Cool Evaporation Projects
Evaporation with Air: The Wet Sponge Race!
Here’s an easy experiment to see how evaporation works. We’re going to see how air helps things dry and how evaporation can even make things cool down, just like in a computer!
What You Need
- Two sponges (or two paper towels)
- A bowl of water
- A fan (or a hair dryer on the “cool” setting)
Let’s Get Started
- Dip both sponges in the water until they’re soaking wet.
- Squeeze them so they don’t drip, but they should still be very wet.
- Place one wet sponge on a table. This is our control sponge.
- Place the second wet sponge a little bit away from the first one.
- Turn on the fan and point it at the second sponge. This is our experimental sponge.
- Watch and feel both sponges over the next 15-20 minutes. Which one dries out faster? The one with the fan! The moving air from the fan is carrying away the water molecules, helping it evaporate faster.
Evaporation with Liquid Cooling: The Cool Can!
This part shows how evaporation can cool things down, which is how liquid cooling works in computers!
What You Need
- A metal can (like a soda can)
- A little bit of rubbing alcohol
- A small piece of paper towel or a cloth
- A thermometer
Let’s Get Started
- Wrap the piece of paper towel around the outside of the can.
- Pour just a little bit of the rubbing alcohol onto the paper towel so it gets wet all over.
- Quickly use the thermometer to check the temperature of the outside of the can.
- Watch the thermometer. What happens to the temperature? It should go down!
- Feel the can with your hand. It should feel cooler than it did before.
The alcohol is evaporating very quickly from the can. To evaporate, the liquid needs energy. It gets that energy by taking heat right from the can! As the can loses its heat, it gets cooler. This is exactly how big computers in data centers are cooled down with special liquids!
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