The Amazing Self-Inflating Balloon!

Are you getting tired of blowing up balloons for these experiments? Here's a way to get chemistry to do the work for you!

What you'll need:
1 empty plastic bottle (about 20 ounces in volume)
Measuring spoon (1 tablespoon)
Funnel
Balloon
Vinegar
Baking soda

Pour about one inch of vinegar into the bottle. Using the funnel, put one tablespoon of baking soda into the balloon. Carefully stretch the balloon opening over the mouth of the bottle, letting the balloon hang down over the side, as shown in the photo above. When you're ready to go, lift the balloon up so that the baking soda falls down into the vinegar. You'll immediately see lots of bubbling, and will observe the balloon grow larger! What's going on?

Baking soda (chemical known as sodium hydrogen carbonate) reacts with vinegar (or acetic acid) to give off lots and lots of carbon dioxide gas, or CO₂. The gas has nowhere to go but into the balloon! When the balloon is at its largest, remove it from the bottle and tie the end off to seal the CO₂ in. Blow up another balloon of the same type using your breath to about the same size and tie it off. Can you tell the difference between the two balloons? Put them aside for a few hours, and we'll come back to them later.

Sour Power

You've probably heard of the word "acid", but what do you know about acids? Maybe you've heard that they're dangerous, or that they can burn you. While some acids are extremely hazardous, and must be handled very carefully, there are also lots of other acids that you run into every day. Vitamin C, for example, is chemically known as ascorbic acid, and you may like to put acetic acid on your salad - it's vinegar!

So, what is the difference between dangerous acids and the acids that we can eat? That's one of the questions that we'll answer this month. You'll also learn about the amazing properties of acids, and discover how you can tell if something is acidic!