Make a Bouncy Egg
Looking for an easy science project using a few household items? This simple experiment will turn a regular egg or a hard-boiled egg into a bouncy ball. You can do this with a couple of friends, or your parents, or by yourself. All you need is some vinegar, a container, and an egg or two.
Contents
Steps
Making a Hard Boiled Bouncy Egg
- Hard boil an egg. Put a fresh egg into a pot filled with water. Put the pot on the stove and turn on the heat. Wait for the water to start boiling, then turn off the heat. Let the egg sit in the water for 10 to 20 minutes. Then remove the egg and set it on a paper towel. Do not remove the shell from the egg.
- Make sure there's at least an inch of water above the egg when it's in the pot.
- Get a container of vinegar ready. Find a jar or Tupperware container large enough to fit the egg. Grab a bottle of regular white vinegar and fill the jar or Tupperware container with vinegar. Don't fill it all the way to the brim though, because then putting the egg in will make it overflow.
- It doesn't have to be filled to the top but it should be filled high enough so that the egg can be completely submerged in vinegar.
- Add dye if you want to color your bouncy egg. You can easily make your finished bouncy egg any color you want to by adding food coloring dye to the vinegar. Just add around 10 drops of the dye to the vinegar, or enough to color the whole container of vinegar.
- Submerge the egg. Place the hard boiled egg in the vinegar-filled container. Just drop it in from right above the vinegar so the vinegar doesn't splash everywhere. Make sure it is completely submerged.
- Make sure the egg is cool before submerging it in vinegar.
- Cover the container. Place a lid on your container and leave it somewhere safe but out of the sun. The less sunlight it gets the better, so either put it somewhere dark like a closet, or cover it with something like a kitchen cloth.
- Wait for the shell of the egg to completely dissolve. This process can take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours. To be on the safe side, wait three days before continuing.
- The reason shell dissolves is because vinegar is a weak acid. The egg shell is made of calcium carbonate. When the shell meets vinegar, it makes a chemical reaction that turns the calcium carbonate into carbon dioxide, which is what those bubbles in the container are.
- Remove the egg from the vinegar. Now that the shell has been dissolved by the vinegar, you can remove the egg from the container. Just reach in and pull the egg out. Don't forget to wash you hands after.
- Peel the remaining skin. Handle the egg with care and gently remove any excess skin.
- Rinse the egg in cold water. Fill a large container with cold water and use your hands to thoroughly rinse the egg off. You just want to make sure you get all the leftover bits of skin and tiny remains of the shell off the egg.
- Alternatively, you can rinse the egg by holding it under running water in the sink.
- Test your new bouncy egg. Wait for the egg to dry, or dry it off with a paper towel, and then bounce it on the counter!
Making a Non-Boiled Bouncy Egg
- Get a container of vinegar ready. Find a jar or Tupperware container large enough to fit the egg. Grab a bottle of regular white vinegar and fill the jar or Tupperware container with vinegar. Don't fill it all the way to the brim though, because then putting the egg in will make it overflow.
- Add dye if you want to color your bouncy egg. You can easily make your finished bouncy egg any color you want to by adding food coloring dye to the vinegar. Just add around 10 drops of the dye to the vinegar, or enough to color the whole container of vinegar.
- It doesn't have to be filled to the top but it should be filled high enough so that the egg can be completely submerged in vinegar.
- Submerge an egg. Get a raw, unboiled egg. Place the raw egg in the vinegar-filled container. Just drop it in from right above the vinegar so the vinegar doesn't splash everywhere. Make sure it is completely submerged.
- Cover the container. Place a lid on your container and leave it somewhere safe but out of the sun. The less sunlight it gets the better, so either put it somewhere dark like a closet, or cover it with something like a kitchen cloth.
- Wait for the shell of the egg to completely dissolve. This process can take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours. To be on the safe side, wait three days before continuing.
- Check the egg. Look at the egg through the container every once and a while to check its progress. The egg will turn a transparent color because the eggshell is increasing in thickness. The eggshell will soon dissolve, leaving just a thick strong egg white.
- The reason shell dissolves is because vinegar is a weak acid. The egg shell is made of calcium carbonate. When the shell meets vinegar, it makes a chemical reaction that turns the calcium carbonate into carbon dioxide, which is what those bubbles in the container are.
- Remove the egg. Take the egg out of the vinegar carefully. Just reach in and pull it out with your hand. Don't forget to wash your hand afterwards. Place the egg on a couple of paper towels to let it drain.
- Be extra careful when handling a raw bouncy egg. It will be more fragile than a boiled bouncy egg.
- Bounce it. Make sure it's dry first. You can speed this up by drying it by hand with a paper towel. Be careful not to drop it from too high of a height, as it can still break and leave a mess. Start with just a few inches, and have cleaning supplies ready!
Tips
- A hard-boiled egg works best. It doesn't burst and make a big mess, because it is already cooked. An uncooked egg may lead to a splatter.
- Do not boil your egg for too long, otherwise it will burst.
- When using a raw egg, try shining a flashlight through the finished bouncy egg!
Things You'll Need
- A cooking pot
- A container with lid large enough for an egg
- Eggs
- Regular white vinegar
- Food coloring dye (optional)
Related Articles
- Hard Boil an Egg
- Make a Bouncy Egg Without Vinegar
