International Christian University

国際基督教大学

GEN011 N1: Foundations and Concepts of Physics (A)

1st March 2013

Hideki Okamura 岡村秀樹

 

Group Members:

小野和馬

北川雄貴

江川舞

上村真央

金子剛大

山品せしりあ

カールセン麻衣マリー

ディオネスアリッサ

 

 

The Chemical Reaction between Coke and Mentos

メントスとコーラの噴き出しとの関係

 

 

Introduction:

When combining a Carbonated Drink, specifically Diet Coca-Cola, with Mint Mentos, a chemical reaction occurs. When the Mentos is dropped into the Diet Coca-Cola, some form of chemical reaction occurs, causing the liquid to rise in an upward motion, out of the bottle.

 

What was understood from online research –

¥          When Gum Arabic and Gelatin is combined with CO2, it will create a chemical reaction, which causes the liquid to move in an upward motion

¥           Diet Coke works best with the reaction

¥           Mint Mentos works best with the reaction

It must be noted that:  

In this experiment, as Diet Coca-Cola is unavailable in Japan, Coca-Cola Zero, which contains similar ingredients, was used instead.

 

There are two sections to this experiment:

Part I - Explaining why Coca-Cola Zero is the best product for the reaction

Part II - Explaining why Mint Mentos is the better product for the reaction

 

Part I –

Explaining why Coca-Cola Zero is the best product for the reaction

 

Aim:

¥    Which chemical out of Gum Arabic and Gelatin reacts more with CO2

¥    To figure out why Coca-Cola Zero reacts more with Mint Mentos

 

Hypothesis:

1.        CO2 inside the liquid, causes it to rise in an upward motion when it is mixed with Mint Mentos

á      If CO2 is a big factor in the reaction, then we can presume that any type of carbonated liquid would react in the same manner as Coca-Cola Zero

2.           The combination of the two chemicals; Gum Arabic and Gelatin causes the reaction (One would not work without the other)

 

Procedure:

1.        Weigh the 500ml bottle of the carbonated drink with the lid on

2.       Drop one Mint Mentos into the bottle, from the mouth of the bottle using your index finger and thumb

3.        Observe reaction

4.        Wipe the liquid outside the bottle with a piece cloth

5.       Weigh the bottle of the carbonated drink, in order to calculate the weight loss with the lid on

NOTE:

The percentage weight loss will allow us to measure the intensity of the reaction

∴ The higher percentage of weight lost = more liquid lost = stronger reaction

 

Variables:

¥    Independent

⁃       Type of carbonated drink

¥    Dependent

⁃       Weight of the bottle before and after the experiment

¥    Control

⁃       500ml of a carbonated drink

⁃       1 whole Mint Mentos

 

Referring to Hypothesis 1:

¥    We tested the reaction between Gum Arabic, Gelatin and CO2

⁃       Without the combination of these, the reaction would not take place

¥    We tested Mint Mentos with Coca-Cola Zero and Soda Water, to compare whether the two have the same effect

⁃       If CO2 is the main factor of the chemical reaction, it should react in the same manner

 

Experiment 1:

 

Mint Mentos

Coke Zero (sealed)

Reacts

Coke Zero (left out over-night)

No Reaction

á      Gelatin and Gum Arabic are not the only two factors that causes the chemical reaction

 

Experiment 2:

 

Mint Mentos

Coca-Cola Zero

Before: 532g

After: 248g

Percentage Loss: 53.38% 

Rounded Percentage Loss: 53%

Soda Water

Before: 512g

After 512g

Percentage Loss: 0%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 0%

(Some loss from CO2 release, but not measurable)

á      CO2 is not the only main factor that causes this reaction, in carbonated drinks

 

Conclusion from Experiment 1+2:

Experiment 1:

¥           CO2 is a factor required for the reaction to take place

Experiment 2:

¥           CO2 is not the main chemical inside the liquid for the reaction to occur

¥       Although Soda Water did react with the Mint Mentos by "fizzing", it did not react as much as Coca-Cola Zero

 

From the results found from Experiments 1 +2, a different Hypothesis can be derived:

¥           We can presume that there is something more within Coca-Cola Zero, that intensifies the reaction

¥       Despite the fact that CO2 is a large factor in the reaction, Soda Water did not give the same effect as Coca-Cola Zero. The main difference between the two is that, Coca-Cola Zero has other compounds, such as sweeteners, coloring and caffeine.

¥           All carbonated drinks with some form of flavoring will react in the same manner as Coca-Cola Zero

 

 

Experiment 3:

 

Mint Mentos

Coca-Cola Zero

Before: 533g

After: 250g

Percentage Loss: 53.10%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 53%

Coca-Cola

Before: 513g

After: 371g

Percentage Loss: 27.68%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 28%

Ginger Ale

Before: 524g

After: 403g

Percentage Loss: 23.09%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 23%

á      Flavoring has an effect on the intensity of the reaction

 

Conclusion from Experiment 3:

Although Mint Mentos reacted with the three different carbonated drinks; Coca-Cola Zero, Coca-Cola and Ginger Ale, Coca-Cola Zero reacted significantly more than the other two carbonated drinks.

¥           Coca-Cola and Ginger Ale contains sugar, whilst Coca-Cola Zero contains artificial sweeteners

Therefore, flavored carbonated drinks reacts more than Soda Water, thus we can conclude that sugar is also a factor that affects the reaction.

 

From the results found from Experiments 1 +2, a different Aim can be derived:

¥           To figure out why Diet Coke reacts more with Mint Mentos

 

Thus, with a different Aim, new Hypothesis can be derived:

Artificial sweeteners intensifies the reaction

¥           From Experiment 3, Coca-Cola Zero reacts more than Coca-Cola

¥       The different between the two drinks is that Coca-Cola contains sugar, whilst Coca-Cola Zero contains artificial sweeteners; Aspartame (アスパラテーム) and Acesulfame Potassium(K) (アセスルファムK)

 

Experiment 4:

 

Mint Mentos

Coca-Cola Zero

Before: 529g

After: 244g

Percentage Loss: 53.88%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 54%

METS Cola

Before: 552g

After: 316g

Percentage Loss: 42.75%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 43%

Diet Ginger Ale

Before: 532g

After: 320g

Percentage Loss: 39.85%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 40%

 

 

Conclusion:

¥           Coca-Cola Zero reacted the most out of the three diet carbonated drinks; Coca-Cola Zero, METS Cola and Diet Ginger Ale

¥       Coca-Cola Zero contains two artificial sweeteners; Aspartame (アスパラテーム) and Acesulfame Potassium (アセスルファムK)

¥       METS Cola and Diet Ginger Ale only contains Aspartame (アスパラテーム)

¥           From Experiments 3 and 4, the artificial sweetener is a factor that intensifies the reaction

¥           All Diet Carbonated drinks, which include artificial sweeteners reacted more than normal sugar carbonated drinks

¥           Coca-Cola Zero also contains two different types of artificial sweeteners, which strengthens the reaction

 

Therefore, when looking at the conclusion in reflection of the Aim, in order to figure out why Coca-Cola Zero reacts best with Mint Mentos, we can assume that:

¥           Coca-Cola Zero works best with Mint Mentos because it contains CO2, as well as, the combination of the two artificial sweeteners; Aspartame (アスパラテーム) and Acesulfame Potassium (アセスルファムK)

 

Thus, to sum up the Part I of the experiment:

á      CO2 is needed for the chemical reaction to occur

o   However CO2 is not only the main factor that causes the reaction

á      Carbonated drinks with flavouring tends to react stronger than Soda Water

o   Therefore, sweeteners such as sugar intensifies the reaction

á      Although Coca-Cola, which contains sugar reacts stronger than CO2 water, Coke Zero, which contains artificial sweeteners reacts stronger than Coca-Cola

This is because the sugar in Coke Zero is compensated by artificial sweeteners; Aspartame (アスパラテーム) and Acesulfame

 

Part II –

Explaining why Mint Mentos is the better product for the reaction

 

Aim:

á      Are both chemicals (Gum Arabic and Gelatin) needed in order for the chemical reaction to occur?

-       Do each of these chemicals individually cause a reaction with the Coke Zero?

 

Hypothesis:

The combination of the two chemicals; Gum Arabic and Gelatin causes the reaction. In other words, without one of the two chemicals, the reaction will not occur.

 

Procedure:

1.    Weigh the 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola Zero with the lid on

2.    Drop one of the three different types of candy into the bottle, from the mouth of the bottle using your index finger and thumb

3.    Observe reaction

4.    Wipe the liquid outside the bottle with a piece of cloth

5.    Weigh the bottle of Coca-Cola Zero, in order to calculate the weight loss with the lid on

NOTE:

The percentage weight loss will allow us to measure the intensity of the reaction

∴ The higher percentage of weight lost = more liquid lost = stronger reaction

 

Variables:

¥    Independent

⁃       The type of candy

á      The ingredients inside the candy (whether they contain Gum Arabic + Gelatin, Gum Arabic, or Gelatin)

¥    Dependent

⁃       Weight of the bottle before and after the experiment

¥    Control

⁃       500ml of a Coca-Cola Zero

⁃       1 whole of the candy : weighing 2 grams each

 

Experiment 5:

Two different types of candy was used –

á      Mint Mentos

-       Gum Arabic + Gelatin

á      チューイング・キャンディー　(Soda味)

-       Gelatin

 

Results:

 

Coke Zero

Mint Mentos

Before 529g

After: 244g

Percentage Loss: 53.88%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 54%

チューイング・キャンディー (Soda味)

 

Before: 530g

After: 455g

Percentage Loss:14.15%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 14%

 

Conclusion from Experiment 5:

á      Mint Mentos, which contains both Gum Arabic and Gelatin had a significantly stronger reaction than Chewing candy, which only contains gelatin.

á      The chemical reaction does occur even without the presence of Gum Arabic.

 

NOTE:

Although we wanted to conduct this experiment with candy that contained Gum Arabic without Gelatin, as this type of candy was unavailable in Japan, we decided to test whether the surface texture of the candies is a factor in the reaction

 

What was understood from online research –

The surface texture of Mentos is a large factor in the chemical reaction

á      When the Mentos is dropped into coke, a process called nucleation occurs

á      Nucleation:

-       the process where droplets of liquid can condense from a vapor, or bubbles of gas can form in a boiling liquid

 

          

á      Mint Mentos contain pores on the surface which create more surface area

á      This allows CO2 to build up in these pores and increases the amount of reaction (nucleation) to occur

 

Experiment 6:

Three different candies ( Mentos,チューイング・キャンデー  ,チューイング・キャンデー ) were used to see if nucleation does occurs and whether it is a factor in the chemical reaction.

 

Texture Descriptions:

á      Mint Mentos contain pores on the surface which create more surface area for the reaction (nucleation) to occur

           

á      Chewing Candy (Blue candy) has the same texture properties as the Mint Mentos. However, this candy only contains gelatin

          

á      The coke candy has a completely different surface structure from the other two candies. This candy also only contains gelatin as the active ingredient

    

 

Results:

 

Coke Zero

Mint Mentos

Before 529g

After: 244g

Percentage Loss: 53.88%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 54%

チューイング・キャンデー (Soda味)

 

Before: 530g

After: 455g

Percentage Loss:14.15%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 14%

チューイング・キャンデー (コーラ味)

Before: 529g

After: 529g

Percentage Loss: 0%

Rounded Percentage Loss: 0%

 

Observation Conclusion from Experiment 6:

á      チューイング・キャンデー (Soda) and ガブリチュウ(コーラ味) both contain the active ingredients, Gelatin

á      From the results of Experiment 6, we can see that althoughガブリチュウ(コーラ味) contains Gelatin, there was no reaction due to the surface texture

á      チューイング・キャンデー (Soda) also only contains Gelatin, however due to the surface texture, the reaction was present

NOTE:

The surface texture of チューイング・キャンデー (Soda)  is similar to Mentos, thus, we can assume that the two candies have a similar factor within its outer-shell

∴ Surface texture is a factor

 

Final Conclusion:

From all experiments conducted in this project, the following conclusions can be drawn out -

á      CO2 is not the only main factor that causes the reaction

á      Sweeteners such as sugar intensifies the reaction

á      Artificial sweeteners; Aspartame (アスパラテーム) and Acesulfame Potassium (アセスルファムK) are the main components that causes the reaction

á      The combination of Gum Arabic and Gelatin causes the largest reaction, rather than the two chemicals independently

á      The surface texture of the candy is a large factor of the reaction

 

Extra Facts:

Why Mint Mentos?

Mint Mentos works the best because fruity flavored Mentos contains a waxy coating that inhibits this reaction from occurring

And although the reaction does occur, Mint Mentos generates the strongest reaction.