By: Brandon Shillady and Sean Stull
WHEN ADDING A PIECE OF MENTOS CANDY TO A
CARBONATED BEVERAGE, OUT OF CARBONATED WATER,
REGULAR COCA COLA, OR DIET COKE, DIET COKE
SHOULD PRODUCE THE LARGEST REACTION.
If we drop four uncoated Mint Mentos into 2-Liter
bottles of Carbonated Water, Coca Cola, and Diet
Coke, then the artificial sweetener of the Diet Coke
will cause it to produce the highest eruption.

2 Factors Involved in Mentos & Soda Explosion
 1st Component = Soda
▪ Provides a Key Reactant of CO2
▪ W/out CO2 from Soda, Bubbles that Form Explosion Would Not Be Formed
 2nd Component = Mentos Candy
▪ Usually four Mentos Are Put in Each 2-Liter Bottle
▪ This Reactant is Provides the Little Grooves that Form “Housings” to Form Bubbles
▪ Bubbles Form in the Tiny Moon-Surface-Like Grooves on Original Mentos Candy Surface
 Explosion Starts when Mentos Hit the Bottom of the Soda Bottle
Muir, Hazel. "Science of Mentos & Diet Coke Explosions Explained." NewScientist:
Physics & Math. Reed Business Information, 12 June 2008. Web. 02 May 2012.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14114-science-of-mentosdiet-cokeexplosions-explained.html.

Key Concepts:
 Use Different Types of Mentos
 Mint vs. Fruit
 Nucleation Sites
 Phase Transition in a Small Region
 Physical and Chemical Reactions
 Solution
 Carbon Dioxide » CO2
 Surface tension

Tests to Try During Experiment
 Use Instead of Mentos:
 Rock Salt
 Pennies
 Uncoated vs. Coated

Use Instead of Mentos:
 Rock Salt
 Pennies
 Dice
 Use Different Types of Sodas
 Regular Coca Cola
 Diet Coca Cola
 Carbonated Water (Seltzer / Soda Water)
 Flavored Soda
 Dice
Agee, Sara. "Coke & Mentos - Nucleation Goes Nuclear!" Science Buddies. GuideStar,
23 May 2011. Web. 02 May 2012. http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fairprojects/project_ideas/MatlSci_p023.shtml.

Independent Variable: Type of Beverage

Dependent Variable: Height of Reaction

Constants:
 Carbonated Water, to Test Sweetener Affects
 Amount of Soda / Size of Bottle (2-Liter)
 Amount of Mentos Added (4 Per Bottle)
(2) 14-Rolls of Mentos uncoated mint candies
(2) 2-Liter bottles of Carbonated/Seltzer/Soda Water
(2) 2-Liter bottles of Regular Coca Cola
(2) 2-Liter bottles of Diet Coca Cola
Video Camera with Tripod
Blue painter's tape
Tape measure
Ladder or Stepping Stool
Outdoor Space, with Height Markings (using tape)
Safety Goggles
Ponchos
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Organize Mentos
Test-Site Preparation
Set Up the Camera
Put on Safety Equipment
Remove Bottle Cap and Prepare
Start Video Camera, Record Each Trial’s Data
Drop Mentos into Bottle
Repeat Steps 5 to 7 for Remaining Sodas
Watch Videos, Analyze Data
Use Data to Make Graph
Mentos + Carbonated Beverage = ? ~~ Experimental Results
Soda Type + 4 Mentos
Trial 1 Height (in Meters)
Trial 2 Height (in Meters)
Average Height (in Meters)
Carbonated Water
0.1524
0.3048
0.2286
Coca Cola
1.9812
2.286
2.1336
Diet Coke
2.8956
3.048
2.9718
Mentos + Carbonated Beverage = ? ~~ Results
Height of "Eruption" (in Meters)
3.5
3.048
2.8956
3.0
2.9718
2.286
2.5
2.1336
1.9812
2.0
Carbonated Water
Coca Cola
1.5
1.0
Diet Coke
0.3048
0.5
0.2286
0.1524
0.0
Trial # 1
Trial # 2
Average

The Key Component of the Geysers was the Sweetener in the Sodas
 Based on Implication that Carbonated Water = Constant
▪ To See if it Was Indeed Sweetener that Caused the “eruption”

We Think We Followed the Purpose Completely
 We Found Which Soda Shoots the Highest
 Got Results that Actually Supported our Hypothesis

Diet Coke Shot Up Highest at an Average Height of 2.9718 Meters
 We Believe This Had to do w/ Its Artificial Sweetener: Aspartame

Regular Coca Cola was Next Highest with an Average Height 2.1336 Meters
 Had Regular Sugar in it

Carbonated Water Reached a Mean Height of 0.2286 Meters (about 6” to 1’)
 Most Likely the Result of No Sugar in Carbonated Water

We Confirmed Our
Myth
 Diet Pepsi “Erupted”
the Highest
▪ It is the Result of the
Combo of CO2 AND Sugar

Carbonation Alone
Does NOT Determine
Size of the “Geyser”

This Experiment is
Really (Really, Really)
Popular
Just a Funny
Image We Found
If we had the chance, and the funds, we would
test many more types of Sodas, Mentos (or even
different types of Candies), and do many more
trials of each, and have as few possibilities of
errors as possible.