Screaming jelly babies

“Screaming Jelly Babies” (British english), also known as “Growling Gummy Bears” (American and Canadian English), is one classroom chemistry demonstration, variants of which are practised in schools around the world.[1] It is often used at open evenings, to demonstrate the more light hearted side of secondary school science.[2][3]

Jelly Babies (July 2006)

The experiment shows the amount of energy there is in one piece of confectionery; jelly babies,[4] or gummy bears,[5] are often used for theatrics. Potassium chlorate, a strong oxidising agent, rapidly oxidises the sugar in the candy, causing it to burst into flames, producing a “screaming” sound as rapidly expanding gases are emitted from the test tube.[6] The aroma of candy floss (cotton candy) is also given off.

Other carbohydrate or hydrocarbon containing substances can (also) be dropped into test tubes of molten chlorate, with similar results.

References
  1. "Growling Gummy Bears". BYU Lecture Prep. Brigham Young University. 22 March 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  2. "CHEMISTRY 11 DEMONSTRATIONS" (PDF). wikieducator.org. 22 July 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  3. "YouTube videos to ignite science". bbc.co.uk. 1 December 2008. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
  4. "Lubbock Christian University: Can a Gummy Bear Scream?". seatfansclub.com. 22 March 2014. Archived from the original on 22 March 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  5. "5.5 Oxidation of Sugar or Gummi Bear with Potassium Chlorate". Chemical Reactions II: Oxidation/Reduction. University of Massachusetts Lecture Demonstrations. 22 March 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  6. "Screaming Jelly Baby Experiment - Student Science". urn1350.net. 16 January 2012. Archived from the original on 9 February 2012. Retrieved 13 May 2013.

Further reading
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