Hey there! Have you ever enjoyed a cool drink on a hot day? It’s so refreshing! My favorite drink is strawberry lemonade, and sometimes I even enjoy a fizzy soda with my friend Squeaks. We love the tingly feeling from the bubbles!
The tingly feeling in soda comes from lots of tiny bubbles. When people make soda, they squirt bubbles into it and quickly cap the bottle so the bubbles stay inside. But what happens when you open the bottle?
When you open a soda bottle, the bubbles start to escape! If you pour the soda into a glass, you’ll see bubbles floating to the top. If you add a straw, you’ll notice bubbles gathering around it. The straw gives the bubbles a place to gather before they float up.
We tried using a chenille stick, which is fuzzy and shaped like a straw. When we put it in the soda, even more bubbles appeared! The fuzziness helped the bubbles come out faster.
Now, let’s try something even more exciting! If you want to try this at home, make sure you have an adult to help and wear safety glasses. You’ll need a bottle of clear diet soda, construction paper, tape, a card, and some Mentos candies.
First, make a tube from the construction paper and tape it closed. Fill the tube with Mentos and place it over the open soda bottle, using a card to hold the candies in place. When you’re ready, pull the card away so the candies fall into the soda all at once. Get ready for a soda fountain!
When the Mentos drop into the soda, they create lots of bubbles very quickly. The bubbles rush out of the bottle, creating a fountain effect!
Even though a straw looks smooth, it has tiny bumps that bubbles can stick to. The chenille stick is even bumpier, so it creates more bubbles. Mentos have cracks and bumps too, which is why they cause so many bubbles to form quickly.
After the experiment, the Mentos look smooth, but they sure made a lot of bubbles! What do you think would happen if we used more or fewer candies? Let’s experiment and find out!
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