Can Crusher

Question: What will happen when you put a steaming soda can in cold water?

Hypothesis: We think that when a steaming hot soda can is placed in cold water that it will immediately be crushed because of the change of temperature from hot to cold.

Materials: 

Picture
Soda Cans
Safety Glasses
Hot Plate
Tongs
Oven Mitt
Ice Water

Safety Procedure:

1. Do not touch the hot plate when it is on.
2. Wear safety glasses at important times.
3. Use oven mitt or tongs to handle the steaming soda can.


Procedure:

1. First, put a little bit of water in each soda can.
2. Then, put the soda cans on the hot plate.
3. After that, wait 3 or 4 minutes or until the water starts evaporating.
4. Next, take the soda can with the oven mitts and tongs.
5. Finally, dip the soda can in the cold water, upside down, and within a second the can will become crushed.


Special Needs:
  • Hot plate
  • Oven mitts
  • Tongs
  • Electrical outlet
  • Safety glasses


Picture

The Science behind it:
A can is crushed when the pressure outside is greater than the pressure inside, and the pressure difference is greater than the can is able to withstand. You can crush an open aluminum can with your hand. When you squeeze on the can, the pressure outside becomes greater than the pressure inside. If you squeeze hard enough the can collapses. Usually, the air pressure inside an open can is the same as the pressure outside. However, in this experiment, the air was driven out of the can and replaced by water vapor. When the water vapor condensed (to change from a gas or vapor to a liquid), therefore there was nothing to replace the space the gas was taking up so the pressure inside the can became much less than the air pressure outside.  The air pressure outside the can crushed the can.





Conclusion:
We reject our hypothesis because when you heat the can you cause the water in it to boil. The vapor from the boiling water pushes air out of the can. When the can was filled with water vapor, you cooled it suddenly by inverting it in water. Cooling the can caused the water vapor in the can to condense, creating a partial vacuum (an enclosed space from which part of the air or another gas has been removed). The extremely low pressure of the partial vacuum inside the can made it possible for the pressure of the air outside the can to crush it.  


Patrick
Hi, my name is Patrick. My teacher is Mrs. Sisca. My favorite colors are pink and yellow. My hobbies are soccer, cub scouts, clarinet, and playing outside. My traits are funny, social and AWESOME. :D
Ben
Hi, my name is Ben.  My teacher is Mrs. Carvo.  My favorite colors are pink, green, and blue.  My hobbies are soccer, reading, being funny, and clarinet.  My traits are funny, social, and AWESOME. :D

Patrick and Ben
Patrick and I are very good friends.  We met during a soccer game.  We both like playing soccer and like the same sport teams.  We knew each other since 2nd grade. :P :0