Like Dissolves Like…
Foam Cup Meltdown
Help your children create a foam cup meltdown when they dip
a hand-drawn witch in acetone and turn the sticky witch goo
into molded art.
Safety First:
Make sure your children wear goggles to protect their eyes
from the acetone and wear rubber gloves to protect their
hands. Make sure they don't pour the acetone into a plastic
bowl because it could damage the bowl. Do this activity in an
area with good air circulation.
What You'll Need:
 Foam cup
 Pen
 Goggles
 Rubber gloves
 Acetone (nail polish remover)
 Glass or metal bowl
How to Create a Foam Cup Meltdown:
©2007 Publications International, Ltd.
Your hand-drawn witch seems to
shrink in foam cup meltdown once
she's placed in acetone.
Step 1: Have your children draw a picture of a wicked witch on an upside-down foam cup.
Step 2: Ask your kids to put on the goggles and rubber gloves. Help them pour acetone into the
bowl so it is about 1/2 inch deep.
Step 3: Assist your children with putting the witch into the acetone, feet first. Then watch as the
witch melts, just like the wicked witch in The Wizard of Oz. As your children watch, you can all
say in your best witch voices, "I'm melting, I'm melting."
Step 4: When the witch has totally melted, help your children reach into the acetone (with the
rubber gloves still on) and pull out the goo. Then have your kids mold it into any shape -- when it
dries they will have a statue.
What Happened?
Similar to salt dissolving in water, polystyrene foam dissolves in acetone. The foam in the cup
holds millions of tiny pockets of air. This makes the cup a great insulator, keeping your hot
chocolate warm on cold days. When the foam dissolves in the acetone, the air is released, and a
sticky goo results. When the foam goo hardens, it doesn't have air pockets anymore.
Fun Fact
Styrofoam is made from a chemical called polystyrene. The Dow
Chemical Company invented it in the 1940s. Polystyrene beads
are heated and air is blown in to create air bubbles in the foam. It
is used for cups, home insulation, packing material, and flotation
devices.
Keep reading to have your kids learn what happens when you baking soda and vinegar are
combined.
Extension:
Have oil and water, which is lighter and acetone on top, then float something in between
Have milk and food coloring drops then add the liquid soap to the mix
Do the absorbent diaper powder for more on polymers
For more super science projects for kids, check out:


Science Projects for Kids: States of Matter
Science Projects for Kids: Light and Heat
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Science Projects for Kids: Chemical Reactions
Foam Cup Meltdown
Chemical Poppers
Acid Test
Pee Pals
The Battle of Liver and Potato
Foam Machine
Bleeding Red Cabbage
Deconstruct Black Ink
Rust Resistant
When Good Juice Goes Bad
Emulsion Experiment
Knotted Bones
Erupting Volcano
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It is Absorbing http://home.howstuffworks.com/fun-science-projects-for-kids7.htm
What's one thing you should know about super-absorbing polymer? It is absorbing! What's
another thing? It's used in diapers. Now, you can take this knowledge and perform a magic trick.
©2007 Publications International, Ltd.
Baby's diapers contain a substance that creates a cool magic trick.
The chemical name for super-absorbing polymer is sodium polyacrylate. Its chemical structure
allows it to absorb a lot of liquid.
Ask an adult to help with this activity. The super-absorbing polymer can cause drying and
irritation of the eyes and inner nose, so wear goggles when you use this material. And although it
may look like Nerds or Pop Rocks, don't put any of it in your mouth -- it can be harmful if
swallowed.
What You'll Need:
 Goggles
 2 clean, unused disposable diapers
 Scissors
 Dark sheet of paper
 2 foam cups
 Graduated cylinder (or small measuring cup with milliliter marks)
 Water
Step 1: Put on the goggles. Cut open the part of a clean diaper that absorbs the baby's urine.
Step 2: Gently run your fingers over the cotton surface. Powder and crystals will fall out -- catch
them on the dark sheet of paper. This material is the super-absorbing polymer. Don't rub your
fingers too roughly over the diaper surface -- you want to collect the crystals, not the cotton. Put
the super-absorbing polymer crystals into the bottom of a foam cup.
Step 3: Measure 2 milliliters of water, and pour it into the cup. Keep doing this until the polymer
doesn't hold any more water. Calculate the total amount of water that the super-absorbing
polymer from one diaper holds.
Step 4: Now here's the cool part: Repeat steps 1 and 2; then gather your audience for your
magic trick. Don't let them know you have anything in the cup. Take the amount of water that the
super-absorbing polymer can hold (you calculated this in Step 3), and slowly pour it into the cup.
Step 5: Talk to your audience for a minute as the water is being absorbed. Then dramatically turn
the cup upside down. To the amazement of all, no water will come out.
Safety
Even though you did careful measuring, it's a good idea not to turn the
cup of water upside down over something that could be damaged by
water.
Ever wonder why there's a picture of a cow on your bottle of white glue? Keep reading fun
science projects for kids to learn the answer.
For more exciting science projects, check out:


Science Projects for Kids: Chemical Reactions
Science Projects for Kids: Weather and Seasons
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Inside this Article
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7.
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Fun Science Projects for Kids
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Top Secret Invisible Ink
What a Relief!
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Attack of the Killer Slime
Be a Rock Hound
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Moo Glue
Virtual Vomit
What Was That?
Pseudo Snot
Gloop
Hollow Strength
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