- Fill a large container about half-way with gasoline (diesel works best).
- Break a Styrofoam (polystyrene) plate into small pieces.
- Add the pieces to the gasoline mixture and stir.
What happens when you mix styrofoam and gasoline?
"When you mix Styrofoam (extruded polystyrene) with gasoline, the Styrofoam breaks down. All the air inside escapes, and it becomes a wet, gooey mess. If left out to dry, it gets hard again, but not like before, without the air - it resembels plastic." Click to see full answer. Accordingly, what does gasoline and Styrofoam make? Yes.
How do you make Styrofoam balloons with gasoline?
Fill a large container about half-way with gasoline (diesel works best). Break a Styrofoam (polystyrene) plate into small pieces. Add the pieces to the gasoline mixture and stir. The gasoline will dissolve the Styrofoam into a jelly-like substance. Pour out the extra gasoline leaving the white, jelly-like substance.
What can I do with styrofoam?
If you're trying to recycle this into something structural, why not just grind the styrofoam into tiny little pieces and use it as concrete agregate? Wonder if you can make boyant concrete, could make for some interesting maritime applications...
What happens when you mix polystyrene and gasoline?
The end effect is that the mass of polystyrene breaks apart releasing the trapped air, and forms into a mass of new hydrocarbon chains, which forms some fort of amorphous solid, a slimy film of the Ethane-styrene bonded chains and gasoline. There shouldn't be any gases released which are any different from the vapours off of the original gasoline.
What happens when you mix styrofoam with gasoline?
When you mix Styrofoam (extruded polystyrene) with gasoline, the Styrofoam breaks down. All the air inside escapes, and it becomes a wet, gooey mess. If left out to dry, it gets hard again, but not like before, without the air - it resembels plastic. I have a few questions about this.
What is gasoline made of?
Gasoline is made up of an assortment of simple aliphatic hydrocarbons such as ethane and isobutane, and some aromatic hydrocarbons added as enhancers, as their break-up generates more energy. When you drop polystyrene into gasoline; the high energy bonds in the aromatic chain break in favour of simpler single covalent bonds.
What is the end effect of polystyrene?
The end effect is that the mass of polystyrene breaks apart releasing the trapped air, and forms into a mass of new hydrocarbon chains, which forms some fort of amorphous solid, a slimy film of the Ethane-styrene bonded chains and gasoline.
Is styrofoam harmful to the environment?
53,966. Breaking down styrofoam chemically is not environmentally friendly at all, and it may be injurious to your health. It releases styrene, which is toxic. The best environmentally friendly way to break down this material is to grind it up and use it as a filler for garden soil. spidergoat, Aug 24, 2007.
Is styrofoam a good insulation material?
Styrofoam is "puffed" polystyrene. There is air trapped in this material, which makes it so voluminous and good for insulation. The gasoline dissolves the polystyrene, breaking it down and letting the air escape. Once all the gasoline has vaporized, the polystyrene is all that is left.
Is polystyrene soluble in gasoline?
Polystyrene is soluble in gasoline (toluene, really). Just like how adding a lot of sugar makes syrup, adding a lot of polystyrene to gasoline makes a gooey fluid. The resulting goo is still polystyrene, probably with a bit of loose styrene and gasoline in it.
What is the sticky substance in gasoline?
Pour out the extra gasoline leaving the white, jelly-like substance. This sticky, white substance is the “napalm” which when lit, will burn for several minutes. Engine oil can be added to to the mixture to reduce (slow) the burn time of the substance.
What is the name of the mixture of flammable petroleum?
Napalm is the generic name for the mixture of a flammable petroleum substance, typically diesel gasoline, with a thickening or gelling agent to give the fiery substance “sticky” properties. Napalm- like fiery substances have been used since early Greek times for war purposes (they called it “sticky fire”).
How to make napalm?
Homemade napalm can be made as follows: Fill a large container about half-way with gasoline (diesel works best). Break a Styrofoam (polystyrene) plate into small pieces. Add the pieces to the gasoline mixture and stir. The gasoline will dissolve the Styrofoam into a jelly-like substance. Pour out the extra gasoline leaving the white, ...
Is Napalm flammable?
The dangers of Napalm. Remember, this is “napalm” and as such, includes all the dangers inherent with other flammable substances with the added dangers that (1) it sticks to you, (2) it produces unhealthy, toxic smoke and fumes.