Density tower
Recommended age: 6+. Adult supervision required! From honey, syrup, dish soap, coloured water and oil we build a layered liquid tower in a glass — because not every liquid is equally 'heavy'.
Chemicals
- 80 ml honey
- 80 ml sugar syrup or maple syrup
- 80 ml dish soap (preferably coloured) — preferably coloured
- 80 ml water (a few drops of food colouring make it even more striking) — a few drops of food colouring make it even more striking
- 80 ml cooking oil
- 3 pc small objects for the final test (e.g. a grape, a plastic bead, a small metal screw) — e.g. a grape, a plastic bead, a small metal screw
Procedure
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Put on your goggles and work under adult supervision! The finished tower is not a drink — it contains dish soap. If anything spills, wipe it up at once because it is slippery.
Safety! -
Predict the order: which liquid do you think will end up at the bottom and which will float on top? Write your guess down!
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Pour the honey into the centre of the glass without letting it touch the sides.
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Slowly pour the syrup on top, also into the centre.
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Next comes the dish soap — trickled into the centre in a thin stream.
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Pour the thin liquids with the spoon trick: hold a spoon upside down just above the liquid near the glass wall and trickle the coloured water down the back of the spoon — that way it will not punch through the layer below.
Technique -
Finally, trickle the cooking oil on top the same way, down the back of the spoon.
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Admire the layers and compare them with your prediction: did you get the order right?
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Gently drop in the small objects — the grape, the bead, the screw. Which layer does each come to rest on? Wash your hands at the end and tidy everything away.
Apparatus
- 1× tall clear glass or vase — kb. 0,5 l
- 2× tablespoon
- 1× small jug or cup for pouring
- 1× paper towel
Frequently asked questions
- Why does it work?
- In the same volume of honey, more matter is 'crammed together' than in water — its density is higher, so it sinks to the bottom. Each liquid settles at the level matching its own density, and oil, the least dense, floats on top. Oil also does not dissolve in water, so that boundary stays sharp.
- Why do my layers blur together?
- You probably poured too fast. Use the spoon trick, pour slowly, and give each layer a few seconds to settle. The water-soluble layers (syrup, soap, water) will slowly merge over a day or two anyway — that is chemistry too: it is called diffusion.
- Can I leave out a layer?
- Of course! Even three liquids — say honey, coloured water and oil — build a beautiful tower. The key is to pour them in order of decreasing density.
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