a day or two until they forgive you. My cohost for the KUSA-TV science segment was the lovely Kim Christiansen. Now its time to actually run the experiment,but first,we need to make a hypothesis. We have shown here via contact angle measurements that these ingredients reduce the work required for bubble formation, allowing carbon dioxide to rapidly escape from the soda. What would happen if you had Coke and Mentos? Mentos Experiment Well even provide all the seeds and dirt you need for your exploration into the world of plants. Metastable Liquids: Concepts and Principles. Remember that 1 liter is equivalent to 1000 milliliters. Thanks also to Guichuan Hou and Phil Russell for their help in acquiring the SEM images, and to Donovan Leonard for his help in acquiring some of the AFM images. Experimental measurements suggest that as many as 14 million bubbles are produced per liter of soda in this experiment.[19]. Before you get started, youll need to find a location suitable for the experiment. Why do different sodas react differently to Mentos? The amount 54020g of mass was lost from the diet tonic water, 43020g of mass was lost from the tonic water, and 945g of mass from the seltzer water. Observe each eruption, recording the details and compare the results. Coke and Mentos Experiment Then, make comparisons, create a chart with your data and draw your conclusions. Of these three highly eruptive reactions, the Wint-o-Green reaction lasted the longest and lost a comparable amount of mass to the others, but traveled a much shorter distance than the Fruit and Mint Mentos reactions. The colorful nature of this chemistry experiment kit introduces your child to basic concepts of volume, measurement and chemical reactions in a safe, no-mess way. Is the coke and Mentos reaction really a chemical reaction? Now, its time to run away. What are the independent and dependent variables in Coke and Mentos? Mentos Webfeaturing the famous Diet Coke and Mentos experiment and knew its basic Further research yielded the following background information. Retrieved from https://easyscienceforkids.com/diet-coke-and-mentos-video-for-kids/. The Diet CokeWint-o-Green reaction loses more mass and the spray travels farther than the Diet Cokerock salt reaction. Coke possesses been which preferred mark through all other coke, spite one preference for Pepsi in blind taste tests. The diet coke erupted like a volcano. Mentos and Coke Experiment How to Do It! The color combined with the small size of the salt grains made it too difficult to see, and therefore difficult to determine the time of fall for the table salt. ERIC - EJ1240905 - Kinetic Modeling of and Effect of Candy The dependent variable is the the Diet Coke with the mentos because it depends on the mentos to have a chemical response. Each time, she was covered in more soda until her once-pink dress was now more Coke-colored than pink! American Journal of Physics 1 June 2008; 76 (6): 551557. For that reason, I solicited help from our creative team at Steve Spangler Science to come up with a Geyser Tube a better, more consistent way to drop the Mentos candies into the 2-liter bottle. What Will I Need For The Mentos And Coke Volcano? The beloved coke and mentos experiment is a perfect opportunity for young children interested in science to learn about the basics of acid and base reactions. The goal is to drop all seven Mentos into the bottle of soda at the same time, which is trickier than you might think. Its a fascinating experiment that can get young students interested in science, but we over here at Quantum Outreach have long pondered about the science behind this phenomenon. What did you observe when you put Mentos candy into the soda bottle? [Full Guide]. Extending the Pepsi Paradox to Diet Cola - Office of the Vice What type of chemical reaction is Coke and Mentos? This bubbling process is called nucleation. We used a FEI Quanta 200 electron scanning microscope. Just mix the two liquids and get more than 300 feet of Instant Worms. 1(d) is a magnified view of the top of a salt grain. The independent variable was the altering of each Mento. https://easyscienceforkids.com/diet-coke-and-mentos-video-for-kids/. The results in Table II are comparable to results from previous studies.3 Two to four trials were done for each sample-soda combination. Did a child really die from combining Mentos and Coca-Cola? We report on an experimental study of the Diet Coke and Mentos reaction, and consider many aspects of the reaction, including the ingredients in the candy and soda, the roughness of the candy, the temperature of the soda, and the duration of the reaction. 1 and 3 reveal jagged edges, pores, and seemingly rough surfaces (excellent growth sites for the carbon dioxide bubbles) for both table salt and sand grains. Hypothesis: If the amount of soda in the bottle decreases, then the height of the plume and velocity of the liquid will also decrease because there will less liquid with which the Mentos can react. 13, contact angle images are shown in Fig. We put 4 mentos pieces into the bottle of diet coke. We found that the max amount of mentos with the [20] In some cases, dissolved solids that increase the surface tension of water (such as sugars) also increase fountain heights. Fast-moving mentos create larger explosions while slow, powdered mentos create tiny ones (Muir, 2008). [1][14][17] Tonya Coffey, a physicist at Appalachian State University, suggested that aspartame in diet drinks lowers the surface tension in the water and causes a bigger reaction, but that caffeine does not accelerate the process. Heres the question we came up with: In an experiment popularized online, what candy creates an explosive geyser when dropped into a 2-liter Diet Coke bottle? But it has nothing to do with the mint Mentos actual flavor. WebWhen Mentos candies are dropped into a bottle of Diet Coke, a foamy fountain jets out of the beverage container. The tubes of candies were threaded onto a pipe cleaner and dropped into the soft drink to create a geyser. 4). We compared dropping 16g of Mint Mentos into a 1l bottle of seltzer water (carbonated water), a 1l bottle of tonic water (carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, natural and artificial flavors, and quinine), and a 1l bottle of diet tonic water (carbonated water, citric acid, natural and artificial flavors, aspartame, potassium benzoate, and quinine). [18], The eruption is caused by a physical reaction, rather than any chemical reaction. The longer reaction time is due to the many growth sites associated with the porous molecular sieve beads. SEM images of Mint Mentos [(a) and (c)] and Fruit Mentos with a candy coating [(b) and (d)]. Mentos & Soda Experiment Teaching Resources | TPT The AFM rms roughness measurements are given in Table V. The SEM images of some of the samples are shown in Figs. Warm soda tends to fizz much more than cold soda because of the solubility of gases in liquids. As luck would have it, the solution to the problem was within arms reach of the Wintergreen LifeSavers in the candy aisle: Mentos chewy mint candies! The Diet Coke and Mentos reaction is a popular experiment or demonstration in part because it inspires students to wonder, and inquiry-driven labs and active-learning demonstrations on this reaction have been implemented. If the growth of carbon dioxide bubbles on the sample takes place at the bottom of the bottle, then the bubbles formed will detach from the sample and rise up the bottle. The next few months were spent building trigger devices that ranged from plastic tubes with sliding doors and magnets that held metal stoppers in place to an elaborate battery-operated switch that was triggered by a motion detector. As they say, the rest is history. [2], The nucleation reaction can start with any heterogeneous surface, such as rock salt, but Mentos have been found to work better than most. Now remove the index card and let candies fall in and step away from the Mentos and coke volcano. As they say, the simplest design usually turns out to be the best and most elegant solution to the problem. [10][23][24] Because there usually are very few such pre-existing bubbles, the degassing process is slow. As the molecules move faster, they diffuse out of the liquid, leaving less gas dissolved in that liquid. The diet coke erupted like a volcano. (Gruber, 2019). Does Colorado have a defensive driving course? The results for the trials with varying temperature are given in Table III. [22] The foaming is aided by the presence of food additives such as potassium benzoate, aspartame, sugars, and flavorings in Diet Coke,[20] all of which influence the degree to which water can foam. The hands-on experiment involves dropping several Mentos Chewy Mints into a bottle of Diet Coke, which can cause a stream of the diet cola to shoot many feet Youll need a thermometer to record the temperature of the soda just before you launch it so that your data are accurate. Does the amount of Mentos affect the height of the explosion? It is very simple to do and requires minimal tools and equipment to execute correctly. From after-school activities and science classroom activities to STEM club experiments, our website is one of the most trusted resources for fun, age-appropriate experiments for kids of all ages. Due to the popularity of the Diet CokeMentos reaction as a demonstration of key principles in physics and chemistry, we have investigated the causes of the reaction. Today Room 1 and 5 did a science experiment together. Because the level of carbonation in these products might be different from the Coke products, the seltzer and tonic water results should be considered independently from the Coca-Cola product trials. What is the hypothesis for the Diet Coke and Mentos experiment? If spectators were watching your exploits, someone is bound to yell out, Do it again! Thats exactly what youre going to do. What is the conclusion of Mentos and Coke experiment? Line up a row of 10 soda bottles against a brick wall. What is the aim of the Coke and Mentos experiment? Oddly enough, this container was actually a pre-form or 2-liter soda bottle before it was blown up into a big bottle. Does the flavor of Mentos affect the explosion? Finally, we have shown that hotter beverages result in a more explosive reaction. Mentos Geyser Experiment Mentos & Coke Experiment. Many consider Diet Coke to be the optimal option, and it's been studied and confirmed as having the strongest effect. As the liquid is heated, the gas within that liquid is also heated, causing the gas molecules to move faster and faster. Teachers threaded the roll of Wintergreen LifeSavers onto a pipe cleaner as an easy way to drop all of the LifeSavers into the soda at the same time. The lower magnification images show large surface areas and small volumes, especially when compared to samples such as a Mentos, which is 12cm in diameter. Its time to put your favorite soda to the test in this fun experiment. To ensure accurate distance measurements and to extract other useful information, a video was made of the reactions, and marker flags were placed every half foot on the level ground, up to a distance of 25ft away from the bottle stand. Introduce the concepts of chemical bonding, cross-linking of molecules. Observe the eruptionheight, trajectory, duration, etc. 5 and 6. This makes the cleanup process after the experiment easier, and less gross, as nobody would want to be all covered in sugary goop, especially on a hot summer day! Follow our step-by-step instructions in our Mentos Geyser Experiment to find out. St. Helens and Mt. How can I download Tekken 7 on Windows 7? We can, however, qualitatively discuss the sample roughness by examining the SEM images of table salt and sand grains in Figs. What did you observe after you put Mentos candies into the soda bottle? WebKids TV Yenu and Sanu is home to gaining knowledge & entertain toddlers. So when a bottle of soda is opened, the partial pressure drops, and the molar concentration of the gas must also drop, which is why sodas go flat over time after they are opened. EepyBird.com Entertainment for the Curious Mind. The scale bar for (a) is 100m and for (b) is 20m. Diet Coke and Mentos: Testing New Variables In addition to the six outlined experiments, weve included suggestions for further fun, giving your future chemist more opportunities to learn and grow. Mentos To use the Mentos Geyser for a science fair project, youll to turn this cool science activity into a real science experiment. Mentos As the Mentos candy sinks in the bottle of soda, the candy causes the production of more and more carbon dioxide bubbles. The rising bubbles react with carbon dioxide that is still dissolved in the soda to cause more carbon dioxide to be freed and create even more bubbles. Part of the scientific method is making a prediction called a hypothesis. Hopefully, this article can help you finally place a scientific explanation behind this iconic and messy science experiment. Figure 1(c) is a magnified view of the edges of a salt grain, and Fig. Now its time to actually run the experiment, but first, we need to make a hypothesis. This low temperature allows the maximum amount of carbon dioxide to dissolve into the soda, keeping the carbonation levels as high as possible. What is inside Mentos and Cola that reacts with each other causing the eruption? They both ended up having 1 oz out of 8 oz ounces leave the beaker and into the air around too. It is an excellent way for children to see gas in action and is a great activity to teach This hypothesis was also proven false as the pH of the substance did not change after the reaction (Muir, 2008). The liquid samples, including the gum arabic, the baking sodawater mixture, and the Dawnwater mixture, were administered by injection using a 10ml syringe with an 18-gauge needle. Drop two Mentos into the second bottle and continue increasing the number until youve completed the experiment with all 10 bottles. A lack of sugar makes the soda mixture less viscous, given the presence of sweeteners, like aspartame, lowering the surface tension even more than usual. To switch between accounts click on the account below. 1 So the relatively small amount of caffeine in a 2 l bottle of Coke doesnt significantly affect the reaction. Hall, Jonathan Hearing, Leander Hutton, Kelly Izlar, Cully Little, James Lugenbell, Michael Mace, Bonnie Myers, Carla Penders, Zach Russell, Shane Shields, Adrian Steffen, Tony Sturtzel, and Zach Yokley. Within the next 12 months, over 800 Mentos Geyser Experiment-related videos were posted on YouTube, making the demo one of the most popular pop-culture science experiments in recent history. What is the fastest way to level up pickpocketing in Skyrim? However, scientists are finding that theres more to this spectacular demonstration than meets the eye. Some people fashioned a tube out of paper; others used a piece of plastic tubing to load the Mentos. This was the original inspiration behind the Geyser Tube. What is it with this experiment with soda and Mentos that causes this explosion to shoot so far into the air? The average distance traveled by the sodas spray during the explosion is given in Table II. We even played with ways to use the Geyser Tube to trigger multiple soda geysers in a method similar to a Rube Goldberg machine. 1 and 3. All fizz shooting out in one strong plume. Once your Mentos are lined up and ready to drop, its time for the fun to begin. It might seem surprising that the Fruit Mentos perform as well or better than the Mint Mentos. The reaction has been performed numerous times on television and the Internet, but has not been systematically studied. Search for other works by this author on: Mentos and the scientific method: A sweet combination. https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14114-science-of-mentos-diet-coke-explosions-explained/. Toll Free: 800-223-9080 So aspartame causes the most mass lost. Surface roughness has often been cited as the most important cause of the Diet CokeMentos reaction.13 Increased surface roughness implies a higher surface area to volume ratio, meaning that more growth sites should be present on per unit volume. All of the Coca-Cola products had the same expiration date, so the level of carbonation in each 2l bottle should be similar. [21][29], Additional explanations for why diet sodas outperform regular sodas in this experiment have been proposed. Retrieved January 31, 2021, from https://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/blogs/diet-coke-takes-longer-for-flight-attendants-to-serve-on-airplanes-bubbles#:~:text=Sugar%20both%20increases%20viscosity%20and,bubbles%20that%20pop%20much%20slower.%22&text=In%20the%20end%2C%20the%20total,out%20by%20a%20few%20seconds. The rms roughness of a 100m2 image acquired in the AFM. The places where the bubbles form are the nucleation sites. 5 Research Drive, Suite 150Shelton, CT 06484. Conclusion. Rough candy Measurements showed that the surface tension in water containing the sweetener aspartame is lower than in sugary water, explaining why Diet Coke creates more dramatic fountains than sugary Coke. Measure the height of the geyser by counting the number of bricks that are wet once the geyser stops. The question in the hypothesis was answered too, with the answer being no. You want the bottle to be stable before conducting the experiment. Open the soda and place the index card over the bottle opening. The intensity of the reaction was determined by measuring the mass of the bottle using a double pan balance before and after the reaction to determine the mass lost in the reaction and by measuring the horizontal distance traveled by the sodas spray. From our results in Tables I and II we see that the rock salt performance far exceeds the table salt performance, even though the surface area to volume ratio (and hence the number of bubble growth sites per gram) is larger for the table salt. This procedure prevented the explosion of the bottle during heating, but the early release of some of the carbon dioxide gas may have caused these reactions to be less explosive than the cold or room temperature trials. Buddies, S. (2012, June 14). Be sure that the soda bottles are all the same brand and type. Dropping something into the Diet Coke speeds up this process by both breaking the surface tension of the liquid and also allowing bubbles to form on the surface area of the Mentos. The Mentos Geyser Experiment became one of my featured demonstrations both on television and during my live stage presentations. Temperature of a 2l bottle of Diet Coke and mass lost during the reaction when 30g of Mint Mentos is added to the Diet Coke. [30] However, any carbonated beverage will work. The answer is a little more complicated than you might think. [27][28] Thus, the geyser reaction will still work even using sugared drinks, but diet is commonly used both for the sake of a larger geyser as well as to avoid having to clean up the stickier residue left by a sugared soda. As mentioned earlier in the article, using either diet coke or regular coke alongside mentos can produce a spewing geyser of carbonation bubbles. What are the variables of the soda and Mentos experiment? [2][10][23][24] When dissolved gas diffuses into bubbles that already exist in a liquid, it is called Type IV bubble nucleation. ERIC - EJ1240905 - Kinetic Modeling of and Effect of Candy ", "MythBusters: Diet Coke and Mentos MiniMyth", "Toying with the Diet Coke and Mentos experiment", "How Many Bubbles Are in the Foam Produced during the Candy-Cola Soda Geyser? CYSF When you open the container, the bubbles quickly rise to the top, pushing the liquid out of the way, so liquid sprays everywhere. Each bottle will receive a different number of Mentos. Make sure the candies are in line with the mouth of the bottle. Stack the Mentos candies (approx. The Wint-o-Green Lifesavers are rougher than the Mentos by a factor of 5, but the mass lost during these reactions is comparable. WebThis is a fun and exciting experiment designed for 3rd-6th graders. Warning - you are about to disable cookies.