Dry ice is CO2 in solid form and is solid at a temp of less than -80 degrees Celsius, which is very cold. It is used to bring down the internal temperature of cooler boxes to keep the content frozen until it arrives at its destination.
The dry ice will sublimate, that means it changes from its solid form right into gas and not into a liquid, within 12-24 hours, still leaving some time for a few fun experiments.
Dry Ice is readily available from stockists and our factories across South Africa insuring some fun activities during the festive season.
SHOP NOW!! DRY ICE FOR SALE
Safety first
Never touch dry ice with your bare hands, it will burn your skin with 2nd degree burns.
Always handle dry ice with thick gloves or tongs.
Smokey water
Place a piece of dry ice in warm water and watch as the dry ice transforms into a cloud of CO2 and water vapor. The cloud itself is safe to touch, just be careful not to touch the dry ice itself. Once the dry ice have cooled the water enough, the cloud or smoking effect may lose its shape. You can then add more hot or warm water to keep it going until the dry ice is completely gone.
Smoke bubbles
Combine some warm water and a few drops of liquid dishwashing soap in a tall glass or cylinder, then carefully, and using gloves or tongs, place some dry ice into the soapy water. The liquid dish soap in the water mix traps the CO2 and water vapour to form a bubble.
You can also add some food colouring to the water to get colourful bubbles in the mix or you can add a neon glow stick into the water for more fun.
Explode a glove or ‘pop a balloon’
You can put a small to medium sized piece of dry ice in a latex glove or balloon to watch it inflate while it sublimates. As the CO2 sublimates, the vapor fills the balloon or glove and can possibly get to the point where it might pop.
Frozen bubbles
You can freeze a soap bubble over a piece of dry ice. The bubble will appear to float in the air above the dry ice.
Floating dry ice bubbles
Pour about 2 cm of warm water in the bottom of a large glass container and add a few pieces of dry ice with tongs or safety gloves. The dry ice will appear to be smoking as it transforms into a combination of CO2 and water vapor and you can blow bubbles into the container with a bubble wand. The bubbles will appear to be floating in mid-air inside of the container.
They are actually floating on CO2!
Read more: Tips on how to keep your Home safe for family gatherings this festive season
