SCIENCE FAIR PROJECT Hydrophobic Sand Keegan Musaalo Carleen McNees Syracuse Juinor High

SCIENCE FAIR PROJECT Hydrophobic Sand Keegan Musaalo Carleen McNees Syracuse Juinor High

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Which waterproof spray is the most effective when applied to sand?

RESEARCH When a water repellant spray is added to an object, the object is turned into hydrophobic material. Hydrophobic materials will avoid water as much as possible. Sand is denser than water, so it naturally sinks. When sand is effectively hydrophobic, it clumps at the bottom of the container. It takes anything less dense than itself to the bottom of the container with it. Citations Sen, Nina. Hydrophobic Sand Underwater [Video]. www.livescience.com. Nov. 1, 2012. Web. 13 Dec. 2013. Zyga, Lisa. Hydrophobic Sand Could Combat Desert Water Shortages. www.phys.org. Feb 16, 2009. Web. 13 Dec. 2013.

HYPOTHESIS If I test which waterproof spray works the best, then ScotchGard Water Shield will be the best, because it has Silicone.

PROCEDURE: MATERIALS Get 3 different types of waterproof spray, vegetable/canola oil (any cooking type will do), 3 wide containers (preferrably pans), a jar of water, 4 cups of sand, an oven, and a good, positive attitude! I used ScotchGard Outdoor Silicone Water Shield, ScotchGard Auto Fabric and Carpet Protector, And Rain X Original.

PROCEDURE: STEPS 1. Obtain all materials 2. Put 1 cup of sand on tray and spread out. 3. Put in oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour 4. Wait until sand gets to room temperature. 5. Spray sand with the brand of waterproof spray that you are currently experimenting with. 6. Shake sand up and wait to dry. 7. Pour about 10 drops of oil onto the surface of the water in the jar. 8. Pour sand onto oil and record results. 9. Repeat steps 2-7 for each brand. 10. When using no spray as a control, do not proceed to spraying the sand and shaking up/ waiting for it to dry. Simply pour the plain sand onto the oil. Record Results.

VARIABLES Constants: Size of Jar, Amount of sand in each test Controlled variables: Plain Sand w/ no spray Independent (manipulated) variable: The brand of waterproof spray Dependent (measured) variable: Effectiveness of the spray (how much oil escaped)

DATA/OBSERVATIONS Before I conducted the actual experiment, I pre-tested the sprays by taking a spoonful of sprayed sand and putting a drop of water on the top to see if the sand can maintain the water on its surface. The Water Shield Spray seemed to maintain the drop pretty well. For about 15 seconds, the drop of water was on the surface of the sand. The next best was the Fabric and Carpet protector. It lasted for a solid 12 seconds. Rain X came second to last. It lasted for about 5 seconds. And lastly, plain sand came in last with 0 seconds. It absorbed the water.

DATA/OBSERVATIONS (CONTINUED) ScotchGard Water Shield was the first spray that I used. As I spooned the sand and put the water droplet on, I noticed that it was very effective in repelling the water. As I poured the sand onto the oil, it clustered up on the bottom, encasing about 7/8 of the oil. The oil didn t escape.

DATA/OBSERVATIONS (CONTINUED) ScotchGard Fabric and Carpet Protector was the next spray that I used. When I tested the sprayed sand on a spoon, I got a medium result. The sand didn t sustain the water like the water shield did. When I poured it onto the oil, it clustered at the bottom and got about 5/8 of the oil. A bit of the oil escaped, however.

OBSERVATIONS/DATA (CONTINUED) I tested the Rain X Protector and found it not as effective as some if the other sprays. As I tested the sprayed sand on the spoon, the water didn t stay for long. After a couple of seconds, the water was absorbed into the sand. When I poured it onto the oil, it only took about ¼ of it down. All of the oil escaped. It did not cluster on the bottom.

OBSERVATIONS/DATA (CONTINUED) The last and final spray that I used was oxygen.(dumb pun by the way) I tested plain sand as a control. I found that when putting the sand on a spoon and applying a drop of water to it, that the sand immediately absorbed the water, as I predicted. When I poured it onto the oil, it went right through it and sunk to the bottom of the container.

OBSERVATIONS/DATA (CONTINUED) Duration of Water on Spoon (seconds) Amount of Oil Sunk Clustered at the Bottom?( / ) Oil Escaped? ( / ) ScotchGard Outdoor Water Shield 15 Seconds 7/8 ScotchGard Auto Fabric & Carpet Protector 12 Seconds 5/8 Rain X Original Protector 5 Seconds 1/4 Plain Sand 0 Seconds Did not take oil down at all.

CONCLUSION The results weren t too surprising to me. The silicone in the water shield spray helped the spray repel the water more effectively than the other sprays. There was no silicon in the other sprays, so the water shield spray had the best result. My hypothesis was proven. The silicone is the active ingredient in the spray, making it more effective when repelling water. If there wasn t silicone, then the spray wouldn t be the most effective. It may have been equal to the fabric protector.

APPLICATION Environmentally, this can be applied to getting rid of oil spills. Oil spills happen every now and then, and there is a way to clean up the mess. The answer is waterproof solids. For instance, if we had tons and tons of sand, and we coated all of it in a Silicone waterproof spray, then we could sink the oil to the bottom. This would separate the oil from the water and help the environment. Silicone could be a great asset for many countries around the world to be used with other chemicals and in making a waterproof coating.