Saturday 25 January 2014

Seths laboratory - The air pressure Eggstravaganza


I promised Seth a night of science but one thing lead to another and the time between Seth getting home from school and going to bed flew by. We had a mooch through Seth's science books though and found a quick experiment so that the evening wasn't a complete waste. 

Today's experiment

The air pressure Eggstravaganza:


Like me you probably remember this experiment from when you were younger, its quick and easy to do and fun to watch. All you need is:

  • A Boiled egg (shell removed)
  • Some matches
  • A Bottle/Jar with a rim just smaller than the egg

 All you need to do for this very quick experiment is strike some matches and drop them into the bottle or vessel of your choice and pop the egg on top of the rim.


And then sit back and watch what happens...

 

How does it work?

The lit matches heat the air inside the vessel causing the warming air to expand. When the flame goes out the air cools and the pressure drops. The air outside of the vessel now has a higher pressure so it pushes its way inside pushing the egg in with it.

All very serious stuff!



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