Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Elephant toothpaste

Hmm nothing special to mention on as I think it has been featured in alot of video. However in case you do not know the theory behind it, let me explain it. The procedure mentioned below is what I used for the video.

Firstly, we need to add in 30ml of 30% H2O2 in a 100ml measuring cylinder. Add one squirt of dish washing detergent. Then the most exciting part is the 2M potassium iodide. Once a few ml of it is added, the foam will form. Blue dye added is optional as it only give you a nicer colour.

The reaction behind it is due to the potassium iodide which act as a catalyst to break down the hydrogen peroxide to oxygen and water. The oxygen produced caused the liquid detergent to generate bubbles/foam which is what you will see. Do note the reaction is exothermic, so please do not touch as it is quite hot and H2O2 is also quite corrosive in case not all have been reacted.

Anyway enjoy the video and you can try it yourself if you have the chemical needed.

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