End of term fun in the Science Department
The end of the autumn term and the run up to Christmas brings and opportunity for science teachers to do some fun science and to make a mess.
This year one experiment which I hadn't seen before was the Mentos and Diet Coke Geyser. This experiment is actually a YouTube phenomenon, as a quick search will verify. It simply involves opening a 2 litre bottle of Diet Coke, quickly dropping in 5 or six Mento sweets and standing back! We got a Coke Geyser of about 7 feet.
This Link has an article by the "Myth Busters" in which the phenomenon is explained. What seems to happen is that the coating on the mento sweets dissolves in the Coke, rapidly causing the properties of the liquid to change, reducing its ability to hold the carbon dioxide in solution. Suddenly lots of carbon dioxide gas bubbles are released, causing the dramatic effects.
Its a fun, safe thing to try in your garden/yard, but don't put the lid of the bottle back on!
