Three Balloons

eCHEM 1A: Online General Chemistry
College of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley
chemistry.berkeley.edu/echem1a
Curriculum and ChemQuizzes developed by Dr. Mark Kubinec and Professor Alexander Pines
Chemical Demonstrations by Lonnie Martin
Video Production by Jon Schainker and Scott Vento
Developed with the support of The Camille & Henry Dreyfus Foundation

[@MrEmanuelgato]

The face in the end is just priceless.

[@Chemistry1AUCBerkeley]

Many ask why the oxygen balloon floats. In the classroom demo we mention we add little He gas, which doesn't effect the reaction, to all the balloons so they all float nicely. Easier than asking for a volunteer to hold up the oxygen balloon....

[@zbret]

I knew something was up. O2 density 1.41g/m3, Air density 1.3g/m3. Even if they were reversed it would sink due to the weight of the balloon. Adding He makes sense.

[@goldenbi]

Little He can help? How many percent, I'm curious

[@kurtilein3]

its also interesting to look at the balloon fragments.
in number 3 the balloon is ripped into tiny pieces, but the reaction is so damn fast that they dont get burned. In number 1 i guess the fragments will be quite scorched.

[@kurtilein3]

lol, you could have noticed the ear protection the experimentator is wearing ;)
ive seen that experiment live, we were instructed to cover our ears, keep our nose pointed towards the explosion, and leave our mouths open, and when it went off the shockwave caused all the windows to rattle and you could really feel the bones in your body. Loud is an understatement.

[@Chuzzlepuff]

The booms are so satisfying ugh

[@ronhollis4611]

Are the concentrations of the gasses in balloon "C" known values?

[@unklemoose]

Possibly stupid question, but: how are they floating?

[@YousefAmar]

Not a stupid question. The air we breathe is about 78% Nitrogen (N_3), 20% Oxygen(O_2), and 2% other gases. Both Hydrogen (H) and Oxygen are less dense than the surrounding air, so they float for the same reason a ball filled with air floats in water.

[@jcopfr]

The answer is Archimedes' thrust
Hydrogen is the lightest element in the Universe.

[@tonyHern865]

Lonnie seemed satisfy by the last balloon

[@michamanthey1827]

Ale wyjebało ;D

[@farfalxperi2068]

Trzeci to jakaś masakra:) nie chciał bym żeby moje dziecko się takim bawiło...

[@gasolinevaporsystems9022]

This video is deceptive. The first white Balloon must have outside Air mixed into it to explode, otherwise it would just catch fire and burn up from exposure to out side ambient air.

[@jcopfr]

At first I thought like you, but I also did the experiment, and I got the same result as the man in the video
The burn of a mylar balloon filled with pure hydrogen is very different from the burn of a latex balloon filled with pure hydrogen.
In the first case: the mylar balloon, it catches fire and burns due to exposure to the outside ambient air. This is very soft.
But in the 2nd case: the latex balloon : the burn is much more violent.
I will soon do the demo on my RUclips channel!

[@trifio5242]

rip my ears=( dam headphones=(

[@denelson83]

If there really is only oxygen in that red balloon, then why is it not sitting on the table?

[@captaincannabis3321]

Because pure oxygen is lighter than air. Air is only ~20% oxygen.

[@jcopfr]

@@captaincannabis3321 No, that's false. Oxygen is heavier than air. The reason the red balloon is floating in the air is because it also contains Helium (this is for the purposes of the video)

[@birolob]

bom-

[@trifio5242]

niiiice)) love explosives))

[@PigletCNC]

THERE
ARE
FOUR
BALLOONS!

[@ThePeterDislikeShow]

Really? Oxygen floats?

[@roxmox5142]

if it's pure oxygen, yes

[@ThePeterDislikeShow]

@@roxmox5142 How come we don't use it instead of helium? Isn't helium in short supply and also it's dangerous when people inhale helium as a prank, this would eliminate the hazard.

[@roxmox5142]

@@ThePeterDislikeShow helium is a noble gas, it practically doesn't react with other elements, in fact pure oxygen can be toxic. Don't quote me on this but I think helium is preferred for balloons because it is even less dense than pure oxygen.

[@Taioron]

​@@roxmox5142 No, pure oxygen in a balloon will not float. Air is filled with mostly nitrogen(~78%), and much less oxygen (~21%). Since pure Oxygen has a density of ~1.4 kg/cubic meter, compared to ~1.2 for Nitrogen, pure oxygen would sink compared to all of the nitrogen, especially with the weight of the balloon material itself.
A comment was added to the video stating they explained in the classroom demo that helium was added so they would float, and that helium didn't change the reaction. That explanation didn't make it into this short video.

[@UnusualTwo]

so why doesn't the hydrogen/oxygen balloon just have water in it? ............I didn't pay attention in chemistry class.

[@UnusualTwo]

that's really cool

[@dangggggggggg0]

Oxygen by itself is less dense than air.