Marshmallows in vacuum chamber

MrGrodskiChemistry

6 Nov 201303:29

Summary

TLDRIn this educational demonstration, a vacuum chamber is used to illustrate the principles of Boyle's Law. Two marshmallows, which are colloids, are placed inside the chamber. As the air is drawn out, reducing the pressure, the air trapped inside the marshmallows causes them to expand significantly. The experiment shows that a large portion of a marshmallow's volume is due to the air within it. When the pressure is restored, the marshmallows shrink, demonstrating the relationship between pressure and volume in gases.

Takeaways

🍭 The demonstration involves using a vacuum chamber with marshmallows, which are colloids made of sugary polymers and air.
🌀 A vacuum pump is connected to the chamber to remove air and lower the pressure inside, affecting the air trapped within the marshmallows.
🎈 As the pressure inside the chamber drops, the air inside the marshmallows expands, causing them to increase in size significantly.
💥 Some marshmallows popped slightly, possibly due to the rapid change in pressure as air was drawn out.
🔄 After the expansion, the presenter re-introduced air to the vacuum chamber to observe the reverse effect on the marshmallows.
📉 The marshmallows decreased in volume as air was added back into the chamber, showing the relationship between pressure and volume.
🔍 The experiment demonstrates Boyle's Law, which states that the volume of an ideal gas will expand or decrease inversely with pressure, assuming temperature and the number of moles remain constant.
📏 A comparison was made to show the original size of the marshmallows, highlighting the significant volume contribution of air within the polymer.
🕳️ The marshmallows ended up smaller than their original size after the air was removed, illustrating the effect of pressure on their volume.
🧪 The demonstration serves as a practical example of the behavior of gases and the properties of colloids under varying pressure conditions.
👨‍🔬 The presenter concludes that the air inside the marshmallows was responsible for almost twice or more of their original volume, emphasizing the impact of air pressure.

Q & A

What is the purpose of the vacuum chamber in the demonstration?
-The vacuum chamber is used to create a low-pressure environment to observe the effect of reduced pressure on the volume of marshmallows, which are colloids containing air pockets.
What are marshmallows made of, according to the script?
-Marshmallows are made of a sugary polymer that is air-puffed to create a soft, edible texture.
How does the vacuum pump affect the air inside the vacuum chamber?
-The vacuum pump draws the air out of the vacuum chamber, lowering the pressure by removing gas molecules from the container.
What happens to the air trapped inside the marshmallows when the pressure drops?
-The air trapped inside the marshmallows expands as the pressure drops, causing the marshmallows to increase in volume.
Why did the marshmallows pop during the demonstration?
-The marshmallows popped because the air inside them expanded rapidly due to the reduced pressure, and the structure of the marshmallow could not contain the increased volume.
What happens when air is reintroduced into the vacuum chamber after the marshmallows have expanded?
-When air is reintroduced, the pressure inside the chamber increases, causing the volume of the marshmallows to decrease as the air is compressed back into its original state.
What principle from physics is demonstrated in the experiment?
-The experiment demonstrates Boyle's Law, which states that the volume of a gas is inversely proportional to the pressure when temperature and the number of moles are held constant.
How much of the marshmallow's volume is attributed to air, according to the demonstration?
-The demonstration suggests that almost twice the volume of a regular marshmallow is due to the air trapped inside the sugary polymer.
What did the demonstrator do to show the comparison of the marshmallows before and after the experiment?
-The demonstrator placed the original and the vacuum-treated marshmallows side by side to visually compare their sizes and show the effect of air removal on the marshmallow's volume.
What did the demonstrator conclude about the marshmallows after the air was drawn out?
-The demonstrator concluded that the marshmallows were significantly smaller than their original size after the air was drawn out, indicating the substantial volume contribution of air to their size.
What is the significance of keeping the temperature and number of moles constant during the experiment?
-Keeping the temperature and number of moles constant allows for a controlled demonstration of the relationship between pressure and volume, as per Boyle's Law, without the variables of temperature and moles affecting the outcome.

Outlines

00:00

🌀 Marshmallow Expansion in a Vacuum Chamber

This paragraph demonstrates the effect of reduced air pressure on marshmallows, which are colloids made of sugary polymers and air. The experiment involves placing two marshmallows in a vacuum chamber connected to a pump that removes air, thereby lowering the pressure. As the pressure inside the chamber decreases, the air trapped within the marshmallows expands, causing them to grow in size. The marshmallows initially pop slightly due to the air being drawn out, but when air is reintroduced, they shrink back to a smaller size than their original, illustrating Boyle's Law, which states that the volume of an ideal gas increases as the pressure decreases, assuming constant temperature and number of moles. The marshmallows' size reduction after air is drawn out shows the significant volume contribution of air within the polymer structure.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Vacuum Chamber

A vacuum chamber is a sealed space from which air has been removed to create a low-pressure environment. In the video, the vacuum chamber is used to demonstrate the effects of reduced air pressure on marshmallows, illustrating the relationship between pressure and volume.

💡Marshmallows

Marshmallows are a type of colloid, a mixture in which one substance is dispersed evenly throughout another. They are made of air puffed into a sugary polymer. In the video, marshmallows serve as an example to show how gases within a substance expand when the external pressure is decreased.

💡Colloids

Colloids are mixtures where one substance is dispersed evenly throughout another, but not dissolved. The video uses marshmallows, which are colloids, to demonstrate the behavior of gases within a colloidal substance under varying pressure.

💡Pressure

Pressure is the force exerted per unit area. The video discusses how lowering the pressure inside the vacuum chamber causes the air inside the marshmallows to expand, demonstrating the inverse relationship between pressure and volume as described by Boyle's Law.

💡Boyle's Law

Boyle's Law states that the volume of an ideal gas is inversely proportional to its pressure when the temperature and the amount of gas are held constant. The video uses this principle to explain the expansion of the marshmallows when the pressure inside the vacuum chamber is reduced.

💡Volume

Volume refers to the amount of space that a substance or object occupies. The video shows that as the pressure inside the vacuum chamber decreases, the volume of the marshmallows increases, and vice versa, due to the trapped air inside them.

💡Air Puffing

Air puffing is a process where air is incorporated into a substance to create a light, porous texture. The video mentions that marshmallows are 'air puffed' into a sugary polymer, which is why they expand when the pressure is reduced.

💡Vacuum Pump

A vacuum pump is a device that removes gas from a sealed container to create a vacuum. In the video, the vacuum pump is used to draw air out of the chamber, lowering the pressure and causing the marshmallows to expand.

💡Gas Molecules

Gas molecules are the individual particles that make up a gas. The script explains that by removing gas molecules from the container with a vacuum pump, the pressure inside the vacuum chamber is lowered, leading to the expansion of the marshmallows.

💡Expansion

Expansion is the process of increasing in size or volume. The video demonstrates the expansion of the marshmallows as the air inside them increases in volume when the external pressure is decreased, a direct application of Boyle's Law.

💡Ideal Gas

An ideal gas is a theoretical gas that follows the gas laws exactly, including Boyle's Law. The video refers to the behavior of the air inside the marshmallows as if it were an ideal gas, expanding as the pressure decreases.

Highlights

Demonstration of using a vacuum chamber to explore the properties of marshmallows.

Marshmallows are described as colloids made of air puffed into a sugary polymer.

The vacuum pump is used to draw air out of the chamber, lowering the pressure.

As pressure inside the chamber drops, the air trapped inside the marshmallows expands.

Observation of marshmallows popping due to the air being pulled out.

The marshmallows' size increases significantly due to the reduced air pressure.

The process of re-introducing air back into the chamber to observe the effect on marshmallows.

Marshmallows decrease in volume as air is reintroduced, showing the impact of air pressure on their size.

Comparison of the marshmallows' size before and after the experiment.

Boyle's Law is introduced to explain the relationship between pressure and volume.

The marshmallows' volume is shown to be more than twice due to the air inside.

The popping of marshmallows as a result of the air being pulled out and the subsequent shrinkage.

Visual demonstration of the marshmallows' original size compared to their deflated state.

The experiment concludes with a clear example of Boyle's Law in action with marshmallows.

The practical application of Boyle's Law in understanding the composition and behavior of marshmallows.

The innovative use of a common food item to demonstrate a fundamental principle of physics.