hot ice (sodium acetate) beautiful science experiment

watered-down sodium acetate trihydrate
Needle crystal is truly wonderful structures

[mikeshin]

Sodium acetate is attached at a tip of the rod.
The crystal's shape depends on the ratio of water to SA.
The ratio of that is approximately 1.5 to 1.

[ahkilinc]

This is my favorite milkshake tutorial!

[MegaWizardman]

It's not "watered down" sodium acetate, it's a supersaturated sodium acetate solution.

[MCZaphelon]

It'd be inefficient, I know, but you could do this with vinegar and baking soda, right? I'm thinking:
1. Throw some baking soda in a pan with water (heat it up to go from NaHCO3 to Na2CO3, makes it soluble and more Na per mol)
2. Once that's happened, put some vinegar in the mix and this happens:
Na(CO3)2 + 2CH3COOH ---> CO2 + H2O + 2NaCH3COO
3. You could potentially boil away the water, because it would be really dilute (vinegar is like 5% acetic by mass), but keep it below 122 degrees Celsius (I think that's around 277 F).

Could work?

[LAS]

I bet that experiment would look even cooler under a blacklight. :)

[yoniandyenu]

Thank you Mike Shin for this wonderful video

[nvmismatico]

This would have been better if you had explained what is happening. Still cool to watch.

[Managarmr]

It'd be nice to take that out and have the spiky crystal as an ornament :P

[jeffreyscottharris]

What is the needle made of?  What triggered the crystallization?

[YMUSICBEATS]

the fact that this is a ingredient in cool ranch Doritos should be a huge red flag specially since we are 90% water

[stepstep]

was this a solution that you made? or did you order the solution? the volume you have in that flask is pretty large.

[hammyhog]

A saturated solution of sodium acetate. Add a tiny crystal of sodium acetate 'seed crystal' and the crystals will grow.

[Maria-fopn]

Is this a chemical or physical change?

[mimu]

Supersaturated much? Also, it's exothermic right?

[panosmjs]

I expected a hand dive right after the "have a good day"

[sarsax]

Hello everybody. I needed to know if there is another liquid that is nearly as clear as glass hardens as quick as in the video but is stronger than this. Please write any answer as comment.

[tasteyguacamole]

Is it sodium acetate or sodium acetate trihydrate?

[lucycampbell]

Plz reply quick >_< What's the liquid you used?Did you use a seed crystal?Was the liquid water and the thing on the needle hot ice?

[stephenspinato]

how did you do this in a classroom? msds says its not safe right?

[Srivatssan]

Can someone tell me the temperature that crystal would reach during crystallization
?