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How to Do the Blue Bottle Chemistry Demonstration

By Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D., About.com

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How to Do the Blue Bottle Chemistry Demonstration - Introduction and Materials

Turn a blue solution into a clear solution then back to blue.

Turn a blue solution into a clear solution then back to blue.

Alice Edward, Getty Images
In this chemistry demonstration, a blue solution gradually becomes clear. When the flask of liquid is swirled around, the solution becomes blue again. Instructions are given for performing the reaction, the chemistry is explained, and options for making red -> clear -> red and green -> red/yellow -> green color change reactions are explained. The blue bottle reaction is easy to perform and uses readily-available materials.

Materials

  • tap water
  • two 1-liter Erlenmeyer flasks, with stoppers
  • 7.5 g glucose (2.5 g for one flask; 5 g for the other flask)
  • 7.5 g sodium hydroxide NaOH (2.5 g for one flask; 5 g for the other flask)
  • 0.1% solution of methylene blue (1 ml for each flask)

Let's perform the demonstration...

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