Introduction
We’re going to try to make polystyrene “disappear”! Do you think we can do it? You can try this at home too!
Materials
- Polystyrene (like the white foam used for packaging)
- Acetone (you can find this in some nail polish removers, but make sure to ask a grown-up to help you with it!)
Experiment
In this experiment, we’re going to mix the expanded polystyrene (that white foamy stuff) with acetone. This will release the air that’s trapped inside the polystyrene. It will look like the polystyrene is “disappearing” into the acetone. At the end, you’ll see that a container full of the foam will turn into a small amount of a gooey substance that you can shape. After a while, the acetone will evaporate, and the gooey stuff will become hard.
