Soap Soufflé
Materials
1 bar of Ivory soap
Knife & plate
Directions
Use the knife to cut the bar of Ivory soap into four equal pieces.
Place the pieces of soap on a dinner plate in the center of a microwave.
Cook the bar of soap on high for 1 minute. Don’t take your eyes off the bar of soap as it begins to expand and erupt into beautiful puffy clouds. Be careful not to overcook your soap soufflé.
Allow the soap to cool for a minute or so before touching it. It will be puffy, but rigid. Take it into the shower or bath. It’s still great soap with a slightly different shape and size.
adapted from Steve Spangler Science
What’s Happening?
Soap expands for a similar reason to why popcorn pops in the microwave. Tiny air bubbles in the soap (or in the popcorn kernels or marshmallow) contain water molecules. Water is also caught up in the matrix of the soap itself. The expanding effect is caused when the water is heated by the microwave. The water vaporizes and the heat causes the trapped air to expand. Likewise, the heat causes the soap itself to soften and become pliable.