Lemon was the key ingredient in both our Science experiments today.

LEMON SUDSY ERUPTIONS

Materials Needed:

• 1/4 cup clear hand soap
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 2 tbsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp and bit more lemon juice
• Food colouring
• 4 small containers
• Spoon

What did we actually do in this science experiment? 

• We placed 4 small containers on a tray and added clear hand soap mixed with warm water to create sudsy water.
• We added a few drops of food colouring (blue, green, red & yellow) to each container to make the eruptions interesting.
• Next we added scoops of baking soda to each bowl of sudsy water.
• We then added some lemon juice to the bowls to create super foam and fun eruptions.
• As soon as the lemon juice hit the baking soda sudsy water combination it immediately created a very light, airy, fluffy foam which was TOO cool (literally) for words.
• The eruptions were long lasting. The more we mixed in the lemon juice, the lighter, fluffier and bigger the foam got.

The Science Behind Lemony Sudsy Eruptions:

Baking soda is a base and will react with lemon juice releasing carbon dioxide as a by-product. The bubbly gas thus released produced the super foam from the hand soap.

If we eliminated the colours we would have created a natural, homemade cleaning agent. How cool? Use baking soda, soap and lemon juice concoction for cleaning.

LEMON VOLCANO

Materials Needed:

• Lemons
• Baking soda
• Lemon juice
• Tray
• Knife
• Lollipop stick
• Food colouring

What did we actually do in this science experiment? 

• We prepared the lemons by slicing the top/bottom off to make them sit flat.
• We prepared extra lemon juice by slicing a second lemon in half and juicing it. We poured the juice into a cup and set it aside.
• We put the cut lemons on a tray and used a lollipop stick to mush the centre of the lemon to bring out the juices.
• We placed a few drops of food colouring to the centre of each of the lemons.
• Next we added in a good squeeze of washing up liquid to the lemon.
• Finally, we added a spoonful of baking soda into the lemon. It started to fizz. We used the lollipop stick to stir the lemon and lemon juice. It started foaming really well as we stirred it!
• We kept the reaction going by adding more baking soda, colouring, washing up liquid and the reserved lemon juice to the reaction.

The Science Behind Lemon Volcanoes:

Lemon juice contains citric acid which when mixed with baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) reacts to form carbon dioxide and sodium citrate, which causes the liquid to fizz and bubble. Citric acid is a common food additive used in soft drinks as a preservative and flavouring.