SCIENCE MAGIC DEMO

FIRE SNAKE

GROUP 1-A
Members:
Agaban, Janius Miguel
Refugio, Dianne Mae
Calumpong, Mary Hyacinth
Hernandez, Kebz Mae Errica
Palmera, Bryan Jay

I BRIEF BACKGROUND OF THE CONCEPT

Black snakes, sometimes called black worms, are small tubes of ash that you light,
using a punk or a lighter, that burn to produce long black 'snakes' of ash. They produce
some smoke (which had a characteristic, probably toxic odor because of the lighter fluid
and sugar being burned), but no fire or explosion. However, there is a safe way to make
black snakes. You can heat baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) with sugar (sucrose) to
produce carbon dioxide gas that puffs up black carbon ash.

II OBJECTIVES

Describe the chemical reactions in terms of the type of reaction, the heat gained
or lost (endothermic and exothermic), and the reactants and the products
involved.
 Investigate technologies and natural phenomena that demonstrate chemical
change in everyday situations.

III PROCEDURES/MATERIALS

Safety

Conduct the experiment on a tray or any containers that is safe for the
experiment

Keep a bowl of water nearby during the experiment.

Do not touch the tray after the experiment; wait until it gets cold.

Step-by-step instructions

1. In a beaker, mix the 50grams of baking soda and 150grams of sugar until
well combined.
2. Put the sand in the container and put the lighter fluid unto the surface of the
sand.
3. Put the solid mixture of baking soda and sugar unto the surface on where the
lighter fluid was placed.
4. After all the solid substance are in place, put the flame towards the sand and
wait until the fire will catch the fluid and the baking soda and sugar mixture
will burn.
5. Wait until a few minutes until it will start to grow into a black snake (if
properly done)

Reagents

Sodium hydrogen carbonate

Sucrose

Methylpropane

IV ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION

Analysis
 This is an experiment that combines sugar, baking soda, and lighter fluid in
sand. The mixture is then lit on fire. This creates carbonate snakes with black
carbon particles.

Discussion:

How does the snake form?

When sugar (C12H22O11) burns (combusts), it turns into water vapor and
carbon dioxide. However, complete combustion requires a good oxygen
supply. Other complex processes take place at high temperatures,
because the flow of oxygen to the inner parts of the pile of sugar is
hindered. These processes include the decomposition of sugar to give
carbon and water vapor. It is this decomposition to give carbon that gives
us a carbon "snake".

Why do we add baking soda (NaHCO3) to the sugar?

Baking soda decomposes when heated to release carbon dioxide (CO 2):

2NaHCO3 Na2CO3 + H2O + CO2

Baking soda is added to bread dough to make it rise, and it is the same for
this experiment. The carbon dioxide and water vapor that is given off make
the snake light and airy, which allows the snake to grow.

What is this "snake" made of?

The "snake" consists of mainly carbon that comes from the heated sugar,
but which was not burnt in the flame. The carbon is what makes the
"snake" black. There is also Na2CO3 in the snake, which results from the
decomposition of the baking soda when heated.
 What chemical reactions occur in the process of formation of
the "snake"?

The three main reactions in this process are:

Combustion of sugar (good oxygen supply available) to give carbon

dioxide and water vapor:

12H22O11 + 12O2 12CO2 + 11H2O

Thermal decomposition of sugar to give carbon and water vapor:

12H22O11 12C + 11H2O

Thermal decomposition of baking soda to give sodium carbonate,

carbon dioxide, and water vapor:

2NaHCO3 Na2CO3 + CO2 + H2O

V CONCLUSION

We conclude that all ingredients in the experiment plays major role in creating a
unique product. The baking soda as we all know is an ingredient that is combined in the
baking a bread to let the dough grow in size, in relation to the experiment, it also
presents its ability to let the sugar grow and illustrate an artificial snake. Another is the
sugar. Sugar has carbon, hydrogen and oxygen; if it was exposed to heat then it
automatically transforms to water vapor and carbon dioxide. Through this sugar's
change, it appears to be a black snake. But we must remember that without the baking
soda, the transformed sugar will not grow as a snake. Furthermore, the sand plays a
role in the experiment. Without the sand, the oxygen would not immediately penetrate to
the burned mixture to create the black snake. Lastly, the fire and the lighter liquid. These
both work together to heat the mixture and let the mixture gives off the carbon that
appears to be a black snake. The fire is also the reason why the product is color black
due to the reaction carbon to it. Without the fire, the ingredients will remain to be the
same or without reaction has take place.

VI APPLICATION

Rising of bread dough by baking soda.