Chemistry Projects

You can make a homemade cold pack by mixing safe chemicals in a plastic bag. — Sometimes you need to chill an injury or a product, but ice just isn’t available. Fortunately, it’s easy and economical to make a homemade cold pack. A cold pack contains compounds that undergo an endothermic chemical reaction when mixed. In other words, the reaction pulls thermal energy from the environment, […]

3 Ways to Make a Homemade Cold Pack

This entry was posted on March 26, 2018 by Anne Helmenstine (updated on April 4, 2018)

Chemically, the difference between baking soda and washing soda is the hydration level of the molecule. — Baking soda and washing soda are two handy household chemicals. You may be able to find washing soda (soda ash) with laundry supplies at the store, but if you can’t find it, this is one chemical that’s super easy to make from baking soda. Make Washing Soda Pour baking soda into […]

How to Turn Baking Soda Into Washing Soda

This entry was posted on March 1, 2018 by Anne Helmenstine (updated on March 4, 2018)

One simple example of an exothermic process is the heat you can feel if you let laundry detergent dissolve in water in your hand. — Interesting chemical reactions don’t necessarily require a chemistry lab and expensive glassware. For example, you can experience an exothermic chemical reaction using nothing more complicated than a handful of laundry detergent powder and a bit of water. An exothermic reaction is one which produces heat as chemical bond energy is […]

Easy Exothermic Detergent Reaction

This entry was posted on February 23, 2018 by Anne Helmenstine

It's easy to dry flowers using silica gel as a desiccant. (Jason Wong) — Do you admire the simple elegance of dry flowers? Here’s a science experiment that makes use of those little packets that say “Do No Eat” you find with shoes, electronics, and other products. The packets contain silica gel beads, which are silicon dioxide (sand) with a porous surface. The pores […]

Dry Flowers Using Silica Gel Beads – Fun Desiccant Science ...

This entry was posted on January 12, 2018 by Anne Helmenstine (updated on January 24, 2018)

Prussian blue ink is one of the easiest blue inks to make. (Adrien Ledoux) — You can prepare your own blue ink. This blue ink recipe is very easy and produces a beautiful blue ink for writing, drawing, or crafts. BLUE INK INGREDIENTS Prussian Blue pigment (sold as a pigment or sometimes as laundry bluing) water PREPARE BLUE INK It’s extremely easy! Mix the pigment into the […]

Blue Ink Recipe

This entry was posted on December 25, 2017 by Anne Helmenstine

Ancient tattoo ink recipes produce ink that is black or brown. (Giulia Bertelli) — This ancient tattoo ink recipe was devised by the Roman physician Aetius. It can be expected to produce a nice permanent iron-based ink, though the ingredients may cause irritation for some individuals. The reader is advised that this recipe is of historical significance, but safer and higher quality inks are available […]

Ancient Roman Tattoo Ink Recipe

This entry was posted on September 11, 2017 by Anne Helmenstine (updated on November 6, 2017)