• Question: When you put mentos in Coke, why does it blow up? @Praveen @Michael @Loan

    Asked by Emmie to Praveen, Michael, Loan, Cristina, Gemma on 17 Nov 2015. This question was also asked by laurencharevie.
    • Photo: Michael Schneider

      Michael Schneider answered on 17 Nov 2015:

      So that my son Zack could make a jet-propelled car! Actually, it’s not a biochemical reaction between the two, but a physical one. Although the surface of Mentos looks smooth to the eye, it is full of tiny microscopic pits. These collect the carbon dioxide that’s dissolved in soda VERY efficiently, and the gas expands so rapidly it’s explosive.

    • Photo: Loan Nguyen

      Loan Nguyen answered on 17 Nov 2015:

      Dear Emmie,
      The mini explosion you witness when you drop a mento into Coke is the dramatisation of chemistry at work! This can happen with any fizzy drinks, not just Coke. What happens here is a powerful chemical attraction between the coke (or any fizzy drinks) and mento. On the surface of the mento are many micro size (very tiny – invisible to the eyes) holes which can attract the H2O in the Coke so strongly that it breaks up the H2O molecule to make new CO2 molecules. Since CO2 is a gas, it will bubble up. And because the rate of the reaction is so fast, helped by other ingredients in the Coke and Mento, it leads to a mini explosion of foam .

      Thanks for you interesting question. I have learnt something new from you.

      Loan

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