Mrs. Alvis’ Class

Science Inquiry Showcase 2011-

2012

Which liquid will evaporate the most over 7 days: water, Cherry 7 Up, dark corn syrup,

hand sanitizer, vinegar, or vegetable oil?

Hypothesis• Most of us think water will evaporate the most

because it is natural, doesn’t have any chemicals, and the other liquids are stickier than water.

• Some of us think Cherry 7 Up will evaporate the most because it has bubbles that can make the Cherry 7 Up float away faster.

• One student predicts that hand sanitizer will evaporate the most because it evaporates quickly on your hands.

Materials

• 100 ml Water• 100 ml Cherry 7 Up• 100 ml Dark Corn

Syrup• 100 ml Hand sanitizer• 100 ml Vinegar• 100 ml Vegetable Oil

• Window• Masking Tape• Marker• 6 Graduated

Cylinders

Procedures1. Pour 100 ml of water into one graduated cylinder. Label the

graduated cylinder with masking tape.

2. Pour 100 ml of Cherry 7 Up into one graduated cylinder. Label the graduated cylinder with masking tape.

3. Pour 100 ml of hand sanitizer into one graduated cylinder. Label the graduated cylinder with masking tape.

4. Pour 100 ml of dark corn syrup into one graduated cylinder. Label the graduated cylinder with masking tape.

5. Pour 100 ml of vinegar into one graduated cylinder. Label the graduated cylinder with masking tape.

6. Pour 100 ml of vegetable oil into one graduated cylinder. Label the graduated cylinder with masking tape.

7. Record in notebook or on a data sheet how much liquid is in each graduated cylinder.

8. Place graduated cylinders in the window.

9. The next day, measure and record the amount of liquid in each cylinder.

10. Continue to measure and record the amount of liquid in the cylinders for 7 days.

Procedures

Day 1• All liquids are at 100 ml.

Water Cherry 7 Up

Hand Sanitizer

Dark Corn Syrup

Vegetable Oil

Vinegar

99 ml 93 ml 94 ml 100 ml 100 ml 97 ml

Day 3

Day 7

Water Cherry 7 Up Hand Sanitizer

Dark Corn Syrup

Vegetable Oil Vinegar

93 ml 88 ml 86 ml 100 ml 100 ml 92 ml

Day 7

Water Cherry 7 Up Hand Sanitizer

Dark Corn Syrup

Vegetable Oil Vinegar

93 ml 88 ml 86 ml 100 ml 100 ml 92 ml

DataDay 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 7

Water 100 ml 100 ml 99 ml 99 ml 93 ml

Cherry 7 Up

100 ml 94 ml 93 ml 91 ml 88 ml

Hand Sanitize

r

100 ml 100 ml 94 ml 91 ml 86 ml

Dark Corn Syrup

100 ml 100 ml 100 ml 100 ml 100 ml

Vegetable Oil

100 ml 100 ml 100 ml 100 ml 100 ml

Vinegar 100 ml 98 ml 97 ml 97 ml 92 ml

Results• Over the 7 days, dark corn syrup

and vegetable oil did not evaporate at all.

• The hand sanitizer evaporated the most.

• Cherry 7 Up evaporated the second fastest.

• Vinegar evaporated the third fastest.

• Water evaporated the fourth fastest.

• Cherry 7 Up and vinegar are the only liquids that evaporated on Day 2.

Conclusion• Claim – Hand sanitizer evaporated the most

of all the liquids.• Evidence – On day 7, hand sanitizer had 86

ml left, the least amount of all the liquids.• Reasoning – We think hand sanitizer

evaporated the most because of the chemicals that are in it. Also, we know that when we use hand sanitizer, it dries faster than water on our hands. We think that maybe the more it is exposed to air, the quicker it will evaporate.

Thoughts from the Class

“I was surprised about the hand sanitizer because I thought the water would evaporate faster.” – Lily

“My hypothesis was really

great – I was almost

right!” – Viktor

“I was surprised because at first 7 Up was evaporating the fastest, then the hand sanitizer evaporated the fastest.” – Reese and Katey

“I was surprised that

vegetable oil didn’t

evaporate.” – Sophia

“I think everyone expected the dark corn syrup to not move because it is so sticky.” – Josie

“My hypothesis

was right! It was

hand sanitizer

that evaporated

the most.” -

Evan

“It was fun to watch the

experiment, especially

since most people

thought water was

going to evaporate the

fastest.” – Abby

“I was surprised that water didn’t evaporate that fast.” – Christian