How to Make a Working Model for a Science Project

Volcanoes are an interesting science project because of their chemical reaction and visual appeal. The size and quantity of the needed supplies will vary depending upon your project size. Although the volcano can be made as small as a canister of film, if this project is for a science fair or a large class demonstration, make the volcano of a larger scale.

Things You'll Need

• Container
• Foil
• Blended polymer clay
• Eno fruit salt
• Poster color
• Water
• Tray

Instructions

Create the Volcano

1. Choose an appropriately-sized container and attach some crumpled tin foil to the outside. Fashion the foil at an angle that resembles the side of a volcano.

2. Cover the foil with brown polymer clay. To make the volcano look realistic, do not smooth the clay too much. Consider adding such small details as trees, grass or rock-like objects for added realism.

3. Blend red, yellow and orange polymer clay so that that it resembles the color of lava. Place the blended lava around the inside edge of the container, so that the inside of the container is no longer visible, and down the volcano sides so that it resembles streams of lava.

Create the Explosion

1. Experiment with mixing different proportions of Eno fruit salt and water until you obtain the desired type of explosion. Some proportions will cause a large amount of bubbling, whereas some proportions will cause an explosion whereby the lava will burst into the air.

2. When you have the desired type of chemical reaction, combine the Eno fruit salt, water and poster color. Place it into the volcano container and watch the explosion occur.

3. Conduct the experiment with the volcano sitting on a tray or cookie sheet that will collect the lava mess and make clean-up easier.

Tips & Warnings

• When trying to discover the right proportion of Eno fruit salt and water, consider using a smaller container and then calculating the how much you will need in your container.

• Eno fruit salt is a sodium bicarbonate mixture with citric acid and is not very dangerous. Nonetheless, you should take precautions to avoid getting the lava mixture in your eyes.

• If this project is being used as a science project, keep records of what proportions of materials were used to create the explosion. Consider altering the experiment or using different ingredients, such as vinegar and baking soda, for differing eruption results. Take pictures or video of your results for use in your reports and presentations.

References

• Working Volcano
• Poster Color
• ENO Description