How to Demonstrate Charles's Law
Add boiling water to a beaker or other container., Fill a balloon with air., Wrap a string around the widest part of the balloon., Place the balloon in the container., Watch as the balloon gets larger., Move the balloon to the freezer., Observe the...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Add boiling water to a beaker or other container.
You should leave room to put a balloon in the container as well.
Adding about 100 mL of water to a 1000 mL (1 L) beaker will work in most cases.
Avoid spilling the water on yourself or anyone else to avoid injury., Blow into the balloon with your mouth, or use a pump to fill it.
Do not overfill the balloon ― you want to leave room for the gas inside to expand.
It is best to use a party balloon instead of a water balloon.
This decreases the chance that the balloon will pop.
If you plan to put the balloon into the container, do not blow it up so large that it will not fit in the opening. , By wrapping a piece of string around the balloon, you can get an accurate measurement of how big the balloon is in the beginning.
Either mark or cut the string at at the widest part of the balloon.
Remove the string from the balloon and measure it with a ruler.
This measurement is the original circumference of your balloon.
You will want to compare this to the size of the balloon once the air inside heats up., This will allow heat from the water to transfer to the air inside the balloon.
If the balloon does not fit inside the container, another option is to put it on top of the container.
The heat transfer may be a little less efficient, but it will still have the same effect on the balloon. , The increase in temperature will force the air to increase its volume, thus expanding the balloon.
It will look like the balloon is growing or inflating inside the container.
Use another piece of string to measure the circumference of the balloon when heated.
Now, you can compare it to the original circumference.
Do not let the balloon expand too much, as this may cause it to pop. , Now that you have added heat to expand the balloon, removing the heat will allow the balloon to deflate.
To observe this, you will need to move the balloon from the heat source (your container of boiling water) and into a cold environment.
You should leave the balloon in the freezer for at least a couple of hours before removing it., When you remove the balloon from the freezer, immediately measure the circumference with a third piece of string.
This way, you can compare it to your first two measurements.
It should not only be smaller than it was in the warm container, but should be even smaller than it was when you first inflated it.
This is because you removed heat from the gas inside the balloon, which forced the gas (and in turn the balloon) to decrease in volume. -
Step 2: Fill a balloon with air.
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Step 3: Wrap a string around the widest part of the balloon.
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Step 4: Place the balloon in the container.
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Step 5: Watch as the balloon gets larger.
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Step 6: Move the balloon to the freezer.
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Step 7: Observe the size of the balloon.
Detailed Guide
You should leave room to put a balloon in the container as well.
Adding about 100 mL of water to a 1000 mL (1 L) beaker will work in most cases.
Avoid spilling the water on yourself or anyone else to avoid injury., Blow into the balloon with your mouth, or use a pump to fill it.
Do not overfill the balloon ― you want to leave room for the gas inside to expand.
It is best to use a party balloon instead of a water balloon.
This decreases the chance that the balloon will pop.
If you plan to put the balloon into the container, do not blow it up so large that it will not fit in the opening. , By wrapping a piece of string around the balloon, you can get an accurate measurement of how big the balloon is in the beginning.
Either mark or cut the string at at the widest part of the balloon.
Remove the string from the balloon and measure it with a ruler.
This measurement is the original circumference of your balloon.
You will want to compare this to the size of the balloon once the air inside heats up., This will allow heat from the water to transfer to the air inside the balloon.
If the balloon does not fit inside the container, another option is to put it on top of the container.
The heat transfer may be a little less efficient, but it will still have the same effect on the balloon. , The increase in temperature will force the air to increase its volume, thus expanding the balloon.
It will look like the balloon is growing or inflating inside the container.
Use another piece of string to measure the circumference of the balloon when heated.
Now, you can compare it to the original circumference.
Do not let the balloon expand too much, as this may cause it to pop. , Now that you have added heat to expand the balloon, removing the heat will allow the balloon to deflate.
To observe this, you will need to move the balloon from the heat source (your container of boiling water) and into a cold environment.
You should leave the balloon in the freezer for at least a couple of hours before removing it., When you remove the balloon from the freezer, immediately measure the circumference with a third piece of string.
This way, you can compare it to your first two measurements.
It should not only be smaller than it was in the warm container, but should be even smaller than it was when you first inflated it.
This is because you removed heat from the gas inside the balloon, which forced the gas (and in turn the balloon) to decrease in volume.
About the Author
Grace Davis
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow organization tutorials.
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