Mystery blue & white beads

This experiment demonstrates a few principles: density, solubility, miscibility, salting out, azeotropes, emulsion.
The blue beads are regular Pony Beads. The white beads are actually UV reactive pony beads. It just so happens that the plastic they're made of is the right density.
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[@RealEngineering]

Fascinating stuff

[@eddievanhorn5497]

Real Engineering Did you just say the f word?

[@iloveengineering2242]

I'm subscribed and notified for both of you

[@tomkistruck9014]

You & Steve's content is great keep it up!

[@paddy3450]

no mention of the elephant in the room.

[@Twitchi]

Ahhhhhh.. I see what you did there

[@HelgaCavoli]

Twitchi, I didn't, what did he do?

[@user-ox7id9he5v]

when he exited the shot there is a literal elaphant

[@Dillon....]

@@user-ox7id9he5v You mean to tell me there was a literal elephant and i didnt see it...

[@davidwuhrer6704]

@@Dillon.... There is. In the background.

[@zakzennii8905]

A colored salt (such as copper sulfate, iron chloride, etc) would preferentially color the water.

[@tobiasueffing9985]

Or a non polar organic colour that is only soluble in isopropanol🤔

[@rickascii]

@@tobiasueffing9985 Such as?

[@giaiaspirit]

@chu Harrydon't those degrade over time in presence of sun light?

[@joshyoung1440]

@@giaiaspirit how is that relevant?

[@anuthelorael3926]

@@joshyoung1440 It depends. If you want to make a commercial product out of it (which would be an obvious great idea imho), you would need stable substances. Otherwise for the purpose of demonstrating the principles taught in this video, it doesn't.

[@dwgalviniii]

Every. Single. Video. Is something brand new to me. I love it. Thank you, Steve Mould.

[@SteveMould]

+Dave Galvin thanks :)

[@finleycastello6512]

Dave Galvin, ikr

[@wyattsheffield6130]

I was really worried nothing would pour out of a beaker today, but you didn't disappoint. the suspense was real - I was on the edge of my seat until the end. 10/10 video mate.

[@SteveMould]

+Wyatt Sheffield (Wyatt915) thank you :)

[@theretard666]

Ha, I worked out it was an emulsion of two liquids, you can tell it's not refracting cleanly, it's all translucent until seperated, but I got so confused when you said it was an alcohol. The secondary mystery was the bigger.

[@mayonaise000]

The non-edited version of the beads at the end of the video was immeasurably satisfying

[@Satchboy71]

Who stayed till the end just to see Steve pour something out of the beaker?

[@SteveMould]

+Satchboy71 I hope I didn't disappoint.

[@allthepeas]

Glad I wasn't the only one.

[@WombatSlug]

Oh yeah.

[@DanDart]

Nah I fast forwarded. Disappoint.

[@amelial]

Satchboy71 what is this whole beaker thing about?

[@kid31989]

Watching this video in 2020 and I must say, you aged damn well, Steve.

[@shawon265]

"So.... the plot thins..."

[@LadyEmilyNyx]

You had me worried there for a second Steve. Got all the way to the end and I was like "He's not going to pour anything out of a beaker!" And then you did, and everything was right with the world again. But boy did you get my heart pounding there for a bit.

[@SteveMould]

+Corlynn011 I like to keep you guessing!

[@h0lx]

how about a salt that is also colored?

[@Thunderbelch]

5:49 Note the clearly visible emulsion (fuzziness) between the two layers of beads and clear (homogeneous) liquids above and below. Very clever!

[@rodbotic]

it's neat seeing the clarity of the solution change.

[@LaGuerre19]

7:18 that sweet sweet beaker action that you came for

[@TheSpakMeister]

Love how the emulsion refracts light differently (in a cloudy way).

[@giansieger8687]

the effect‘s taken to the extreme with milk

[@johnydl]

I was watching a Nile Red Video on making Merocyanine and connection sparked with this video. There are dyes which change colour depending on the solvent called the "solvatochromic effect" using one of these you could shake everything together and mix 2 colours and then let them separate to get two colours back. I don't know if you'd still need the beads for the salting-out but it might be worth a try though Merocyanine is an expensive chemical there may be other chemicals that do something similar now you know what to look for.

[@khajiithadwares2263]

same separation happen in mundane solutions like brown sugar + water. when I make coffee in a short cup and take a deep sip, you can sense the coffee coming from the ground up is always more sweet but also more hot that the top layer. Its a very weird sensation to drink something that is both cold and hot (actually, you can notice it mostly when top is lukewarm but the bottom layer retained some heat because is more dense and is still kinda hot);

[@rolls_8798]

good man. you understand that the most satisfying things don’t have crappy royalty free music in the background

[@souravzzz]

iso what you did there.

[@spokehedz]

Ever gonna get that follow up video with the dye separation?

[@princessjellyfish6057]

Your eyebrows are so expressive

[@albertolando5268]

How is that your videos are so interesting? You touch topics I don't see often on youtube! Keep up the good work!

[@blueckaym]

I usually watch your and similar videos out of pure curiosity, but this time this salting out of alcohol-water is like god sent! I've recently started resin 3D printing, which involves cleaning the fresh prints of out the remaining liquid resin with alcohol. So alcohol quickly gets dirty with resin. It's still usable for a while, but it becomes very difficult to see inside it and I've lost some small parts in it for a few days until it separates due to gravity and I can eventually see a little better. At some point though the dissolved resin particles start to stick to the prints you're trying to clean and basically you can't clean them anymore, not well enough at least. So all of us have to filter the use alcohol somehow. Fortunately resin & alcohol don't form bonds, so they separate with time due to gravity (having over 30% density difference). But that separation can take long time, at least a day for only slightly dirty alcohol, and a week for much dirties one (also depends on how clean do you need it). So the first thing that came to mind is to turn up the Gravity to the max 8) ... ie use a centrifuge :) After some research it seems the type used to separating waste oil from pollutants is the best - it's simple, reaches very high Gs (at least few thousands) and doesn't have to process the whole amount of fluid all at once (it's even better if the dirty fluid flows very slowly in ... which is still much, much faster than waiting for it to pass a clogged with resin coffee filter). But when you're done there's still considerable amount of alcohol trapped inside the centrifuge (which if you turn it off then you'll have to filter out the slow way), but if you have something heavier to displace the alcohol and remain with the pollutants you'll extract almost all alcohol and will be very clear. The cheapest and readily available if water, but it has that nasty habit to suck strongly on the alcohol thru those H-bonds. So here salting out might turn out to be the solution (besides the alcohol ... you know it's technically a solution ;)). I just wonder how pure is the alcohol after that process? Due to the last half of the video I have some idea how fast it is :) Great thanks for that video!! :)

[@AlfredoMateus]

Also, it is interesting to see what happens if you try salting out with ethanol instead of propanol. The water stays with the salt in propanol, but it will rather be with the ethanol and get rid of the salt.

[@maxcotter-hope8535]

These old videos are cute. You've had a nice evolution.

[@vapocalypse]

I noticed that, when mixed, the middle part was translucid, but not transparent. I figured that there was a mix, but didn't know what it was. Nice trick!

[@theinconsistentpark9060]

This is an awesome demonstration! I love your videos. :D

[@SteveMould]

+The Inconsistent Park thank you :)

[@bazoo513]

Very cool! I learned about "salting out" today. BTW, it is quite obvious that the liquid between bead layers is not homogenous (I suppose that's why you included that close up shot at the end).

[@bmfkaz]

best outro on youtube

[@magnusbarse]

indeed! 😃

[@johnydl]

did you ever make the follow up colour liquids video? I can't find it

[@RobotProctor]

Soooooo.. 1. Where can I buy the blue beads 2. Where can I buy the white beads?

[@IstasPumaNevada]

So the fact it's an emulsion explains why the liquid gets cloudy when shaken, and clear when it settles out. Neat. Ahh, you can even see the blobs of different liquid on the close-up, without a microscope. Double neat.

[@realvanman1]

That's really cool! I wondered why the liquid was cloudy at first, but I just figured the bottle wasn't perfectly clear. Neat!

[@Eddy002]

Watching the last half of the video was the most relaxing thing I’ve ever watched.

[@capnkayso]

I actually made one of these in sixth grade and still have it, but until now, I never knew how it worked.

[@tudibelle]

This would make an excellent alternative to a glitter jar. Tempted to try to make one.

[@davidgendron6187]

Try Aniline Blue to dye the water dark blue. The isopropanol gets bluish but the contrast is very good

[@MacroAggressor]

I can't find a video about dying the liquids. I'd be really interested in the info you have about that.

[@Mjiujtsu]

I saw your overtly long outro and accepted the challenge

[@SteveMould]

+Marco J I respect that.

[@Mjiujtsu]

perhaps sadly the best used 3 minutes of my day.... :'( Jk

[@SteveMould]

+Marco J :(

[@josuelservin2409]

You got me there, I could not stand all those people talking about my rare habits! I been systematically likeing every video of yours I've come across, so surely you have won me over your side.

[@Hetnikik]

That is super awesome. Well done!

[@SteveMould]

+Hetnikik thank you :)

[@mirjamvangeel826]

Hi Steve, any tips for when I want to build one of my own? Do you sell these specific beads? PET bottle will do or not?

[@Alpha13Wolf]

Try dissolving some turmeric in the isopropyl then filtering out the remaining material. Curcumin the yellow pigment is highly soluble in alcohol but poorly soluble in water. The difference between the two liquids is very apparent, more so since it is salt water.

[@raphaelrainard]

Amazing video ! would love to make a decoration piece out of this, oh, Nice Elephant by the way !

[@luisfilipemachado17]

Beautiful!!!! How can I build one of those?

[@jaime18638]

The beaker guy got away with murder again.

[@surfmb70]

Glad I stayed for the end 😂 thanks for that

[@rbarghouti]

If you shined a light at an angle to the interface, then you should be able to visualize the change of density. You could do that by taking a laser pointer and attaching it to a long straight glass tube. When the tube is vertical, the laser should be passing through perpendicular to the interface. But if the whole apparatus were tilted, then the light should be deflected off to the side. You should be able to see this effect visually on the glass, or on a target at the end of the glass tube.

[@peymanbahrami88]

Nice one! Well done bro 🤘

[@ESSBrew]

I noticed that the liquid was more clear on top and bottom of beads, versus the center, but couldnt think of why.

[@croyce7699]

I was watching this wondering where the red pipes were before I checked the upload date.

[@charlievane]

can't you use a different salt for coloring purposes ?

[@FennecTECH]

There are two different liquids in the bottle. When they separate the beads are less dense and more dense then the two liquids. So they bring them to the middle

[@natashasmith7527]

Dude...your eyebrows are so entertaining.

[@sage5296]

The water is very salty and it kicks the isopropyl out!

[@tuttebelleke]

Would this work as well when applying the salt only after the mixing. It would probably take some more time as the salt needs to dissolve?

[@mpcabete]

If you use a colored salt wold it color only the water?

[@phyphor]

So, did you get anywhere with an attempt using colour? I keep on thinking that something like this happening in the background would be a cool thing to do as part of a magic trick.

[@stephenbenner4353]

I think this may be the longest no audio video I’ve watched in quite a while (I mean just the end part of course).

[@BrightBlueJim]

Yay! I have good taste! A bit salty, though. Does this work with ethanol? That could be an interesting (?) drink.

[@ContentCalvin]

yes adding massive amounts of sodium would be a really good idea for an alcoholic drink it wouldn't have any unwanted results.

[@ph4t4lity06]

On some level I feel that the beads actually help filter and separate the two chemicals, is that something you could show in the video with the dye, the comparison of the speeds of the cloudy solution in the middle separating out into two clear chemicals?

[@khajiithadwares2263]

Yeah, that's what got my attention as well. The beads are not kept together by anything, they are essentially free to move and let water pass throught .... the other way to look at it, its not something that the beads do, but rather the water is doing to the beads, the water arranges as it recovers from being shaken/mixed, the beads mostly follow the area in the water that corresponds to their own respective density.

[@lohphat]

Where can I send a funnel?

[@Rourker]

great, as always.

[@SteveMould]

+Brendan O'Rourke thank you :)

[@definitelynotcereal9647]

Use a blue and red sharpie to dye the isopropyl and it will be purple however if you block the light it will appear to be green.

[@animalpeeps]

Not sure why I'm happy/proud of it, but I was hypothesizing it would be salt that would separate the two liquids. Happy that my little bit of chemistry knowledge proved itself to me at the moment!

[@liachang126]

When the bottle is shaken up, the liquid between the beads looks cloudy, which to me would be an indication that it's a mixture.

[@mjb405]

I have a few questions because I want to make this Was it a 50/50 mix of isopropyl alcohol and water? How much salt did you put in/does it have to be supersaturated or can just a large amount of salt work?

[@XSpamDragonX]

Which brand of beads did you use, and where can I buy them?

[@sas3dx]

Any news after 2 years?

[@andrebartels1690]

Bump

[@TMJJack]

You should link where to buy those beads in the description.

[@shelvacu]

I really wanna try this, coolest party trick. It seems pretty simple; Dissolve a bunch of salt in water until no more salt will disolve, mix one part saltwater and one part isopropyl alcohol, add beads. All I need is the beads

[@SteveMould]

Good point. I've added info about the beads in the description!

[@ContentCalvin]

@@SteveMould will this work with anal beads?

[@deldrinov]

Colorful salt as a dye maybe? Something like copper sulfide?

[@TheRolemodel1337]

3:45 making a colored liquid that seperates into parent colors? like green sperates into blue and yellow

[@keving1774]

Where is the separate video?

[@callousg]

Hi Steve, I hope your idea is to see how many immiscible liquids you can layer upon top of one another (with colours for showmanship)?

[@aajjeee]

will the volume change as the solution is seperating? i know that the total volume of alcohol and water is smaller after being mixed than the sum of the 2 before.

[@SteveMould]

+Barnesrino Kipperino good question. Because of the salt in there it's not actually a solution. Check out the microscope bit to see that. So you don't get the decrease in volume here.

[@zetsevs]

I was gonna try and guess it was something like how they exspanded and contracted as they abosrbed the liquids like the lower one exspanded decreasing its volume to weight ratio and one above would shrink increasing its weight to volume ratio Im wrong but I wanted to throw my guess up anyways

[@normalgenericlazyguy5589]

What if you use universal indicator for the pigment? It will change as the process occurs will it not?

[@charlenefoti689]

Man that right eyebrow has a mind of its own

[@helved807]

For dying the liquid, could you not put universal indicator in it because isopropyl alcohol is a 5.5 and salt water is around 8.1 on the PH scale.

[@JohnDlugosz]

What about a pH indicator? The behavior is generally different in fluids other that water, so it may naturally show a different color. And, salt solutions can be very alkaline. And the salt is not in the other fluid.

[@GigaDavy91]

What about using copper sulphate instead of sodium chloride to see the difference in coloration?

[@NeemeVaino]

Try different markers, some dissolve in water, some in alcohol, often with different colors, some are even pH sensitive (e.g. ball pen ink). Then try different salts, basic or acid ones.

[@tolkienfan1972]

I was half expecting a jump scare in the end scene!

[@AgentOffice]

This guy is a magician

[@ImperialGoldfish]

God, I love Steve

[@JaapvanderVelde]

I'm curious: would the liquids separate faster with the beads in there than without? Does the upward force of the blue and the downward force of the white on the still mixed liquid, cause it to separate faster?

[@SteveMould]

+Jaap van der Velde very good question. I'll experiment.

[@danielculver2209]

Have you tried an alcohol-based pH indicator?

[@jamcdonald120]

did you ever get the coloring to work?

[@titastotas1416]

this might be too late now but i guess you could use copper sulfate istead of table salt and it would naturaly have a color

[@thenapdoreast4633]

i learned this cleaning my bong

[@PieterSchutz]

Unfortunately I have a very difficult time trying to recreate your experiment in my school. I found and bought a lot of different pony beads, and found some with good densities to use. The problem lies with finding and mixing the solution. If I use saturated saline solution and isopropanol as soon as I mix them I get a flaky precipation I assume is salt. The densitiy of the solution does not seem to behave as I would expect. Is it possible for you to share a little more details on how you made this?

[@sriruparoy4946]

Why do few white beads remain at the top surface? Surface tension?

[@blazer6248]

Sooooo... Where's that other vid about the liquids separating?

[@yashvangala]

5:36 why do the white beads form a clump on top of the solution before falling down but all the blue beads at the bottom rise together?

[@armouredlion]

Surface tension of the alcohol holds them up there I assume

[@Larzsolice]

Use a metal salt for the dye

[@Dartheomus]

I was proud of myself that I knew both levels of what was going on here! The only thing I'm wondering is how the heck you found beads with the proper densities for this demo to work! :)

[@Relkond]

If they’re made of specific materials with specific, known densities… Might be some tables to look that up on to help you make usable selections.

[@Dartheomus]

@@Relkond I'm a polymer chemist, so I'm familiar.... It's still tricky to find beads with exactly the right density to pull this off well. :)

[@Relkond]

@@Dartheomus If I had to guess (drawing on decades old childhood memories from a similar-but-different experiment) - you’re probably overthinking this. 1) get some beads. Say Medium density Polyethylene (~.93g/cc) and Polypropylene (.90g/cc) 2) create a water/alcohol mixture with a density dead between the densities of the 2 plastics when fully mixed+agitated. The trick is that the density of the solution is tunable by adjusting the components in it, and it’ll still behave in a similar manner even if the ratios are altered. The precise density of the beads is not a critical factor here. Your ability to create the right fluid mixture is.

[@Dartheomus]

​@@Relkond I think you're right. There's only so many materials that will be used for making those style beads, to some extent, you do just have to adjust it to make it work. I guess maybe it was just a happy coincidence that he was able to get the fractionation zone right in the middle of the bottle. (ie. 1/1 mix of IPA & Saturated Salt Soln)

[@Relkond]

FWIW, my childhood thing involved getting a drop of corn oil (.91g/cc) to float half way up a jar of mixed water/alcohol. It worked, but had flaws (interesting, but not worth doing IMO). Here though, if you really need things to settle to the center, you may be able to fine-tune things by adjusting the ratio of the two beads. You will probably require enough beads that they fill a vertical span, so that the beads extend outside of the thin layer of fluid matches their density. This in turn will allow the beads to meet at the center even if their densities might not normally allow it. (think ‘overlapping error bars’ - but with beads in a jar rather than ink on paper)

[@ColeMBerry]

Could you just heat the salt enough to make it darker in order to separate the colors?

[@LukaszSebastian]

Why not use colorful salt? Like CoCl2?

[@mikewilliams6025]

The eyebrow is strong with this one.

[@Askjerry]

I would like to duplicate this... are they specific beads... or just any white (no dye) and colored beads?

[@gleggett3817]

Whether you call it Iso-P or propan-2-ol, one of my favourite chemicals.