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Exploding Art

What is it?

When you combine baking soda and vinegar you create bubbles (also known as carbon dioxide gas!). This result is called a chemical reaction, a process in which the molecular structure of the matter is being changed. In this case, the the baking soda powder and the glow-in-the-dark-vinegar liquid create the carbon dioxide bubbles that make the bag expand. This results in an explosion!

 

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How to make it

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Glow-in-the-dark vinegar

  1. In a container, add some neon paint to 1 cup of vinegar

  2. Mix until dissolved

  3. You can make as many of these as you’d like, depending on how many colors you want to use

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Baking soda bombs

  1. Pour baking soda in to the center of a toilet paper square

  2. Fold the toilet paper into a ball with the baking soda secured inside

 

Exploding paint bag

  1. Pour glow-in-the-dark vinegar into zip-seal bags (feel free to mix colors!)

  2. Place baking soda bombs inside the top left of the bag, seal the bag as best as you can

  3. Don’t let the baking soda bombs touch the glow-in-the-dark vinegar just yet!

  4. Drop the bag on the poster board and seal the bag the rest of the way

  5. Watch the bag expand!

 

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What you'll need

  • Glow-in-the-dark vinegar

  • Containers

  • Zip-seal bags

  • Baking soda

  • Toilet paper

  • Poster board

  • Blacklight flashlight

 

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What do you notice? 

What do you notice? 

Can you see the colors when the blacklight flashlight isn’t shining on the glow-in-the-dark vinegar?

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NGSS

PS1: Matter and its interactions

PS2: Motion and stability: Forces and interactions

5-PS1-3. Make observations and measurements to identify materials based on their properties

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