Do this incredible experiment at home with MEL Science: [ Ссылка ]

Safety
• Put on protective gloves and eyewear.
• Conduct the experiment on the plastic tray.
• Place the stove on the cork hot pot stand. Do not touch the stove after the experiment; wait until it gets cold.
• Remove protective gloves before lighting the candles.

Step-by-step instructions

First, let’s extract starch from potato.

1. Take a grater with medium-sized holes and grate one potato into a bowl.
2. Add there one beaker of water and mix the contents for 5 min.
3. Slip on a sock onto the beaker — it will serve as a filter for potato shreds.
4. Carefully pour all the liquid from the bowl into the sock.
5. Remove the sock and squeeze all the liquid from it into the beaker.
6. Wait for about 5 min. to let the precipitate settle on the bottom of the beaker.
7. Now, carefully pour out the liquid part while leaving the precipitate (i.e. starch) in the beaker.

Now, let’s produce plastic from the extracted starch.

1. Remove protective gloves! Take the solid fuel stove and place three candles onto it. Light the candles and install the flame diffuser on top as shown.
2. Take the beaker with starch and add there 10 mL of water and 2—3 drops of 0.25% methylene blue solution.
3. Pour in one bottle of 1M citric acid solution (5 mL) and one bottle of 45% glycerin solution (10 mL).
4. Set the beaker onto the flame diffuser. Keep stirring the mixture for 3—5 min.
5. The mixture will thicken and turn into one big lump, which is exactly what we expect. Keep mixing it until the mixture becomes fluid (in about 15—20 min.).
6. Pour the liquid into the mold provided and wait 2—4 hours.
7. Now, remove the molded figure — you made a penguin from potato!

Also, plastic can be made from purchased starch.

1. Measure one mold (level, not heaping) of potato starch and pour it into a beaker.
2. Remove protective gloves! Set three candles into the stove and cover it with the flame diffuser. Light the candles.
3. Take the beaker with starch and add there 10 mL of water and 2—3 drops of 0.25% methylene blue solution.
4. Pour in one bottle of 1M citric acid solution (5 mL) and one bottle of 45% glycerin solution (10 mL).
5. Set the beaker onto the flame diffuser. Keep stirring the mixture for 3—5 min.
6. The mixture will thicken and turn into one big lump, which is exactly what we expect. Keep mixing it until the mixture becomes fluid (in about 15—20 min.).
7. Pour the liquid into the mold provided and wait 2—4 hours.
8. Now, remove the molded figure — you made a penguin from potato!

Disposal
• Dispose of solid waste together with household garbage. Pour solutions down the sink. Wash with an excess of water.

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