 |
|
| FORUM | REGISTER | LOGIN | HOAXIPEDIA | TOP 100 APRIL FOOLS | COLLEGE PRANKS | ABOUT THE CURATOR | CONTACT |
| A HISTORY OF HOAXES | HOAX WEBSITES | HOAX PHOTOS | HOAX PHOTO TESTS | GULLIBILITY TESTS | TALL-TALE CREATURES |
About the Museum
The Museum of Hoaxes is dedicated to promoting knowledge about hoaxes. (Click here for opening hours, etc.) On our blog we post about dubious- sounding claims, and whatever else strikes our fancy. The site is also home to the Hoax Photo Database, the Hoax Forum, and the Hoaxipedia.
The Museum of Hoaxes is dedicated to promoting knowledge about hoaxes. (Click here for opening hours, etc.) On our blog we post about dubious- sounding claims, and whatever else strikes our fancy. The site is also home to the Hoax Photo Database, the Hoax Forum, and the Hoaxipedia.
RUDE ROVERThe Christmas dog with no class! He sings and toots Jingle Bells.
INFLATABLE TREEWho needs the hassle of a real Christmas tree?
FARTING SANTAGo ahead and pull his finger!
Mentos + Soda = Explosion
Status: True
Given the urban legend about kids eating pop rocks and soda, and then having their stomachs explode, I wouldn't have believed that mixing Mentos and soda could cause such a violent reaction. But after watching the video posted on WLTX's website, I do. (You need Windows Media Player to view it, and I had to click the "Trouble Viewing" button to make it work.) To summarize what the video shows, three Mentos are dropped into a bottle of soda, causing a geyser of soda to shoot up about three or four feet high out of the bottle. This really makes me wonder what would happen if you drank a can of soda and then downed a pack of Mentos. Personally I'm not planning to find out. I'm sure it wouldn't kill you, but I imagine it would fizz up into your throat and nose. WLTX provides this scientific explanation for the phenomenon:Mentos contains a chemical known as ARABIC GUM (this is the ingredient that makes the mint "chewy"). This ingredient causes the surface tension of the water molecules to break even more easily, releasing more carbon dioxide gas at an astounding rate! .....The gas causes pressure to rapidly build inside the bottle which thrusts the soda upwards in a wonderful fountain-like BLAST!
Listed in chronological order. Newest comments at the end.
Page 3 of 8 pages < 1 2 3 4 5 > Last »
if anyone still reads these, then consider this:
the Aspartam theory is false, because this works with club soda, and for many, many other reasons,
the gum arabic is out, since that's the stuff that makes mentos chewy, and once the outer shell disolves the reaction stops, and the nucleation can't be, because even once the scratches and imperfections have been disolved, the reaction continues (this occurs some time between when the fizz is completely gone, and most of the eruption is over. also, if you want to try using the mentos and soda in your stomach, you would have to swallow the metos whole, i think. i don't want to try it, so i'm not exactly sure..... but i think the reaction is caused by somthing in the outer shell.
Posted by mr_nobody in unknown on Sat Mar 04, 2006 at 09:31 PMthe Aspartam theory is false, because this works with club soda, and for many, many other reasons,
the gum arabic is out, since that's the stuff that makes mentos chewy, and once the outer shell disolves the reaction stops, and the nucleation can't be, because even once the scratches and imperfections have been disolved, the reaction continues (this occurs some time between when the fizz is completely gone, and most of the eruption is over. also, if you want to try using the mentos and soda in your stomach, you would have to swallow the metos whole, i think. i don't want to try it, so i'm not exactly sure..... but i think the reaction is caused by somthing in the outer shell.
okay so me and a couple of friends are thinking about doing this for a science experiment for school!
i have a couple questions...
1. does the drink have to be 'diet coke' or can it be any kind of carbonated drink?
2. i read that it has to be a 2-liter bottle and cant be the smaller bottles is that true...if so why??
3. and i just tried it in my back yard with 'coke' it WAS pretty cool but it didnt explode very high..or at all! it kinda just dripped over the sides...like a volcano...but it went everywhere...i was waiting for it to shoot up really far! did it not shoot up because it wasnt 'diet coke' or a '2-liter bottle'??
please respond...ASAP!! i need this very soon!
Posted by the unknown in eh..i forgot on Tue Mar 07, 2006 at 02:11 PMi have a couple questions...
1. does the drink have to be 'diet coke' or can it be any kind of carbonated drink?
2. i read that it has to be a 2-liter bottle and cant be the smaller bottles is that true...if so why??
3. and i just tried it in my back yard with 'coke' it WAS pretty cool but it didnt explode very high..or at all! it kinda just dripped over the sides...like a volcano...but it went everywhere...i was waiting for it to shoot up really far! did it not shoot up because it wasnt 'diet coke' or a '2-liter bottle'??
please respond...ASAP!! i need this very soon!
Test all sizes, diets, and non-diet, Coke, Pepsi.
I would say that it only does it with certain sizes due to the quantity of certain ingredients. But then again, Im not a scientist. Good Luck
Posted by Carter S on Tue Mar 07, 2006 at 04:24 PMI would say that it only does it with certain sizes due to the quantity of certain ingredients. But then again, Im not a scientist. Good Luck
Here is the science behind it:
The reason why Mentos work so well is two fold - Tiny pits on the surface of the candy and the weight of the candy. Each Mentos candy has thousands of tiny pits all over the surface. These tiny pits are called nucleation sites - perfect places for carbon dioxide bubbles to form. As soon as the Mentos hit the soda, bubbles form all over the surface of the candy. Couple this with the fact that the Mentos candies are heavy and sink to the bottom of the bottle and you’ve got a double-whammy. When all this gas is released, it literally pushes all of the liquid up and out of the bottle in an incredible soda blast.
Posted by Jim in Hong Kong on Sun Mar 26, 2006 at 12:11 PMThe reason why Mentos work so well is two fold - Tiny pits on the surface of the candy and the weight of the candy. Each Mentos candy has thousands of tiny pits all over the surface. These tiny pits are called nucleation sites - perfect places for carbon dioxide bubbles to form. As soon as the Mentos hit the soda, bubbles form all over the surface of the candy. Couple this with the fact that the Mentos candies are heavy and sink to the bottom of the bottle and you’ve got a double-whammy. When all this gas is released, it literally pushes all of the liquid up and out of the bottle in an incredible soda blast.
Hi,
You are AWESOME. Who would ever even think to that in the first place. Keep doing what you are doing and make us happy, not like you have to try or anything.
Posted by might in Louisville OH, 44641 on Tue Mar 28, 2006 at 01:40 PMYou are AWESOME. Who would ever even think to that in the first place. Keep doing what you are doing and make us happy, not like you have to try or anything.
Yes, the nucleation sites are the cause. For an even more violent reaction you could pour granulated sugar into the soda through a funnel. Nucleation sites are also what causes bubbles to form on the sides of glasses containing beer or soda.
Posted by Chris pine in Norfolk, VA on Thu Apr 06, 2006 at 07:39 AMi think this iz cool me and my friend were going to do this as a sceince fair project after we saw this but we changed are mined and we did this outside of school and made money off it! 
Posted by Alex in Indaina on Fri Apr 07, 2006 at 08:03 PMwell thax for da add i really like da pop thing! 
Posted by Alex in Chicago on Fri Apr 07, 2006 at 08:06 PM this is a very cool experiment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:sick:
Posted by Joe in Dogriver on Wed May 17, 2006 at 12:43 PMit would be funny to see some one throwing up soda and mentos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by thatsstupidandyousuck in St. Veronica on Wed May 17, 2006 at 12:48 PM thatsstupid
Posted by duckdodgers7 in Runescape on Wed May 17, 2006 at 12:55 PMThe explanation for this reaction is exactly as explained, it is the arabic gum that decreases the surface tension and intermolecular reactions between the atoms contained in soda. This in turn releases the CO2 that was pressurized into the liquid. Diet pepsi works the best, the reason for this? compared to all other carbonated sodas, diet pepsi has the most carbonation. The fact that mentos have small imperfections is but an aside that might help very little, but not in any quantifiable way as any object... ANY object on the molecular level (the level CO2 operates on) has small imperfections.
Posted by ArlenS in MI on Thu May 18, 2006 at 04:31 PMIt's not Mentos per se that cause this reaction (and definitely not gum arabic, which is located underneath the Mentos shell), though as indicated above, Mentos are covered with microscopic pits to provide nucleation sites which attract carbon dioxide.
You can get an almost identical reaction by pouring coarse salt (about a tablespoon) into the top of the bottle. The resulting gusher is about five to six feet high, whereas a Mentos reaction can be in excess of 12 feet. My educated guess is that the height difference results from the Mentos sinking quickly to the bottom of the bottle, causing the trapped carbon dioxide throughout the bottle to rush to the bottom, resulting in a tremendous pressure differential.
However you look at it, it's a fun, safe experiment that gets a great reaction every time.
Posted by Squibner Welch in Sacramento, CA on Thu May 25, 2006 at 01:37 PMYou can get an almost identical reaction by pouring coarse salt (about a tablespoon) into the top of the bottle. The resulting gusher is about five to six feet high, whereas a Mentos reaction can be in excess of 12 feet. My educated guess is that the height difference results from the Mentos sinking quickly to the bottom of the bottle, causing the trapped carbon dioxide throughout the bottle to rush to the bottom, resulting in a tremendous pressure differential.
However you look at it, it's a fun, safe experiment that gets a great reaction every time.
I suppose if you wanted to know if it related to the menthanol, you could drop some menthanol vicks vapor rub into soda and see if that worked, or drop cinnamon mentos into the soda...I've no idea what's in mentos, so I can't even suspect what would cause it to react. Although, the arabic gum theory sounds plausable.
Posted by Bryce Loop in Willits, California on Mon May 29, 2006 at 09:34 PMI heard a story on NPR saying it wasn't the aspartame or the gum arabic. They said it was the rough surface of the Mentos, which makes sense. With any soda, CO2 comes out of solution from Carbonic Acid (H2CO3). The dissolved CO2 makes the Carbonic Acid, but there is quite a bit of CO2. So much that CO2 comes out of solution immediately once you open the soda bottle. Warm soda and rough surfaces expedite this process. M&M's don't work very well because they are much smoother. This is NOT a hoax because eating Diet Coke and Mentos together is not the same as putting a TON of Mentos in a WHOLE BOTTLE of Diet Coke. Have you ever burped after eating the two? Makes sense doesn't it. Of course you're not going to explode, you can release the small amount of CO2 you've ingested with no problem.
Posted by Tim Dingman in Sudbury, MA on Tue May 30, 2006 at 07:19 PMWe did a 2 liter Diet Pepsi last week here at work with 20 Mentos, and got about 8 or 9ft. We did a Diet Dr Pepper about 20 mins ago with only 13 Mentos (we're running out) and got about 12ft. Diet Dr. Pepper works *much* better than Diet Pepsi.
We're trying Mug Root Beer tomorrow (mainly because I want to drink the minty Root Beer remnants afterwards; mint root beer tastes great), but I doubt we'll get as high as the Dr. Pepper achieved.
We also are talking about a version of the experiment using actual beer.
Posted by Tim on Wed May 31, 2006 at 02:21 PMWe're trying Mug Root Beer tomorrow (mainly because I want to drink the minty Root Beer remnants afterwards; mint root beer tastes great), but I doubt we'll get as high as the Dr. Pepper achieved.
We also are talking about a version of the experiment using actual beer.
You know, I don't think I saw one person even close to being right.
Anyone of you could've wiki'd it, or even just googled it, but none of you did.
In the future guys, either do some research before you speak, or pass grade 8.
Posted by Mike on Sun Jun 04, 2006 at 11:19 AMAnyone of you could've wiki'd it, or even just googled it, but none of you did.
In the future guys, either do some research before you speak, or pass grade 8.
make the pepsi really cold prefferably at 33 degrees farenhieght because carbon is stored tightly ay cold temp ,so colder means fizzyer
Posted by bob in bob on Thu Jun 15, 2006 at 01:37 PMi drank a 2 liter bottle of diet coke and swallowed two mentos. Results: fizz came threw my throat and nose and i was in the hospital for 2 days and i have to take medication for three months. it was so worth it!
Posted by what the beep in bronx, ny on Sat Jun 17, 2006 at 07:18 PMThis is the real deal! Diet Coke and Mentos really does react. Have a look at CokeMentos.com to see more. We tried it ourselves and it worked, surprisingly enough.
Posted by Matt Miller in USA on Mon Jun 19, 2006 at 09:58 PMPage 3 of 8 pages < 1 2 3 4 5 > Last »