Corrosive Soda Background Info: Soda drinks have been popular beverages for years, receiving high praise with its consumers. Despite the fact that it has been proven to be unhealthy, various lines of soda have been manufactured and sold by the thousands. As a carbonated beverage, it has some corrosive power - the ability to break down small substances - within it. There are various myths surrounding brands of soda and their other surprising apparent properties; being able to help in thoroughly cleaning the bumpers of cars, removing rust from small metals such as pennies, and is said to have the possible ability to fully break down a T-bone steak in a matter of days. Are these myths true, and if so, what might this say about its effect on the human body? Remember that metal is stronger than your bones. Purpose: To discover healthy and unhealthy dietary choices and the effects they have on the body. Hypothesis: Soda will break down the paper clips, proving that it is unhealthy for teeth. Materials: ● Package of steel paper clips ● One liter bottle of a popular soft drink (varies on class size) ● Permanent marker ● Two clear plastic cups per group ● pH strips and indicator Procedure: 1. Gather the required materials. Set up your lab station with two plastic cups per group, being sure to mark each cup with every group members’ name. 2. Fill one cup up to a given point (at teacher’s discretion) with water. This will be the control group. Using the pH strips, find out the acidity of water by placing one of the pH strips inside, waiting a couple of seconds, then bringing it out and examining the color comparing it to the guide. Use this information to fill out the first row of information in the data. 3. Repeat this with the second cup, but instead fill the cup to the same capacity with the soda. (The type of soda is your choice. Bring whichever type interests you the most). Don’t use the pH strip that was used for the water-- throw the first one away and get a new one for best results. 4. Place five paper clips into each cup. Observe the paper clips in the soft drink and water, noting if there are any gas bubbles present. This will be the data for your first day.
5. After the experiment has been set up successfully, set the cups together somewhere that they will be out of the way in the classroom. 6. For the rest of the 5-day week, check back on the cups and count how many paperclips remain, whether bits of metal are seen, if there are more gas bubbles, or any other noteworthy data. 7. On the 5th and final day, collect final data and observations, then dispose of the materials as directed by teacher. Data Analysis: Water (Control) pH = __________
Soft Drink (Experimental) pH = __________
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Data Analysis Questions: 1. What impact did the water and soda have on the paperclips? Do the results prove your hypothesis correct?
2. The pH of a substance shows how acidic it is; the lower the number, the more acidic. Is the soda more or less acidic than water? How might this have affected what happened to the paper clips?
3. Soft drinks, like any other beverage, are introduced into the body, and many people drink it daily. After seeing the effect of it on the paper clips, what effect on the body specifically the body’s bones and teeth as it passes through the digestive tract - might it have? (Hint: think of the paper clips and bones behaving the same!)
4. What is in the soda that causes these effects?
5. Has your hypothesis been proven correct? If not, why do you think it didn’t?
Teacher’s Notes: ● Different types of soda can be used in the experiment to see whether they break down the paper clips at the same rate or if at all. ● Extra credit can be awarded to students that bring in the soda and paper clips ● For higher-level students, after the lab the students can be given the known ingredients in the chosen soda and asked to determine which of the ingredients are factors in the breaking down of the paper clips. ● Different metal and nonmetal materials may be used to determine whether soda is corrosive throughout or if it responds particularly to a certain type of metal. ● To introduce the lab the teacher should ask questions like; how many of you drink soda? Is it good or bad for you? What effects does it have on the body? ● At the end of the lab the teacher should make that the kids understand that if soda can break down metal, then it will have no problem breaking down bones.