One upping Dave: A Diet Coke and Mentos Rocket!

[artdutra04]

Is it a bad thing when there's a 10 for $10 sale of 2-liter bottles of Diet Coke at the local Super Shop and Shop, especially when you are at a grad party?

I don't know about you, but there is a much more exciting way to watch the Diet Coke/Mentos reaction than watching a ten-foot-high stream of fizz shoot out of the top of the bottle. The Diet Coke and Mentos eruption gets boring after a little while. So why not try a Diet Coke and Mentos explosion?

Yes, that's right, a Diet Coke - Mentos explosion. That said explosion was able to launch a 2-liter bottle of Diet Coke well over 100 feet away using only Mentos. I love it when science is fun. :p

Here the video: (15 Mb, Windows Media Video)
www.team228.org/video/misc/diet-coke-mentos-rocket.wmv (http://www.team228.org/video/misc/diet-coke-mentos-rocket.wmv)

Legal Disclaimer: If you try this at home, please use common sense and be safe.

[sanddrag]

That's nothing. Check this out http://my.break.com/Media/View.aspx?ContentID=111469

Beware of some of the content on the rest of the site.

[Rohith Surampudi]

Now thats pimp,

Ive been wondering how to make those, your video definitely clarified it :p

anyway, thats really cool, and now i know what ill be doing all day after i get out on my last day :D


edit::yea
rockets > fountain

[Elgin Clock]

Is it a bad thing when there's a 10 for $10 sale of 2-liter bottles of Diet Coke at the local Super Shop and Shop, especially when you are at a grad party?

I don't know about you, but there is a much more exciting way to watch the Diet Coke/Mentos reaction than watching a ten-foot-high stream of fizz shoot out of the top of the bottle. The Diet Coke and Mentos eruption gets boring after a little while. So why not try a Diet Coke and Mentos explosion?

Yes, that's right, a Diet Coke - Mentos explosion. That said explosion was able to launch a 2-liter bottle of Diet Coke well over 100 feet away using only Mentos. I love it when science is fun. :p

Here the video: (15 Mb, Windows Media Video)
www.team228.org/video/misc/diet-coke-mentos-rocket.wmv (http://www.team228.org/video/misc/diet-coke-mentos-rocket.wmv)

Legal Disclaimer: If you try this at home, please use common sense and be safe.

The best part about this in my perspective, was I think I was the only one to see it's whole flight, because as everyone else was standing in the driveway, and the bottle flew over the house and a tree, I just happened to be walking back from my car and heard the big bang, and watched the bottle fly and almost land in a open convertible on the opposite side of the house it launched from... :ahh:

[CraigHickman]

I've gotta say... That was pretty freaking awesome. I had to watch the video like 3 times to get the whole idea.

So the diet coke will eat through the shrink wrap?

[Bill_Hancoc]

I've gotta say... That was pretty freaking awesome. I had to watch the video like 3 times to get the whole idea.

So the diet coke will eat through the shrink wrap?
when they shook it the plastic wrap came loose and the mentos spilled into the coke thus...


That was pretty awsome....now i have a summer project...

[geeknerd99]

C'mon... we've got two of these threads up now...Where's Dave?

The question stands: What's Dave gonna pull on us? Any word from him yet?

[Greg Marra]

Surely there is a better launch mechanism than throwing the bottle at the ground?

[Elgin Clock]

Surely there is a better launch mechanism than throwing the bottle at the ground?

A better one is already in the design stages.. ;)

It'll be ready hopefully for debut on July 8th.

[Kristian Calhoun]

C'mon... we've got two of these threads up now...Where's Dave?

The question stands: What's Dave gonna pull on us? Any word from him yet?

He's too busy scratching the idea of a jello-based game and thinking up some more of the possible uses for mentos and diet coke in next years game. :p

[Alexa Stott]

He's too busy scratching the idea of a jello-based game and thinking up some more of the possible uses for mentos and diet coke in next years game. :p

Heh...wonder how long it'll take for the "Mentos/Diet Coke Game" thread to start up in the rumor section. Because seriously? The jello game is *so* 2008. :rolleyes:

[Elgin Clock]

A better one is already in the design stages.. ;)
It'll be ready hopefully for debut on July 8th.

I meant July 1st.. :o Hehehehe.. Bring the cameras.

[KenWittlief]

if someone is really working on a Dcoke/Mentos rocket then 'studies' have shown that water-rockets get the best altitude when they are about 33 to 45 % full.

It would be interesting to see some tests with the bottle plugged with something designed to release at a preset pressure buildup (like a cork) instead of the screw top

and please, beg/borrow/steal some safety glasses. Ive never met a blind engineer.

[Wetzel]

All right guys, I'll be the adult type person. Did you see how fast and high that bottle went when it launched? That would have knocked the crap outta someone had it hit them. By just throwing it at the ground you have no control over where it goes.

Common sense would say not launching a 4.5lbs missile next to a crowd of people with no idea of where it would go. A better launch system is definitely needed.

Wetzel

[CityRiot228]

OMG Mento's + Coke= FUN...

All i remember was being in my computer room and seeing to coke bottle fall from the sky and being like WTF!?!?!?
And i remember thinking OMG Dad's gunna flip :mad: and he was outside watching and cracking up histerically. :ahh:
That deffinately made my senior year. I wish i could graduate again! Maybe my college grad. party we can do some more damage and light off more cannon's and fireworks! :D

~Cake! ( The Grad Party ) :cool:

[dlavery]

All right guys, I'll be the adult type person. Did you see how fast and high that bottle went when it launched? That would have knocked the crap outta someone had it hit them. By just throwing it at the ground you have no control over where it goes.

Common sense would say not launching a 4.5lbs missile next to a crowd of people with no idea of where it would go. A better launch system is definitely needed.

Wetzel
Party pooper. Although the mentioned concerns are valid, there is a simple way to compensate. Enclose all potenital projectile particles in an appropriate container that will properly constrain any errant motion. For an excellent example, please refer to this experiment (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRBkQe_lwak), which is conducted with all the proper precautions.

-dave

[KenWittlief]

so what happens if you drink Diet Coke while chewing on a Mentos mint ?

what happens if you drink about a liter of D coke and then swallow one :eek:

[Greg Marra]

so what happens if you drink Diet Coke while chewing on a Mentos mint ?

what happens if you drink about a liter of D coke and then swallow one :eek:

I tried putting mentos and coke in my mouth at the same time. Basically you sort of just fizz and then realize your mouth isn't nearly as big as you thought it was.

[sanddrag]

Party pooper. Although the mentioned concerns are valid, there is a simple way to compensate. Enclose all potenital projectile particles in an appropriate container that will properly constrain any errant motion. For an excellent example, please refer to this experiment (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRBkQe_lwak), which is conducted with all the proper precautions.

-dave
Haha! But, is it me or did she just pour it down the front of herslef without actually drinink any?

[KTorak]

I acually own a mechanism to launch plastic bottles with using compressed air and liquids...I definitely gotta try this...I know what I'm buying when I get off work tomorrow.

EDIT: 500th post for me.

[Graham Donaldson]

All right guys, I'll be the adult type person. Did you see how fast and high that bottle went when it launched? That would have knocked the crap outta someone had it hit them. By just throwing it at the ground you have no control over where it goes.

Common sense would say not launching a 4.5lbs missile next to a crowd of people with no idea of where it would go. A better launch system is definitely needed.

Wetzel

Party pooper. Although the mentioned concerns are valid, there is a simple way to compensate. Enclose all potenital projectile particles in an appropriate container that will properly constrain any errant motion. For an excellent example, please refer to this experiment (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRBkQe_lwak), which is conducted with all the proper precautions.

-dave

That's one way, Dave. Another way is throwing it off of a two-story building (clip is in the middle of the video, but watch the whole thing anyways.)http://www.chilloutzone.de/files/06051902.html

Thanks go to artdutra04 for actually showing how to get the mentos in with out it blowing up in your face. I had been wondering how to do that. Now, all that can be done is wait until coke goes on sale and then it's off to the Hilton parking lot (I have a Hilton rliterally right in my backyard. I can see it typing this.)

Actually, on a side note, anyone have suggestions on where to do this (not on your own property) where nobody will really care and/or you won't get in trouble for it? Yah... having a small lot is a problem sometimes.

Thanks everyone,

The Canuck

[KTorak]

I have a launch system to use, but I have to have time before the mentos react with the pop and start to creat pressure. Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out a time delay.

[Graham Donaldson]

I have a launch system to use, but I have to have time before the mentos react with the pop and start to creat pressure. Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out a time delay.

Well, what's the system? Maybe one of us can help you figure it out.

The Canuck

[animatorkid]

I have a launch system to use, but I have to have time before the mentos react with the pop and start to creat pressure. Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out a time delay.

Try putting them in a napkin and then put them in. It will take time for it to break through

[Elgin Clock]

Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out a time delay.

Try putting them in a napkin and then put them in. It will take time for it to break through

*cough* Why don't you actually watch the video in post number 1 and learn how? *cough*

[KTorak]

Excuse the crudeness of my drawing, but I have attached a file showing the launch system I currently have. I have to add the mentos, but have time to turn the bottle over and place it on the launcher.

*cough* Why don't you actually watch the video in post number 1 and learn how? *cough*

I did watch it and tried it, but I could not get them to go into the bottle without falling out or jamming up, which would cause it to react before I can safely setu a way to launch it.

[Graham Donaldson]

*cough* Why don't you actually watch the video in post number 1 and learn how? *cough*

Sounds like a good idea! Hear and you forget; see and you remember; do and you understand. ~Confucius What a wise man.

I have not tried it, but maybe another way to do it would be to do the conventional way by wrapping it in paper to keep them straight and orderly, then roll the tube (with open ends) in the plastic wrap. You could maybe even make sure the tube was longer so when one end was tied/twisted you could pull it (the tube) out and tie/twist the other end. Just throwing ideas out there... I'm waiting for summer to try everything (I get out the 28th :( ...you can all say "ouch- that sucks" now :D). I might be able to convince one of the counselors to do it one day...that would be fun... thus is the end of my rambling.

The Canuck

[Astronouth7303]

How about something that puts a hole in the cap? (eg, a big nail)

When the cap is punctured, the pressure has an exit.

You could also try preparing the bottle so that pressure build up just blows the bottle neck off. (or maybe blows it off with some help.)

Could you do some complex thing where the bottle is upside down, the mentos are suspended above the coke, and the string to release them is coming out the bottom?

Maybe a paint mixer would help to safely shake up the bottles.

You may want to barrow some player stations during testing.

[KenWittlief]

this thread is well on its way to becoming an engineering design contest.

remember to take video of your best launch, if you want recognition for your design :^)

[Graham Donaldson]

this thread is well on its way to becoming an engineering design contest.

remember to take video of your best launch, if you want recognition for your design :^)

Might have to go scrounge through the garage for some piping or something to make a launcher... or a model rocket launch pad... :D. On that note, does anyone have any feasible way to "knock the top off" the bottle while upside down on a launch pad? In the video, they threw it on the ground, but does anyone have any ideas on how to launch it without putting a hole in the top or anything? Maybe Jamie's idea of putting a hole in it with a nail would work (e.x. force the bottle down on to the nail, then quickly pull hands back and watch it fly). I'm welcome to suggestions on how to improve this, like maybe putting more nails so hole is bigger, forcing it onto nails without human interaction (bungee cords????), etc...

PM me or post with any suggestions...

The Canuck

[KenWittlief]

something that would pop out at the right pressure, like a cork or rubber stopper?

or fire to melt the cap off?

[Astronouth7303]

Maybe an axe or a hatchet to cut the top off. Hopefully one can get it going fast enough so the bottle doesn't take off early with the top still hanging on.

Just make sure your fingers are out of the way, first.

[Graham Donaldson]

Maybe an axe or a hatchet to cut the top off. Hopefully one can get it going fast enough so the bottle doesn't take off early with the top still hanging on.

Just make sure your fingers are out of the way, first.

Yeah, but I'd rather not use anything more dangerous than high pressure in a plastic container. (Especially not on my own property- :eek: ). The picture in my mind is two rocket launching pads (see below, attached) next to each other with two pieces of plywood. One has a nail in it, the other has a hole with a rope. Bungee cords are attached to the top of the bottle, which is set on the pads with straws to guide it. Pulling the string & therefore pulling the board, the bottle is pulled onto the nail, bungee cords release, bottle goes flying. I've attached a crude sketch for you all to look at. After looking at it, you can all say "You suck at drawing and your handwriting looks like chicken scratch!", because I've admitted it.

However, a cork might work. My only worry is that it would pop out too early, after I've shaken it, but before I've got it on the pad, and that would make a mess. Maybe taping the cork in and pulling it out with string, but I dunno. Suggestions accepted on this idea as well.

That's all for now, folks!

The Canuck

[JamesBrown]

well this is going into my plans for rocketry this summer (I Am in charge of model rocketry at a summer camp) In the mornings we will be doing traditional Estes model rockets, and in the after noons we do what ever I happen to come up with (IE water/air pressure rockets, Baking soda/Vinegar rockets, giant water balloon catapults, basically what ever I want to do.

For this one, I like the idea of a rubber stopper, that is what we use (slightly modified) for the water rockets. The only problem is it may shoot out before you can get it set up to launch. The method we use for launch is gluing straws onto the bottle and putting two wire coat hangers into a piece of ply wood separated the same distance apart as the straws on the bottle and slide the straws onto the hangers. this gives you a (slightly) controlled launch, this is what I would recommend, if any one has any other questions (or ideas) for me feel free to let me know.

[Dylan]

Here's an idea on how to launch the rockets on command:

1. Remove coke bottle cap.

2. Drill a small hole through both sides of the area with the threads.

3. Drop in mentos.

4. Quickly place a cork in the nozzle/neck, and hold it there.

5. Find a nail with a flat head, and tie some string around it just below the head.

6. Carefully stick the nail through the holes in the bottle and the cork, like this:
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h87/tng18/CokeRocketCork.jpg
It will act as a pin and prevent the cork from popping out.

7. Shake bottle.

8. Place rocket on some sort of sturdy thing to use as a launchpad (I'm planning to use one of those cinder blocks with the holes in it).

9. Pull on the string to pull out the nail. The cork will be pushed out by the pressure in the bottle, and the rocket should launch! :yikes:

WARNING: This idea is untested, and there is a chance that there will be a problem when the nail is halfway out.

BTW, Coke and Mentos are on sale at our local store! :ahh:
Next month, we shoot for the moon! :cool:

[CourtneyB]

hahaha thats awosmee

[Melissa Nute]

http://community.livejournal.com/ohnotheydidnt/7349072.html

Apparently Diet Coke and Mentos made the Approval Matrix...on the Brilliant side.

[artdutra04]

I think the best solution to this has to be simple. All you really need is to find the perfect diamater hole to maximize the thrust of the built-up pressure. Of all the "tests" we did, the best results (e.g. farthest distance) occur when the cap of the bottle would be blown off, leaving the roughly one inch diamater opening as the thrust nozzle.

So to ensure the perfect launch, you will need to find a way to make the cap the weakest part of the bottle, so that it fails first. But at the same time it has to be strong enough to withstand the "normal" pressure of the built-up Diet Coke/Mentos reaction.

And as we also found, the body of the bottle itself will rupture sometimes before the cap would blow off. From these results you can conclude that if we had ever screwed on the cap of the bottle too tightly, then the bottle itself would break. But if the cap was not on very tightly - yet still on enough to keep the pressure contained - the bottle would blast off like a rocket.

So here's the challenge: to find a way to launch the bottle on a controllable launch angle, using this "cap tightness" observation. ;)

[Elgin Clock]

So here's the challenge: to find a way to launch the bottle on a controllable launch angle, using this "cap tightness" observation. ;)

Already being designed. ;) Due to come to fruition on July 1st.
Stay tuned.

[Ted Boucher]

Tonight I got bored and decided to think about all the designs I have made up since Samm's grad party. Only one of them stood out as the easiest and safest way to do this.

My design uses the "Pop Top" spout from a Poland Springs water bottle to replace the normal cap for the diet coke. I made this work easily with about 2 minutes of work with a dremel tool. This will hopefully create the most likely weak point in the bottle and exert all of the created pressure out of it. As used at the party, I will use plastic wrap to store the mentos until the bottle is shook. The pop top has a clicked in position to keep the cap closed. This will hopefully pop open when there is to much pressure in the bottle. If this does not work, then it could also be manually opened. The spout restricts the opening from a .841 inch opening to a .298 inch opening, and should give it much more power.

I will be testing this design out tomorrow, and will repost my results.

[Elgin Clock]

Hmmm...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a1/Diet_Coke_FOOTBALL.jpg


Would it just blow up, or fly if launched correctly? Let's find out. :D

[Dylan]

Hmmm...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a1/Diet_Coke_FOOTBALL.jpg


Would it just blow up, or fly if launched correctly? Let's find out. :D
COKE GRENADE!! :ahh:

[Elgin Clock]

COKE GRENADE!!

Nope.. no grenades here officer.. Just my beverage and some candy.
<shifty eyes> :yikes: ;)


And, on a related note, a chat I just had with Ted from my team:

Me: lol well.. they are based outside the US (Mentos)
Me: lol
Ted: ahhhh
Ted: it makes sense now
Me: Parfetti Van Melle - Holland
Me: made for Parfetti Van Melle USA Inc. Erlanger, KY
Ted: someone was prolly trying to secretly sneak explosives into the country with mentos
Me: LMAO
Ted: and it has finally come out
Me: AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Me: should I notify homeland security?
Me: :p
Ted: yes
Ted: and tell them that you think the declaration of independence has a secret map on the back that leads them to the factory
Me: LMAO
Me: Like National Treasure, but this is the greatest modern engineering treasure ever!!! maybe.. maybe not.. LOL

[Dylan]

^ lol, I am so spotlighting that! :D

[Graham Donaldson]

COKE GRENADE!! :ahh:

#1: AWESOMENESS!!!! Where do you get those lol?

Here's an idea on how to launch the rockets on command:

1. Remove coke bottle cap.

2. Drill a small hole through both sides of the area with the threads.

3. Drop in mentos.

4. Quickly place a cork in the nozzle/neck, and hold it there.

5. Find a nail with a flat head, and tie some string around it just below the head.

6. Carefully stick the nail through the holes in the bottle and the cork, like this:

It will act as a pin and prevent the cork from popping out.

7. Shake bottle.

8. Place rocket on some sort of sturdy thing to use as a launchpad (I'm planning to use one of those cinder blocks with the holes in it).

9. Pull on the string to pull out the nail. The cork will be pushed out by the pressure in the bottle, and the rocket should launch!

WARNING: This idea is untested, and there is a chance that there will be a problem when the nail is halfway out.

BTW, Coke and Mentos are on sale at our local store!
Next month, we shoot for the moon!

#2: Awesome idea, that could really work!

And finally, #3: Will somebody PLEASE tell me HOW THE HECK YOU PUT A PICTURE IN A POST WITHOUT CREATING A NEW THREAD?!?!?!?!?!?! It annoys me to no end that I can't do that without making it an attachment. Dylan, you know how to do it- PM me with how, PLEASE!!!!!!

Enough...now time to do serious work (*cough* games *cough*)

The Canuck

[Elgin Clock]

And finally, #3: Will somebody PLEASE tell me HOW THE HECK YOU PUT A PICTURE IN A POST WITHOUT CREATING A NEW THREAD?!?!?!?!?!?! It annoys me to no end that I can't do that without making it an attachment.

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showpost.php?p=306106&postcount=3

& Keep in mind:

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showpost.php?p=306114&postcount=5


Simple.

[Ted Boucher]

Well.... things went bad for me.... lol. So it all went fine and good till I shook it up and the hot glue seal that I made around the cap and bottle broke. It failed to take off but succeeded in making a nice mess on my pants. :o

The picture in my mind is two rocket launching pads (see below, attached) next to each other with two pieces of plywood. One has a nail in it, the other has a hole with a rope. Bungee cords are attached to the top of the bottle, which is set on the pads with straws to guide it.

Well after mine failed I decided to break out my estes rocket set and see how well one of those launch pads would hold up. The upright pole is very very flexible and is only made for a very light weight rocket. I think if you did use these stands, the coke bottle would go anywhere it wanted to anyways.

[Elgin Clock]

Well.... things went bad for me.... lol. So it all went fine and good till I shook it up and the hot glue seal that I made around the cap and bottle broke. It failed to take off but succeeded in making a nice mess on my pants. :o



Well after mine failed I decided to break out my estes rocket set and see how well one of those launch pads would hold up. The upright pole is very very flexible and is only made for a very light weight rocket. I think if you did use these stands, the coke bottle would go anywhere it wanted to anyways.

LOL Oops. So, Ted.. need any supplies from Home Depot tonight? I prolly won't be able to give them to you till Saturday anyways, but just wanted to know.. Text me and let me know.

Plans are underway!!! :D Oh yes.. plans.. plans are good.

[Ted Boucher]

LOL Oops. So, Ted.. need any supplies from Home Depot tonight? I prolly won't be able to give them to you till Saturday anyways, but just wanted to know.. Text me and let me know.

Plans are underway!!! :D Oh yes.. plans.. plans are good.

lol probably not elgin... right now the only idea i have is to make it go boom..

So since my last post, I created quite an ingenious liftoff method. I used a tornado tube soda bottle connector (http://www.bayoffundy.ca/media/TornadoTube.JPG), a full bottle of diet coke, and the 2 halfs of a cut up soda bottle. This used equal pressure to plug the hole of the diet coke until the reaction took place.

The 2 parts to this rocket:
Part A: This included a full diet coke bottle, the tornado tube connector, and the top screw half of a soda bottle.
Part B: Was the base part of a cut in half soda bottle.

I first wrapped a full tube of mentos in saran warp and inserted them into the open bottle of diet coke. Then I screwed on the tornado tube to complete the assembly of Part A. I then Part B over the cut in half section of bottle on Part A. This created a nice suction and made it so there were 2 equal sets of pressure on either side of the tornado tube. Then I turned it all upside down so the diet coke bottle was on top in the air, and the 2 halfs sections were on the bottom. To my enjoyment, the seal stayed and the diet coke was suspended in the top of the bottle only though the pressure. Then I shook Part A until the reaction took place and the newly created high pressure of Part A rushed into the lower pressure of Part B. There was enough pressure to have Part A shoot out of the base of Part B and fly up a crazy 2 feet in the air (grrr) and crazy down and spray me with diet coke.

I was quite happy with this experiment, and I am sure someone can improve upon it. lol The basic problem of it was it lost off if its power in the liftoff stage. It also tryed to lift off right when the pressure started to go off, with the original, it was shook up good and had built up a great deal of pressure.

I will post pics later on so it will be easier to understand, good luck everyone!

[KenWittlief]

Just out of curiosity, has anyone instrumented a Coke/Mentos bottle yet?

It would be interesting to see how much pressure builds up in the bottle

you can easily get 100 psi with a quality bicycle tire pump. If coke/mentos does not exceed this it would be less expensive to perfect the bottle rocket using water and air pressure

and save the Coke/mentos for live-fire demos with an audience.

[Andy Baker]

Here's some results from the Baker backyard, as performed by Rachel (9) and Andy (old kid):

Purchased at Kroger:

2 packs of mint Mentos (each a 24-pack for $0.99)
2 - 2L bottles of Diet Coke ($1.59 each!!)
2 - 2L bottles of Diet Big K Cola ($0.59 each)


Tools & items used:

utility scraper
scotch tape
fishing line
small twine-like string
11/64" drill bit
cordless power drill
9-week-old puppy


Test 1:
Drilled a hole in the cap of a Diet BigK cola bottle.
Taped 2 mentos to end of small twine-like string.
Put 2L bottle on flat platform.
With cap removed, threaded string through cap, with mentos under cap.
Put cap back on bottle, ever so slowly.
Attempted to drop string into bottle.
String gets hung up on hole.
Results: Some fizz... 3-4" in projection... string impeded projection... Mentos dissolved slowly.
Overall results: puppy licks platform, wife gets camera, kids get wet, just enough promise to try bottle #2

Test 2:
Used the same cap in experiment #1.
Used the #2 Diet BigK Cola bottle.
Listened to Rachel, saying "we gotta cut the mentos in half to get the Coke to dissolve it faster".
Used the utility scraper to cut the Mentos in half.
Taped 4 mentos halves to string.
Inserted mentos onto cap as in test 1.
Dropped string and mentos into bottle (had to push the string a bit)
Results: lots of fizz... once string and mentos goes into bottle, got a 6-8 foot projection... puppy licks bottle, kids drink soda and don't like it... wife laughs.

Test 3:
Used the same cap as test 1 and 2
Used the #1 Diet Coke bottle.
Replaced the string with fishing line.
Taped 5 halves of mentos on fishing line.
Inserted fishing line into hole, suspending mentos above Cola, fastened cap to bottle.
Yank out fishing line, releasing mentos halves into Cola.
Results: 10-12 foot projection, just like the guys in the white suits on the video... puppy licks grass and bottle, kids get excited, Rachel and I do "high five"... wife gets the projection recorded on digital video.

Lessons learned:
Fishing line works great
Diet Big K Cola works as well as Diet Coke
Cut the Mentos in half before inserting into Cola
5 mentos halves will use up about 50% of the cola
Puppies like cola (no worries, she didn't get too many licks)

We're planning a July 4th fountain.

Andy B.

[JaneYoung]

^ what is puppy's name?

[Andy Baker]

^ what is puppy's name?

She is mainly black, with some white highlights (paws, nose, tip of tail). She is a mix breed... named Oreo.

AB

[Ashley Weed]

In the very first "rocket video" what was the reason of the ceran wrap? Can you explain more on it's use, and if you would do it differently next time.

My next trip out of the city back the the Homeland... I'm definitely gonna rig up something. :)

[Ted Boucher]

In the very first "rocket video" what was the reason of the ceran wrap? Can you explain more on it's use, and if you would do it differently next time.

My next trip out of the city back the the Homeland... I'm definitely gonna rig up something. :)

The saran wrap is used to insert the mentos into the bottle to delay the release of them to the coke. This way you can insert them, seal the bottle, and shake the bottle. The shaking of the bottle will make the saran wrap release and the mentos will react with the coke. This a cheap and easy way to make a time release "fuse".

This can be used in many applications, like a baking soda/vinegar bottle explosion and other applications were you have to separate the reactants until they need to be mixed.

[KTorak]

So...the Today show had the creaters of the video that everyone has seen online. How they released the mentor is putting a fishing string through them, then a clip at the end. They release the clip and the mentors fall into the container. However, I'm not sure that this method could be adapted to launch a rocket. However, they said they use Diet Coke becuase it contains no sugar, therefore, no stickiness.

(sorry about grammar errors...I am in a hurry to not be late to work)

[Elgin Clock]

However, they said they use Diet Coke becuase it contains no sugar, therefore, no stickiness.

That has yet to be proven to be the real reason. As is with most scientific experiments, it's more of a technical reason than a vain one. LOL

Anyways, I have still yet to see why diet cokes does work better than regular coke (and yes, it does my friends) but some hypothesize that it has to do with the artificial sweeteners in the diet coke, as opposed to the natural sugar found in regular cola)

This weekend, along with building my rocket, I plan on testing other various soft drinks for reactivity to mentos, and a new found slow release "ammunition source" which I shall keep under wraps till extensive testing can be done on my part.

But, so far.. let's just say I sacrificed a Bawls for the cause, and it works well. Mentos and Bawls works well, and my secret ammo and Bawls too, but I don't know how well since I just did the experiment in a plastic cup, with no nozzle for shooting like a soda bottle has and I can't judge pressure in a rather large open container.. yet..


**I like how Mentos tries to default to Mentors in the spell check. Next question I have is what happens when you drop Mentor(s) in Diet Coke?** :p
Maybe I'll test that as well this weekend..
Any volunteers? (shotty not it! *puts finger on nose*)

**shotty defaults to an interesting word as well. :eek: I think I will inform Brandon of that one and have it removed. LOL

[lukevanoort]

and a new found slow release "ammunition source"
Confectioners sugar? Wait, that's fast release. Maybe altoids? Probably not sugary enough. Could it be BAWLS mints? Or maybe jawbreakers? Gargh, the suspense!

[KenWittlief]

That has yet to be proven to be the real reason. As is with most scientific experiments, it's more of a technical reason than a vain one. LOL

Anyways, I have still yet to see why diet cokes does work better than regular coke (and yes, it does my friends) but some hypothesize that it has to do with the artificial sweeteners in the diet coke, as opposed to the natural sugar found in regular cola)


That would be the logical difference. Regular Coke has the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of sugar in a 12 oz can. They use mostly corn syrup now, but it raises the viscosity of the liquid.

Diet coke is more 'watery' (for lack of a better word) than regular Coke, so it does fizz better. The viscosity extreme would be trying to make a rocket from carbonated peanut butter.

[Alexa Stott]

That's nothing. Check this out http://my.break.com/Media/View.aspx?ContentID=111469

Beware of some of the content on the rest of the site.

Those guys were actually on Letterman last night. And Dave did his own Diet Coke/Mentos demonstration. Of course, one of his guests had to bring up the question about what happens if you eat Mentos and drink Diet Coke at the same time.

[Elgin Clock]

Confectioners sugar? Wait, that's fast release. Maybe altoids? Probably not sugary enough. Could it be BAWLS mints? Or maybe jawbreakers? Gargh, the suspense!

Actually.. none of the above, but thanks for adding to my list of tests to perform.. Arghh.. :p j/k.. It's all good.

[anna~marie]

Actually.. none of the above, but thanks for adding to my list of tests to perform.. Arghh.. :p j/k.. It's all good.
I can't wait to see the results!

[Michelle Celio]

Wasn't really sure which thread to post this in but....

Which does it work better with? Cold Soda? Or Warm Soda?

[Pavan Dave]

Confucious never saw Diet Coke or Mentos, and thank the gods* for that.

Dude that has the be an awesome, "Boredom Project" lol. Thank god Wal-Mart is open 24/7 =)


*=I refer to the gods being the greek mythological gods, cause we all heard about them and have learned about them in school.

[Ted Boucher]

Of course, one of his guests had to bring up the question about what happens if you eat Mentos and drink Diet Coke at the same time.

Well, it is funny you bring this up. :D Tonight, 25s very own Corey Balint was used in a small experiment up here in CT. We filled his mouth with diet coke and then dropped a mentos in. The result was... lol... quite funny... he said the diet coke rushed down his mouth and an eruption of fizz came out of his mouth. The end result was diet coke all over the Shaw Family's floor and Corey on the ground, Success? maybe.

[Sam Lipscomb]

Well, it is funny you bring this up. :D Tonight, 25s very own Corey Balint was used in a small experiment up here in CT. We filled his mouth with diet coke and then dropped a mentos in. The result was... lol... quite funny... he said the diet coke rushed down his mouth and an eruption of fizz came out of his mouth. The end result was diet coke all over the Shaw Family's floor and Corey on the ground, Success? maybe.

Wow. Poor Corey. What a welcome to da Cutt, eh?

[KenWittlief]

Well, it is funny you bring this up. :D Tonight, 25s very own Corey Balint was used in a small experiment up here in CT. We filled his mouth with diet coke and then dropped a mentos in.

no no no!

you have to DRINK a bottle of diet coke then swallow a chewed up mentos

and we require video!

[anna~marie]

no no no!

you have to DRINK a bottle of diet coke then swallow a chewed up mentos

and we require video!

Actually... that is on my list of things to do this summer... not jokin
I'm actually thinking Mentos, then diet coke
Perhaps this week, I don't work nearly as much

[EricRobodox]

no no no!

you have to DRINK a bottle of diet coke then swallow a chewed up mentos

and we require video!

Ken, that wont work. Becuase if its chewed up it wont be a catalyst because the powder on the mentos that causes the fizz will be lost. the key is to keep the persons mouth open, make them drink the soda, but not swallow, and then shove a few mentos in really quick. Put duct tape over the mouth quickly and laugh as the soda shoots up his nose from the pressure. I always wanted to grind up sawdust and do this. The powder in sawdust would probably work better than mentos, well, if you made sawdust into a very thin powder.

But i do agree with Ken in that we need a video.

[santosh]

Would this reaction work better if the mentos were crushed? We tried this thing with the 20 ounce bottles. So that didn't work too well. the ottom of the bottle gave out before the cap. And we tried it with a 2 liter but we never had teh cap on right. I think that tomorrow we are going to try that cork idea someone posted up here.

[KenWittlief]

Ken, that wont work. Becuase if its chewed up it wont be a catalyst because the powder on the mentos that causes the fizz will be lost.

....The powder in sawdust would probably work better than mentos, well, if you made sawdust into a very thin powder.


please explain futher. I was under the impression that this was vinegar / baking soda type of reaction that causes all the carbonation in the soda to be released.

Powder? Dust ?!

(Strange things are afoot at the Circle K)

[sanddrag]

Ken, that wont work. Becuase if its chewed up it wont be a catalyst because the powder on the mentos that causes the fizz will be lost. the key is to keep the persons mouth open, make them drink the soda, but not swallow, and then shove a few mentos in really quick. Put duct tape over the mouth quickly and laugh as the soda shoots up his nose from the pressure. Sounds dangerous.

[Jay H 237]

Well, it is funny you bring this up. :D Tonight, 25s very own Corey Balint was used in a small experiment up here in CT. We filled his mouth with diet coke and then dropped a mentos in. The result was... lol... quite funny... he said the diet coke rushed down his mouth and an eruption of fizz came out of his mouth. The end result was diet coke all over the Shaw Family's floor and Corey on the ground, Success? maybe.

So that's what I missed for not sticking around past eleven! :rolleyes:

How much diet Coke is left from what was piled in the back of Sam's car?
I hope you didn't get Corey to drink all $74 dollars worth before you tried this! :ahh:

[Elgin Clock]

So that's what I missed for not sticking around past eleven! :rolleyes:

How much diet Coke is left from what was piled in the back of Sam's car?
I hope you didn't get Corey to drink all $74 dollars worth before you tried this! :ahh:

Actually Jay, that happened on Friday night, not Saturday. We still have about 18 bottles left from the ~23 or so we bought on Saturday.

Only a few bottles were used from that pic (of Jay's) on Saturday..

My launching system has some flaws.. :(

Back to the drawing board.

Although.... I did do some "normal" DC&M drops for family and friends on Sunday, and everyone was pretty impressed. I got a 14' stream off one 2 liter bottle. (I did it under a basketball hoop, and it went right through, and over by 4 ft at the hoop's highest setting.) :D

[Kristian Calhoun]

So that's what I missed for not sticking around past eleven! :rolleyes:

How much diet Coke is left from what was piled in the back of Sam's car?
I hope you didn't get Corey to drink all $74 dollars worth before you tried this! :ahh:

That pic reminds me of the first time I stepped foot inside Corey's car. There were liters upon liters of coke on the floor, along with a pack of plenty of rolls of mentos. (much worse than Sam's) :rolleyes:

A couple of Team 25 members (myself, Bharat, Alison, Alexa, and Morgan) were fooling around with diet coke and mentos earlier tonight. (Liters of Diet coke were on sale for $1 at the local A&P to our surprise). We made two fountains (which the neighbors across the street inquired about), and made 3 attempts at a rocket, only one of which actually took flight. :p

[Morgan Gillespie]

That pic reminds me of the first time I stepped foot inside Corey's car. There were liters upon liters of coke on the floor, along with a pack of plenty of rolls of mentos. :rolleyes:

A couple of Team 25 members (myself, Bharat, Alison, Alexa, and Morgan) were fooling around with diet coke and mentos earlier tonight. (Liters of Diet coke were on sale for $1 at the local A&P to our surprise). We made two fountains (which the neighbors across the street inquired about), and made 3 attempts at a rocket, only one of which actually took flight. :p

Yet your pure white "Got FIRST" shirt stayed clean... :rolleyes:

[Kristian Calhoun]

Yet your pure white "Got FIRST" shirt stayed clean... :rolleyes:

Surprisingly, yes, it did. (Ya gotta love the Holy Cows [1538] for giving out those shirts.) Kudos to them. :D

[Alexa Stott]

We botched the first two attempts at a rocket. The first time, Bharat didn't quite throw the bottle the right way (throwing it cap-down) the first time, the second time it worked, and the third time...Well, I don't know what happened the third time. But it was a lot of fun. :D

[Kristian Calhoun]

We botched the first two attempts at a rocket. The first time, Bharat didn't quite throw the bottle the right way (throwing it cap-down) the first time, the second time it worked, and the third time...Well, I don't know what happened the third time. But it was a lot of fun. :D

Always blaming it on the programmer....*sigh* [but seriously, it was his fault :D ]

*looks at own usertitle...* uh, oh. :yikes:

[Jay H 237]

We botched the first two attempts at a rocket. The first time, Bharat didn't quite throw the bottle the right way (throwing it cap-down) the first time, the second time it worked, and the third time...Well, I don't know what happened the third time. But it was a lot of fun. :D

I'm not going to let the cat out of the bag of which Elgin and Ted had been hinting at in previous posts but Elgin did make a Home Depot run for supplies and it looks like we're on the right track. We tried making a trigger device and a way to control the projectory of the bottle. The trigger device isn't working the way that it should but it looks like we're on the right track and it needs some tweaking.

The idea we're using is simple and inexpensive and all the materials needed are at any home center or hardware store, heck you might even have some of the stuff laying around at your house already. Like I said, once it gets finalized I'm sure they'll tell you how it works and even include some photos and maybe even a video.

[anna~marie]

I'm not going to let the cat out of the bag of which Elgin and Ted had been hinting at in previous posts but Elgin did make a Home Depot run for supplies and it looks like we're on the right track. We tried making a trigger device and a way to control the projectory of the bottle. The trigger device isn't working the way that it should but it looks like we're on the right track and it needs some tweaking.

The idea we're using is simple and inexpensive and all the materials needed are at any home center or hardware store, heck you might even have some of the stuff laying around at your house already. Like I said, once it gets finalized I'm sure they'll tell you how it works and even include some photos and maybe even a video.

Have you ever thought of using the kind of clamp that they used to Mythbusters (that one episode with the bottle rocket man thing) ? Dunno, if you needed ideas you could implement that one

[Jay H 237]

Have you ever thought of using the kind of clamp that they used to Mythbusters (that one episode with the bottle rocket man thing) ? Dunno, if you needed ideas you could implement that one

The initial design hasn't included a clamp yet. I didn't see that episode of the Mythbusters but when we were sitting around the table discussing ideas Jeff (Ogre) brought up the idea of clamping something onto the neck of the bottle. If that's what the Mythbusters did then that has been given some thought.

We are 90% sure the control of the projectory has been figured out/solved. That way we can keep the bottle from going near houses, cars, people, ect.
We just can't do anything about birds and insects though! :p

[Dylan]

Wasn't really sure which thread to post this in but....

Which does it work better with? Cold Soda? Or Warm Soda?
I just did a test on that particular topic 25 minutes ago!
(note: all tests were done with 2-liter diet Coke bottles and 3 Mentos in each bottle.)
And the results are:

Cold Coke/warm Mentos
Fountain height: 3 inches
Duration: 1.5 seconds


Warm Coke/cold Mentos
Fountain height: 9 feet
Duration: 2.5 seconds


Warm Coke/warm Mentos
Fountain height: 9 feet
Duration: 3 seconds

As you can see, cold Coke=dud. :rolleyes:

[sanddrag]

how many mentos did you put?

EDIT: /me needs to read more carefully.

[artdutra04]

how many mentos did you put?(note: all tests were done with 2-liter diet Coke bottles and 3 Mentos in each bottle.) :)

[KenWittlief]

Cold Coke/warm Mentos
Fountain height: 3 inches
Duration: 1.5 seconds


Warm Coke/cold Mentos
Fountain height: 9 feet
Duration: 2.5 seconds


I assume cold was refridgerator cold: ~36F (and not frozen cold)

and warm was trunk of car warm: ~ 100F

which took you from 3 inches to 9 feet

so if we extrapolate up then 200F coke should hit what? Is the curve linear or exponental ? :ahh:

[Astronouth7303]

I assume cold was refridgerator cold: ~36F (and not frozen cold)

and warm was trunk of car warm: ~ 100F

which took you from 3 inches to 9 feet

so if we extrapolate up then 200F coke should hit what? Is the curve linear or exponental ? :ahh:

At 200F, the coke would probably explode itself, no mentos required!

Probably easier to try it at, say, 50F, 75F, and a few others in between. (And make sure you do it more than once! :p)

[Dylan]

I assume cold was refridgerator cold: ~36F (and not frozen cold)

and warm was trunk of car warm: ~ 100F

which took you from 3 inches to 9 feet

so if we extrapolate up then 200F coke should hit what? Is the curve linear or exponental ? :ahh:
Cold was refrigerator cold, but warm was actually room temperature (about 78F).

Interesting thought though, I'll have to heat a bottle in the trunk of my mom's car as part of the next experiment (her car is black and sits in the sun, so this should be interesting :D).

[Wetzel]

Cold was refrigerator cold, but warm was actually room temperature (about 78F).

Interesting thought though, I'll have to heat a bottle in the trunk of my mom's car as part of the next experiment (her car is black and sits in the sun, so this should be interesting :D).

Careful, the trunk of a car can get the coke hot enough to rupture the bottle. :ahh:

Wetzel

[fimmel]

i just found this on funnyjunk though it was cool so http://www.funnyjunk.com/movies/158/Coke+and+Mentos/stream
/forest

[Elgin Clock]

i just found this on funnyjunk though it was cool so http://www.funnyjunk.com/movies/158/Coke+and+Mentos/stream
/forest

Top That?? Ok. lol
For 58 cents a bottle, and absolutely no mentos, we sure did top that on Saturday.

Art, release the video (edited for the CD community of course)!!!

[Dylan]

Ok, on Sunday I did a couple more experiments; warmer than room temperature coke does not seem to work any better than room temperature coke, if anything it doesn't work as well, and cutting the Mentos in half appears to work a little better, but I don't think it was enough of a difference to help with launching.

I also tested a few launch systems, without much success. I think the main problem was that we tried alternatives to wrapping the Mentos in plastic wrap, none of which gave us enough of a time delay.
My cork-and-nail system didn't work, it leaked spectacularly. It might work with a really good cork, but it's more likely that corks are too porous to hold back that kind of pressure.

The closest we came to a launch was when I noticed that the Mentos had failed to come into significant contact with the coke, grabbed the bottle and shook it, and then the bottle shot out of my hands and between my legs and landed about 4 feet behind me! :ahh:
Of course, my little brother and his friend thought that was hilarious, because as you can imagine a got a little wet. :yikes:

Next time we'll stick to plastic wrap for the release system.

~Dylan

EDIT: I see Mentos has been added to the spell check. :D

[KenWittlief]

Ok, on Sunday I did a couple more experiments; warmer than room temperature coke does not seem to work any better than room temperature coke, if anything it doesn't work as well...

please elaborate. How much warmer was your hi-temp test Coke

and its not clear, for the hi-temp Coke testing, were you dropping mentos into open bottles and recording the height of the geyser, or were you trying to launch the bottles?

[Dylan]

please elaborate. How much warmer was your hi-temp test Coke

and its not clear, for the hi-temp Coke testing, were you dropping mentos into open bottles and recording the height of the geyser, or were you trying to launch the bottles?
It wasn't much warmer than room temperature, it only sat in the car for a little while. I'll have to re-test that one.

I use geyser height for all testing, but we did not do a control bottle this time (my little brother wanted to use it for rocket testing instead).

[artdutra04]

Art, release the video (edited for the CD community of course)!!!Done! :D Here's the link to the video: diet-coke-rocket.wmv (http://www.team228.org/video/misc/diet-coke-rocket.wmv)

*In the video some of the footage is made to look like a Live News broadcast, and there is a news ticker at the bottom of the screen. The contents of said news ticker are for humor only; they're rated G. And yes, we really did have an ambulance there watching us. But don't worry, no one was hurt or injured: the EMTs wanted to watch us launch off the bottles of Diet Cola. :)

I will say right here, that some of the best fun at parties can be bought for under $20. For about $13 and change we bought 20 bottles of generic Diet Cola at Wal-Mart. For $9 I bought 2,000 Post-It notes that we plastered the walls and some other stuff (http://pics.livejournal.com/f0rg0ttens0ng/pic/001s0wtp) with. :p

[Dylan]

Haha, awesome! :D

I actually got to meet Bill Nye when I was like 12.

[anna~marie]

I have Bill Nye's signature (and a note from him!!)
He once did a show in Milford but no one was suppose to know about it

[Sam Lipscomb]

And yes, we really did have an ambulance there watching us. But don't worry, no one was hurt or injured: the EMTs wanted to watch us launch off the bottles of Diet Cola. :)

Don't lie. I have EMT friends because it is in my best interests! I crash (http://pics.livejournal.com/f0rg0ttens0ng/pic/000fdwrb/g95) too often not to...

For $9 I bought 2,000 Post-It notes that we plastered the walls and some other stuff (http://pics.livejournal.com/f0rg0ttens0ng/pic/001s0wtp) with. :p

My room is gorgeous! As was Elgin's car... :yikes:

[Dylan]

Don't lie. I have EMT friends because it is in my best interests! I crash (http://pics.livejournal.com/f0rg0ttens0ng/pic/000fdwrb/g95) too often not to...
Holy cow, is that your car?! :ahh:

What happened?!

[KenWittlief]

...I have EMT friends because it is in my best interests! I crash (http://pics.livejournal.com/f0rg0ttens0ng/pic/000fdwrb/g95) too often not to...
...

I recommend you dump the EMT and start dating a chauffeur!

by the time you need an EMT its too late :ahh:

[Elgin Clock]

Holy cow, is that your car?! :ahh:

What happened?!

Sam can explain it better but the story I heard was that she was cut off coming home one night on a very busy highway-type parkway road, and was forced off the road and into the woods.

They don't call her Crash Goddess for nothin' folks. :ahh:

For $9 I bought 2,000 Post-It notes that we plastered the walls and some other stuff (http://pics.livejournal.com/f0rg0ttens0ng/pic/001s0wtp) with. :p

Yes Art, my car thanks you for the temporary beauty makeover.. LOL

[Sam Lipscomb]

Holy cow, is that your car?! :ahh:

Sadly, yes. I went to Six Flags New England on opening day with Kim from 177 and Matt and Tom from 195, and after hanging out in South Windsor that night I drove home to Shelton. Someone cut me off on the Merritt; I served, spun out, and went off the road in the 50 feet between an overpass and the place where the guardrail started up again. My car tried to make friends with 3 trees at 65mph. It didn't work out so well for the car.

Basically, I'm lucky I didn't have a passenger. And I was wearing my seatbelt! Safety FIRST, all. :)

[Jay H 237]

Basically, I'm lucky I didn't have a passenger. And I was wearing my seatbelt! Safety FIRST, all. :)

I'm going to also say that you were lucky too! :)

Looking at the Cavalier's firewall and "A" pillar being pushed back you were lucky. Time to buy a PowerBall ticket! ;)

[Alexa Stott]

Basically, I'm lucky I didn't have a passenger. And I was wearing my seatbelt! Safety FIRST, all. :)

Seatbelts don't always save you. My uncle was hit by a speeding ambulance while he had his seat belt on, but it broke and he was thrown from the car. He actually ended up dying (but that was long before I can remember). I guess there are certain cases where it's good, others where it doesn't make a difference, and other times when it doesn't do you any good.

But, since it's the law, and more often than not, a good thing, it's always best to wear your seatbelt.

[KenWittlief]

I'm going to also say that you were lucky too! :)


Im not so sure about luck. Id say many engineers put a good part of their careers and life-energy into designing that car - that was not luck, that was intentional design-for-surviability

Luck? - that would be if you had seen the car cutting you off a second sooner and been able to avoid the accident entirely :^)

I think the statistics are: one in four people will be in a serious car accident during their life time. Hopefully you have had yours now.

[Cynette]

Seatbelts don't always save you. My uncle was hit by a speeding ambulance while he had his seat belt on, but it broke and he was thrown from the car. He actually ended up dying (but that was long before I can remember). I guess there are certain cases where it's good, others where it doesn't make a difference, and other times when it doesn't do you any good.

But, since it's the law, and more often than not, a good thing, it's always best to wear your seatbelt.Wearing a seat belt always does you good, it just always isn't enough. Since the time that your uncle died, :( there have been great improvements in vehicle safety both in the seatbelt construction and latching and in the cars themselves (we can thank the hundreds of crash dummies for that).

Seat belts rarely break in accidents and when they do, many times they have done their job and protected the person from the initial impact of the accident.

My brother-in-law was also in an accident were his seatbelt broke and he was thrown from the car (Blazer). But the belt broke after the Blazer rolled four times, If he had not been wearing the belt, he probably wouldn't have been alive to be thrown from the vehicle. By the time he was thrown the speed was reduced to a point where could survive the ejection.

Buckle Up Everyone! Especially if you are driving by the neighborhoods of Art, Elgin and Dylan when they are experimenting with Diet Coke and Mentos!

[Astronouth7303]

Maybe someone should start putting seat belts on those DC/M rockets people are working on. :p

[Elgin Clock]

Maybe someone should start putting seat belts on those DC/M rockets people are working on. :p

Nah!! Personally I'm not at that "October Sky" status yet.. but someday.. oh yes, someday I will launch myself (or someone a bit lighter) in the air with Coke and Mentos. ;)

[artdutra04]

Nah!! Personally I'm not at that "October Sky" status yet.. but someday.. oh yes, someday I will launch myself (or someone a bit lighter) in the air with Coke and Mentos. ;)This sounds like the famous last words of Buster from Mythbusters... :eek:

[Nitroxextreme]

Nah!! Personally I'm not at that "October Sky" status yet.. but someday.. oh yes, someday I will launch myself (or someone a bit lighter) in the air with Coke and Mentos. ;)

You would definitely need a whole lot of coke and mentos...

Interesting Idea would be a steal reinforced bathtub (filled with water) and some Francium :yikes:


***200th Post*** :D

[jdglove]

I don't know if this has been suggested. It trades power for control. You may not get the bottle to fly 50 ft, but maybe 15 feet straight up reliably is a nice trade-off.

Summary:
(a) suspend 5 mentos inside the bottle above the soda using a paper clip threaded through holes in the mentos. See here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAHGz2reXsU&search=diet%20coke%20mentos
(b) Use a cork to hold the pressure until it builds.
(c) Construct a rudimentary launch platform from another 2 liter bottle so it launches straight up.

Details:
(1) Buy a cork that will fit firmly into the mouth of a 2 liter diet coke bottle. They have these at Michaels for <$2 for 4 of them.

(2) Create a launcher. Take an empty 2 liter bottle. Remove the label and soda. Use a box cutter or exacto knife to cut the bottle in half with a clean straight cut. 1/2 inch above the halfway point is actually perfect (yes above). Throw out the top of the bottle. The bottom will be your launcher.
(You will put the corked full bottle inside it and turn the whole assembly upside down to launch.)

(3) Prepare mentos. Take four mentos (5 is slightly better but dips into the soda and causes permature mixing thus ruining the launch.) Poke a hole through the centers of the mentos. I use a large thick paper clip or very thin nail for this because a normal clip just bends. String the four mentos through a small paper clip and then press the end of the clip into the bottom (inside) of the cork. The mentos need to be flush against the cork or they will mix with the soda too early.

(4) Cork the rocket. Open a new Diet Coke 2 liter bottle (Actual Diet Coke Brand is reported as the best, adn Dieat Coke beats non-diet becuase it's less sticky to clean up). Push the cork in as tightly as possible being careful not to crush the bottle and make sure NOT to let the mentos hit the soda!! Take the launcher and place it over the top of the rocket. You can get a little airtight seal here but don't worry if not - the main importance of the launcher is to hold the bottle upright.

(5) Turn the whole thing over (do not shake), and place upside down on the pavement and immediately back away. Don't hesitate because it can go off pretty fast.

The rocket should shoot upward maybe 15 feet or so. The trick is getting the cork as tight as possible. A rubber stopper might be better than a cork but I didn't try that. Then again if too tight you're back to the problem with the cap (not coming off until you destroy it). A 20 oz bottle might work even better, less weight, but I didn't try that. Also try a few more mentos and dump a little soda out first - more air space, more released gas should cause a faster and more explosive release???

It seems fairly safe, especially compared to slamming the capped bottle down, but use caution, consider eye protection, and of course avoid young kids around. It can still go at odd angles. Have fun.

[Adam Richards]

Actual Diet Coke Brand is reported as the best, adn Dieat Coke beats non-diet becuase it's less sticky to clean upBoth types have been tested, and Diet Coke seems to project out more liquid than regular coke.

[Sam Lipscomb]

Both types have been tested, and Diet Coke seems to project out more liquid than regular coke.

That's cause it's more carbonated :D

http://blog.sciam.com/index.php?title=soda_fountains_or_diet_coke_mentos _and_s&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

[KenWittlief]

That's cause it's more carbonated :D

http://blog.sciam.com/index.php?title=soda_fountains_or_diet_coke_mentos _and_s&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

that is only speculation: from the link: But the truth is no one is entirely sure why it seems to work best. It is likely that either Diet Coke is pumped full of more carbon dioxide than its soda peers or its artificial sweeteners permit more carbon dioxide to dissolve in the liquid (once again by strengthening the surface tension).

I think its because regular Coke is so syrupy - it has a much higher viscosity - its more like carbonated corn syrup.

[Dylan]

From the link: Or it could be that Diet Coke is kept colder than other sodas; cold water can hold more carbon dioxide.
Fatal flaw in that theory; my testing showed that cold coke barely reacts at all, compared to room-temp coke.

From the link: Finegold speculates that balls of candlewax would work just as well, thanks to the oiliness of the wax.
Someone needs to test this.

[KenWittlief]

if surface area is the trigger then confectionery sugar, charcoal from an aquarium filter, or talcum powder might work better.

[lukevanoort]

I imagine Diet works better because its much lighter than regular, so the same amount of CO2 "thrust" causes further projections.

[Dylan]

if surface area is the trigger then confectionery sugar, charcoal from an aquarium filter, or talcum powder might work better.
Should probably stick with mentos because:

Confectionery sugar will most likely turn into sticky blobs

Charcoal is nasty

Talcum powder (at least the real kind) is a carcinogen! :ahh:

But if wax works you could probably just drop a candle in the coke and then re-use it, which would cut costs and not be sticky.

[KenWittlief]

...But if wax works you could probably just drop a candle in the coke and then re-use it, which would cut costs and not be sticky.

I cant see a candle having a lot of surface area. A candle is as smooth as, well, as smooth as wax

the charcoal used in filters has a very fine and grainy surface - thats why it makes a great filter, there is so much exposed surface area in a small handfull of the stuff.

Nobody drinks this stuff off the driveway after the launch, do they?!

you dont scoop it back in the bottle and put it back in the fridge (I hope) :ahh:

[Dylan]

Nobody drinks this stuff off the driveway after the launch, do they?!

you dont scoop it back in the bottle and put it back in the fridge (I hope) :ahh:
Well... my little brother tried it (Mentos fueled of course) and according to him it has a killer aftertaste. :yikes:

What I meant was that charcoal would make a would make worse mess (black) than Mentos.

[jdglove]

Correction to my earlier post (controlled Diet Coke Mentos Rocket Launch)..

It seems that using 4 mentos instead of 5 is too few and the rocket will
not have enough thrust to push out the cork sometimes. So add a fifth,
but to get all five flush with the cork and above the soda you have to
squash them by about a third. This does not harm the reaction but you then have time to cork and overturn the bottle!

[Dylan]

BREAKING NEWS!!!!

On Wednesday, August 9th Jaime of Mythbusters throws his beret into the DC&M ring!
That's right, the Mythbusters will be doing Coke and Mentos rocket experiments! :ahh:

Hopefully this will not only give DC&M national recognition, but also answer the question once and for all "what exactly makes this work?"

I am also hopeful that the Mythbusters will be able to develop a simple yet reliable launch system.

As long as there are no legal issues, someone needs to record this episode, put it on Youtube, and then post a link.


Excuse me for geeking out, but this will be a great moment in Diet Coke and Mentos history! :cool:

[geeknerd99]

Any chance that Grant (http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/member.php?u=4873) stumbled upon this thread?

[Alexa Stott]

Any chance that Grant (http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/member.php?u=4873) stumbled upon this thread?

It is possible. According to his profile, his latest activity was on Tuesday.

[Dylan]

That can't really be grant from Mythbusters... can it?! :ahh:

[Jay H 237]

That can't really be grant from Mythbusters... can it?! :ahh:
Yes, it is.

He's been on here for quite some time but keeps a low profile, for obvious reasons.
Not only is he involved with competing with his Battle bot but he's been a mentor on FIRST team 841 for several years now. :)

[JaneYoung]

Yes, it is.

He's been on here for quite some time but keeps a low profile, for obvious reasons.
Not only is he involved with competing with his Battle bot but he's been a mentor on FIRST team 841 for several years now. :)

It's that science and technology inspiration stuff - never know where it'll take you - :)

[SamC]

Anyone see this (http://dietcokementoschallenge.com/)? $750 in prizes a month for a simple experiment! I think the best one i saw (a little dangerous) was diet coke + mentos + dry ice :ahh: ! It was pretty cool. It blew up cause of pressure but you could see the bottle get to like twice its original size before it blew! I bet with a hole in the cap it would make a HUGE fountain!

[Jeremiah Johnson]

Anyone see this (http://dietcokementoschallenge.com/)? $750 in prizes a month for a simple experiment! I think the best one i saw (a little dangerous) was diet coke + mentos + dry ice :ahh: ! It was pretty cool. It blew up cause of pressure but you could see the bottle get to like twice its original size before it blew! I bet with a hole in the cap it would make a HUGE fountain!

I plan on doing this this weekend. I bought a special drill bit (1/16") for the cap and the mentos. Heh... maybe I'll have some pics to post.

[Barry Bonzack]

I finally got around to loading Gabe and I's launch. We decided about a month ago to use our waterrocket launchpad to do a Mentos and Diet Coke rocket launch. No throwing the bottle on the ground, no chance of it coming back and harming people or property. It Did launch over some powerlines, though. This was after work out at the Astronaut Hall of Fame. The following videos are taken with the Google camera from the KOP, step by step.

Gladwrapping Mentos (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6729799984240538435&hl=en)

The Launchpad (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2359527075396843070&hl=en)

Loading Mentos and putting it on the pad (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=36268471746310794&hl=en)

Pumping air into rocket (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4098946050689222986&hl=en) to seperate the mentos from the gladwrap and add pressure.

LAUNCH (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6840785426341595494&hl=en)

Recovery (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7562190738656627061&hl=en)


And just for the fun of it, we decided to drop some diet coke and mentos from the roof of the Astronaut Hall of Fame. Mentos Deathdrop (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3060331143374023970&hl=en)

Enjoy!

[tiffany34990]

I finally got around to loading Gabe and I's launch. We decided about a month ago to use our waterrocket launchpad to do a Mentos and Diet Coke rocket launch. No throwing the bottle on the ground, no chance of it coming back and harming people or property. It Did launch over some powerlines, though. This was after work out at the Astronaut Hall of Fame. The following videos are taken with the Google camera from the KOP, step by step.



looks pretty darn cool barry. we just talked about it at work, didn't really do it lol.

[Astronouth7303]

Advice for the next group that tries this: use a tripod.

Where can one buy that "pad"?

[lukevanoort]

Is it just me or does the guy shaking the bottle on the roof remind you of one of the Sand People from Star Wars...
Anyway, it looks like the Deathdrop did something similar to the rockets my brother and I made. One sort of flew sideways a bit and the other blew the bottom of the bottle out. (Does anyone know if the 50¢ Walmart coke doesn't work as well as real Coke, because that's what we used)

[artdutra04]

(Does anyone know if the 50¢ Walmart coke doesn't work as well as real Coke, because that's what we used)From much experience, we've deducted that the 58¢ Diet Sam's Choice Cola from Wal-Mart works just as well as regular Diet Coke. ;)

[NeedMoreEngines]

I'm sorry , but, WHAT?!

I've never seen this done before and how do you get the mentos into the soda? do you just dump them in?

someone explain this whole process

what do you do?!

umm...where do I go?

[JaneYoung]

If you are talking about Mentos and Diet Coke, it was a fun summer project/experiment for lots of folks.
This thread talks about it and how to get the Mentos in the bottle...
It's pretty cool.
If you google, this is one of the options:
http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/00000109

[Astronouth7303]

what do you do?!

Go back to page 1 and start reading. Before page 5, there should be something useful there.

[Wetzel]

Forget Diet Coke and Mentos, these guys try other candy and soda. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJsDfLndlKU)

:D
Wetzel

[Greg Needel]

so I know this thread died off a bit but check this out. about 10 days ago this was posted online, and to be honest I am supprised nobody here saw it yet. This is truely amazing.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-274981837129821058&q=http%3A%2F%2Feepybird.com

[Hiteak]

so I know this thread died off a bit but check this out. about 10 days ago this was posted online, and to be honest I am supprised nobody here saw it yet. This is truely amazing.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-274981837129821058&q=http%3A%2F%2Feepybird.com

Wow. That is amazing. You can only wonder what they will come up with next. Now if only someone can get them in FIRST so that we can see what their creative minds can do with robotics.