Mystery Eggs

INTRODUCTION

Differences in the properties of gases, liquids and solids will be explored in this experiment.

MATERIALS

• Plastic eggs
• Balloons
• Sand or salt
• Water
• Air
• Raw egg
• Boiled egg
• Blown eggshell

WHAT TO DO

1. Add sand into a balloon so that when it is placed in a plastic egg both halves of the egg are completely filled when the egg is closed. Do the same with water and air in two more balloons.
2. Give each group of students three plastic eggs containing the three phases of matter. Let the students develop a hypothesis on how to test the difference between the mostly solid egg and mostly liquid egg.
3. Students should record observations about each egg. What state of matter is in each egg?
4. Open plastic eggs and discuss observed differences in the phases of matter. What methods did each group use to determine the states of matter within the plastic eggs?
5. Have the students try to determine what state of matter is contained inside three real eggs. The students are asked to again decide which egg contains gas, liquid and solid (hard-boiled).

QUESTIONS

1. How did you decide what states of matter were contained in the plastic eggs?
2. Did these methods work for the real eggs as well? Why or why not?
3. Describe the difference in properties of gases, liquids, and solids.

SUMMARY

Solids are rigid and not easily compressed; they have definite shape and definite volume. The particles in solids are packed very close together. The particles are constantly vibrating, but their relative location does not change. Liquids have definite volume, but they take the shape of their container. Liquids are fluid and difficult to compress. The particles in liquids are in constant motion and are in contact with adjacent particles, but they are not packed together quite so tightly as in solids, so the particles are able to move about relative to each other. Gases have neither definite volume nor definite shape. They will fill any container. Gases are fluid and easily compressed. The particles in gases are spread apart so they are not touching each other. Gas particles are free to move in any direction, and sometimes run into one another. The eggs that contain liquid exhibit a certain behavior that the solid and gas eggs will not. When the egg containing liquid is spun, then stopped briefly by a gentle touch that is immediately released, the egg will begin to spin again. The liquid inside the egg continues in the spinning motion even when the outer shell is momentarily stopped. When released the shell will begin to spin again as it is pulled back into motion by its contents. The difference between the solid and the gas is easily to tell by comparing the weights of the eggs. The solid eggs are significantly heavier than the eggs containing gas.

SOURCE

"Investigating Solids, Liquids and Gases with Toys: States of Matter and Changes of State." Jerry Sarquis, Lynn Hogue, Mickey Sarquis, Linda Woodward, McGraw-Hill, 1997, ISBN 0-07-048-235-7.

© S. Olesik, WOW Project, Ohio State University, 2000.