Bouncy Egg
We think of eggs as fragile, but with a simple chemical reaction they can bounce a little bit!
This activity may be Messy
We think of eggs as fragile, but with a simple chemical reaction they can bounce a little bit!
This activity may be Messy
What you'll need
Gather your supplies using the list above.
1.
Gently place the egg in the glass and cover it with vinegar.
2.
Leave the egg for about 48 hours. You can speed up the process by changing the vinegar halfway through.
3.
Remove the egg and gently rub the eggshell away. Remember, it’s still a raw egg!
4.
Carefully drop your egg from a couple of centimetres and watch it bounce!
What happens if you give the egg a gentle squeeze?
How high can you drop the egg from before it breaks?
What happens if you put the naked egg into other liquids? Try putting it in water or golden syrup and see what happens.
The vinegar contains ethanoic acid (also known as acetic acid), which reacts with calcium carbonate in the eggshell. One product of the reaction is carbon dioxide gas, which appears as little bubbles forming on the eggshell. Over time, this chemical reaction dissolves away the hard eggshell. We are left with the thin egg membrane with the raw egg inside.
This membrane is surprisingly strong, and the egg can be dropped from a small height without damaging it: it can bounce.
The membrane is ‘semipermeable’: water can pass through it, but substances dissolved in the water cannot. When the egg is immersed in golden syrup, a strong sugar solution, water leaks out of it.
Many marine organisms make their shells from calcium carbonate. The ocean is becoming more acidic, as carbon dioxide released from burning fossil fuels dissolves into it. The increasing acidity makes it harder for shells to form, and can even dissolve them away – a major threat to marine ecosystems.
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