Hot Science Experiments How-Tos

Classic Chemistry: Colorize Colorless Liquids with "Black" Magic, AKA the Iodine Clock Reaction

Want to make boring old colorless water brighten up on command? Well, you can control the color of water with this little magic trick. Actually, it's not really magic, but a classic science experiment known commonly as the iodine clock reaction, which uses the reactions between water and chemicals to instantly colorize water, seemingly by command. You can use different colorless chemicals to produce different colors, and you can even make the color vanish to make the water clear again.

How To: Make hydrochloric acid from salt

In this tutorial, we learn how to make hydrochloric acid from salt. First, you will pour some salt into a distil flask. After this, you will add in some concentrated sulfuric acid to the salt. Next, you will let these react with each other. You will start to see gasses bubble up and the excess hydrogen chloride gas come out through the top of the tube. To create a stronger reaction, you can add heat underneath the reaction. Then, test this by exposing it to ammonium chloride. If it's the righ...

How To: Make Your Own Homemade Glow Sticks

Glow sticks, a popular favor at parties and outdoor events, and a must-have on Halloween, can be traced back to the United States Navy in the mid-1960s. The military desired improved visibility during night operations, and glow sticks, with their small-size portability and lack of batteries, were a perfect tactical solution.

How To: There's Metal Hiding in Your Pepto-Bismol and Here's How You Extract It

Got an upset stomach or a little heartburn? America's favorite pink pill will cure it right up. But did you know that there's actually metal hiding in those chewable Pepto-Bismol tablets? Yes, metal. Technically, it's a poor metal, but metal's metal, right? Well, we do tend to eat a lot of iron in our diets, because it carries oxygen throughout our bodies, so consuming metallic minerals isn't anything abnormal. But you'd never think that Pepto-Bismol is actually made up of metal.

How to Be Your Own SpaceX: Design, Build & Test Liquid-Fueled Rocket Engines

Move over NASA— SpaceX is taking over. Well, not really. But today, the privately funded spacecraft company broke all expectations when their Dragon capsule fell to a soft landing in the Pacific Ocean, completing an undoubtedly successful demo flight of nearly two full trips around Earth. It was the first re-entry of a commercial spacecraft ever, bringing commercial space transportation closer to reality.

How To: Make maganese heptoxide (permanganic acid)

This video tutorial is in the Education category which will show you how to make manganese heptoxide (permanganic acid). This procedure is extremely dangerous. Manganese heptoxide is an extremely powerful oxidizing agent. It has the ability to set fuels on fire from mere contact. Get an old dish and put a spatula full of potassium permanganate on it. Add a few drops of concentrated sulphuric acid. A green liquid is formed which is the manganese heptoxide. Now you can add any fuel like butanol...

How To: Make (non-Newtonian) Oobleck from corn starch & water

Mr. O shows his audience in this video how to make oobleck, a slime-like substance which has a variety of unique properties. For this project, you will need a mixing bowl, food coloring, corn starch, a measuring cup, and water. First, color the water with food coloring to a color which is much darker than the color you would like. You will need the correct ratio of water to cornstarch, in a 1 to 2 ratio. Add some water to the bowl and add the cornstarch, then add the rest of the water. Finall...

How To: Build a vertical axis wind turbine

The economy is down, so what's one way you can save money? Build a vertical axis wind turbine! This eco-friendly four-part video tutorial will show you just how to make one so you can save money. These are detailed steps for making the vertical axis wind turbine. The blades can be easily interchanged offering different shapes and materials to experiment with. This design can create turbines up to 90 inches in diameter and up to 15 feet tall.

How To: Determine the empirical and molecular formulas for a compound in chemistry

In this free video science lesson from Internet pedagogical superstar Salman Khan, you'll learn how to determine the empircal and molecular formulas of a substance given percent composition. Whether you need help studying for that next big test or could just use a hand finishing your homework, you're sure to be well served by this video lesson. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, take a look.

How To: Isolate the sugar in a can of soda

In this video from ScienceOnTheBrain we learn how to isolate the sugar in a can of soda. To find out how much sugar is in soda, pour a can into a pot and boil it until all the water is gone. You will be left with the sugar, and then you can weigh it. First weigh your pot before pouring the soda in. Now boil the soda on the stovetop. When the water evaporates, you'll be left with a syrupy sugar. A can of soda has 39 grams of sugar in it. That equates to about 7 1/2 teaspoons. Fruit juice conta...

How To: Make your own nylon

In this tutorial, we learn how to make your own nylon. You will need: pipettes, pipette filler, forceps, beaker, stir rod, sebacoyl chloride and hexanediame solution. Now, pour some of the hexanediame solution into the small beaker. Add in a food coloring if you want to make this a specific color. After this, add in 4 cc's of sebacoyl chloride and carefully drip into the side of the beaker. You should see a layer of where the two liquids are after this. Now, take your tweezers and reach into ...

How To: Make boric acid from borax

This is a video tutorial in the Education category where you are going to learn how to make boric acid from borax. For this experiment you will need borax (disodium tetra borate) and conc. hydrochloric acid. Take 25 ml of hydrochloric acid and dilute it with 75 ml of water. Next take 6 - 7 gms of borax and dissolve it in boiling water. Now add equal amount of hydrochloric acid. Crystals of boric acid will start forming. They are completely insoluble in cold water. After about half an hour, fi...

How To: Make a permanent, reusable glow stick

Make a reusable glow stick, glow-in-the-dark-style! Imagine, you'll never have to buy one of those ChemLite's again, because you can reuse this homemade glow stick over and over again. This video tutorial will show you how to make a permanent, reusable glow stick. The materials in this experiment are simple: epoxy resin, straw, and some phosphor powder.

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