Styrofoam Packing Peanut Experiments

At one point or another, we have all come in contact with Styrofoam packing peanuts. They fill bags and boxes in our attics and basements, or are thrown out with the weekly trash. Many people don't realize that they can also be used for entertaining experiments to demonstrate scientific concepts to kids. Here you will find two simple experiments that can be done at school or even at home.


stuff needed
Experiment 1:
Styrofoam packing peanuts
Glass jar or beaker
Acetone (nail polish remover)
Experiment 2:
Styrofoam packing peanuts
Piece of wool
Plastic spoon



Vanishing peanuts
Step 1
Pour a small amount of acetone into your glass jar or beaker.

Step 2
Have the kids place the packing peanuts in the jar and watch as they disappear.

Step 3
Have the kids repeat this process, seeing if they can fill the beaker up before running out of peanuts. Because Styrofoam is made primarily of air, a large amount can be dissolved in a relatively small amount of acetone.

Step 4
Allow the remaining acetone to evaporate, revealing the residue from the dissolved Styrofoam. This reveals to the kids that the packing peanuts don't simply disappear, they just change their physical properties.

 
Floating Peanuts
Step 1
Place some Styrofoam packing peanuts on a table and spread them out.

Step 2
Rub the plastic spoon with your sheet of wool. This causes a static charge to build up in the spoon. You can explain to the children that this effect is caused by a transfer of electrons from the wool to the spoon.

Step 3
Hold the spoon above the packing peanuts. This will cause the negatively charged peanuts to be attracted to the positively charged spoon.

Step 4
Experiment with the spoon and the peanuts and see if you can get the peanuts to float between the table and the spoon.

Step 5
Touch the spoon to some exposed metal and then hold it over the peanuts again. Touching the spoon to metal will discharge the built-up static electricity in the spoon. The peanuts will no longer be attracted to the spoon.



Tips
You can do a variation of vanishing peanuts by using starch packing peanuts and water. Starch peanuts, the environmentally-friendly alternative to Styrofoam peanuts, dissolve in water. You can even put one in your mouth, although the flavor of them is not exactly what one would call pleasant.

Warnings
Always follow the manufacturer's safety instructions when handling acetone. Keep it away from open flames.