Experiment #5 February 25th, 2011
Things you will need:
-A Small Plastic Bottle
-Yeast
-Hydrogen Peroxide (20 or 40 Volume)
-Big Vessel
-Small Vessel
-Red Food Coloring
-Dish Detergent
-Safety Glasses
-Rubber Glove
-Water
-Spoon
What you need to do:
With gloves and safety glasses on, pour ½ cup of your hydrogen peroxide into the bottle. Be careful because you do not want to get this on your skin. Add about 8 drops of food coloring and 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap. Swirl the mixture around just a bit. In a separate container combine 3 tablespoons of warm water with a packet of yeast and mix for about 30 seconds. Pour the yeast in the bottle and watch the goo grow!
What is going on here:
Hydrogen peroxide decomposes into water and oxygen. This is an enzyme controlled decomposition reaction where enzymes in the yeast assist in the decomposition of the hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide is an unstable substance , meaning that it will break up over time into water and oxygen. We are adding a catalyst to speed up this reaction. Oxygen is caught up in the soapy mixture and goo is born. This is also an exothermic reaction so some heat is produced.
