Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Elephant Toothpaste

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=085e-ALKmUM

This is a video of a few aspiring chemists doing a pretty cool experiment. The experiment has been labeled the "elephant toothpaste" experiment, you will see why.

The actual experiment is done with 30% Hydrogen peroxide (can't buy in stores), saturated Potassium iodide (KI) solution, and liquid dishwashing detergent (I think any brand will do). The chemical equation for this reaction is:

H2O2(aq) + I-(aq) --> OI-(aq) + H2O(l)

H2O2(aq) + OI-(aq) --> I-(aq) + H2O(l) + O2(g)

The Iodide ion acts as a catalyst for the decomposition of the H2O2 into H20 and O2. As the reaction proceeds, most of the O2 is captured by the liquid soap into bubbles and creates what appears to be "elephant toothpaste."

Posted by Will Black

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