Rubber Band Experiment

Watermelon rubber band experiment.

Rubber band experiment.

Objective investigate how the distance of stretch in a rubber band at rest relates to the distance the rubber band travels after being released. Science behind the experiment. Here s all you need. When the rubber band is heated heat energy from the surrounding environment goes into the molecules of the rubber band and causes them to vibrate.

The rubber band changes temperature for a different reason 1 than the traditional heat pump but the effect is easy to sense and the test equipment doesn t require a research grant. 1 it turns out that the rubber band heats up and cools off due to the changing order of the molecules in the rubber band and a quantity called entropy but i digress. Will heat make a rubber band expand and get longer or contract and get shorter. It is easiest to have 2 3 people to put the rubberbands on the watermelon.

Anything attached to the rubber band may be flung forwards or upwards with the force of this energy. When you pull a rubber band the molecules uncoil and align themselves closer together as they straighten out. The rubber in rubber bands is bound together by thousands of long chains of molecules that are coiled together something like a net. In this experiment you will find out how the stretching of a rubber band affects the amount of energy that springs out of it.

For this experiment you will need a piece of paper. I highly suggest doing this watermelon challenge outside as it can make a mess as the name exploding watermelon suggests. The first experiment we show uses the potential energy stored in a rubber band to launch a paper rocket. Posted in homeschool view on tuesday october 2 2018.

Stretch your science knowledge with this experiment that defies the laws of physics. The work performed by your heat engine in this experiment is the movement of the weight by the expansion and contraction of the rubber band. Supplies an empty 2 liter soda bottle permanent marker scissors pencil small. Then again that s part of the reason it makes a great activity to add to your kids summer bucket list.