|
|
|
Galileo's Workshop
Chemistry Experiments For All Ages |
Brought To You By
The Chemistry Store
Serving The Hobbyist, Student, School and Industry |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| Commercial Slime |
This is often referred to as "institutional" or
"commercial" slime. This is the type that is generally found in toy stores. It
is a little trickier to make, not quite as safe, and more difficult to get the main
ingredient for (polyvinyl alcohol) than is the Elmer's
slime. But it produces a superior slime. Longer lasting, more transparent, and with a
visual and tactile appeal that is more, well, "slimy".
Assuming you can get hold of PVA, it is a fairly
simple process to make slime. First, mix a 4% solution of PVA
and water. 4 % would be 40 grams of PVA to 960 ml of
distilled water (of course you can adjust and make more or less). Wear a mask and have
plenty of ventilation when doing this! It helps to have a heated magnetic laboratory
stirrer (don't use one of your good kitchen saucepans - it's best to use pyrex labware).
Slowly, gradually, mix the PVA into the distilled water. Heat it slowly, stirring the
whole while, until the PVA goes into solution. This will take 15 minutes or more. Do not
let it boil. Once cool, the solution can be stored in a stoppered bottle.
The 4% Borax solution is made by dissolving 4 grams of borax into 96 ml of distilled water. It should go into solution
without heating. This can also be stored in a stoppered bottle.
Mix the two solutions in a glass or ceramic bowl. Do not use plastic. Start with the PVA
solution, and stir in the coloring, if used, and borax solution. The standard ratio is 5
parts PVA solution to 1 part Borax solution. This works well, but ratios have been quoted
by other slime makers as 6:1, 20:3, and as high as 200:15 (app. 13:1). The best bet is to
start with the basic 4% solutions at 5:1, adjusting the ratio as necessary to get the
consistency you want. Store in a sealed container. No need to refrigerate. Keep it clean
and it should last indefinitely. |
| Polyvinyl Alcohol Slime |
| Source Page: http://chem.lapeer.org/Chem1Docs/SlimeDemo.html |
| Home Page: Chemistry I
Resources |
Materials:
A 4% solution of sodium tetraborate (Borax). This solution can be
prepared by dissolving 4 grams of Borax in 96 mL of water.A 4% solution of polyvinyl
alcohol. This solution is prepared by dissolving 4 grams of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) in 96 mL of water. The PVA
does not dissolve well so heating and stirring are required. (Note: PVA comes in a variety
of average molecular weights. I use PVA with an average molecular weight between 106,000
and 110,000. A student of mine has experimented with various slimes produced by using PVA
with higher and lower molecular weights. She found that higher molecular weights produce a
"stiffer" slime while lower molecular weights produce a more fluid, i.e.,
"slimier" slime.)
Procedure:
The alcohol and borax solutions should be mixed in the ratio of about 200 mL of PVA
solution to 15 mL of borax solution. Prior to mixing, food coloring can be added to the
PVA solution for "pretty slime". Best results are obtained if the borax solution
is added to the PVA solution. The 200:15 ration can be achieved by the following English
volume measurements:
(1) one-half cup of PVA solution to one tablespoon of borax solution.
(2) one-quarter cup of PVA solution to 1.5 teaspoons of borax solution. |
| |
|
|
|
