The Blue Bottle Experiment

NOTE: I say and write 10mL dextrose, but i mean 10g. There is clearly a bag of solid dextrose there. I have no idea how I messed that up!
Today we are going to be playing with the redox indicator methylene blue. Instead of KOH, it can be replaced with NaOH. It just needs to be adjusted according to molar mass.
PDF on conjugation: people.chem.um...
Procedure adapted from:
www.flinnsci.c...
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Nile talks about lab safety: • Chemistry is dangerous.

[@kjpmi]

Interesting fact: Dextrose is the same as glucose as we think of it (it's obviously just the dextro- enantiomer of glucose but as far as commercial products they are the same). Our body can only use d-glucose for energy and it cannot use l-glucose. So only d-glucose (dextrose) is found in nature. L-glucose can be made. It tastes indistinguishable from dextrose but since your body can't use it it doesn't have the calories that d-glucose has. It's also ok for diabetics since it won't raise your glucose levels. It is too cost prohibitive to use as a no calorie sweetener otherwise it would probably be on the market.

[@stonent]

Sort of like Dextro-Methamphetamine vs Levo-Methamphetamine. Both are vasoconstrictors but one is a potent stimulant and the other is used in Vicks inhalers to clear your sinuses and has no stimulating effects in normal doses.

[@Veritas-invenitur]

Stonent is a cook

[@dirtyharry4345]

it's just d-meth, and l-meth, the d and the l stand for something in latin that I don't remember, but they mean left and right handed., there are some of us who understand that there are isomers of meth that don't fall into those categories....sometimes it's cool to just mention that and not explain....cuz you might get some people that turn ultra-intelligent, and some that turn into zombies and some that can be controlled and some that cannot be controlled no matter what the fuck you do. #MKULTRA

[@GogiRegion]

(+stonent) Just like the M/H (morphine vs heroin) IV studies, in the Dextro/Levo-Methamphetamine study said that IV’d they are indistinguishable from each other at the equal doses (Dextro is exactly three times as potent as Levo, and H is exactly three times as potent as M). But intranasal or oral, L is practically pointless.

[@AhmetOzdemir-om3bj]

It is on the market though non calorie noodles and stuff are made from it.

[@souravzzz]

I just made that like button blue.

[@Wishingweezy]

Then make my YT channel grey

[@vincentweatherly9991]

I’m shaking my device but it didn’t change colour

[@cinnabonbon]

Yotube made it grey

[@VivianDelphine]

Three years later, it’s reduced to its colorless form

[@KWithaFont]

@Amari Juelz this is a bot btw guys

[@AntigonePoss]

"local wine-making store"

[@thefranklin6463]

Bye honey! I’m off to the wine making store! Which one? Oh the local one

[@odyseuszkoskiniotis6266]

You are both funny.

[@omkarmhatre8188]

Scientists are never sober

[@wilfriedschuler3796]

@@thefranklin6463 No joke. Here in Germany we had a whole bunch "wine makers" in the lat 1950ies" They sold a lot of stuff which had never seen any grape. Of course it was a crime and they all went to tribunal and later to prison. And in the 1970 in Austria they even used ethylen glycole. Unbelievable. One judge stated "I can not condem you of falsificating whine. Because there is no wine at all. The name of the main defendant was Valentin Korn. Just another joke. Because Korn in German means, rye whisky. I´m sure the name Valentin Korn must exist in the internet. And of course, we alwys had moonshine guys in Germany. Usually they used potatoes. But all kind of cereales and fruit and just everything right at hand.

[@emmajaubert6249]

@@omkarmhatre8188 can confirm

[@derpingflamingo]

Holy crap for my undergraduate chemistry lab, we were given a solution really similar to that one (might be the same one!), and was told to use our analytical skills to identify the reaction steps. All we could come up with in a 3 hour time frame was that o2 was required (shook bottle in vacuum and nonvacuum), there are pressure drops at certain points of the reaction, and that the unknown compound has two states.. Thanks for the video!

[@superdau]

I think unless specifically mentioned glucose is always dextrose/D-glucose, since L-glucose doesn't appear in nature.

[@NileRed]

That is true

[@dumbo800]

It does appear in nature, and can be metabolized by at least one lower organism. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burkholderia_caryophylli

[@dirtyharry4345]

high fructose corn syrup - that's the shit. and liquid invert sugar....I once knew a girl as sweet as these.

[@AnonyMous-gj7qq]

@@dirtyharry4345 That's so _corny_

[@lyricslance3257]

@@NileRed There some talk going on which I cannot understand !

[@dividebyzeroisfail]

I use this reaction in my classroom every year. Thanks for the great video!

[@NileRed]

No problem!

[@Noah-hz5ll]

So, if you were to displace the air in the bottle with something non reactive, say nitrogen or argon, it probably wouldn't be able to go back to blue, correct?

[@videosentral3871]

I think yes.

[@asikram7888]

yes, that's right

[@NileRed]

Yeah, exactly! I totally forgot to do this.

[@Bobbiethejean]

Nitrogen is nonreactive?

[@NileRed]

The Silverone In general, nitrogen is pretty unreactive

[@chemresearcher8372]

At the Moscow Festival of Science we call this experiment as "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again"

[@phillipdittmann8684]

Hey NileRed, there are some other interesting observations you can make in the blue bottle experiment: 1. Prepare three "blue bottles". One like in your video, the second one with 5x higher KOH concentration, the third one with a concentration half as high. Immediately after preparing the solutions, place them into sunlight. The colour of them should change to purple, depending on the concentration. (more KOH => more purple) 2. Let these three bottles stand for about a week. The colour should change to yellow, orange or red, depending on the KOH concentration. Love your videos man!

[@andrewburnett6222]

I would gladly listen to you at length talk about double bond conjugation, but I bet it gets pretty dry making a video like that, if not I'm just glad you make these fire videos

[@NileRed]

I prefer to just add tidbits of info here and there, that way it doesnt get too boring :p

[@insecurecow4419]

You should 1 up Cody and backyard scientist by doing the bottle flip thing with this.

[@Jeffery_Saulter]

Cody’s lab is click bait redditor garbage

[@csn583]

Yeah learning how to distill Mercury and refining the precious metals from catalytic converters was some real clickbait garbage... Even the good channels have sadly seen that behavior creep in a bit, no reason to be a hater, hater.

[@BackYardScience2000]

Sounds like Jeffery is jealous of Cody. It'll be alright, Jeffery. You don't have to cry about it.

[@Inuyasha10121]

You can make a more interesting shake flask experiment by using Indigo Carmine, so called the "Chemical Traffic Light." It starts yellow, if you gently swirl the solution it turns red, if you shake it hard it turns green. I believe its made in a similar fashion as well.

[@jennifer7685]

this was SO much fun!!! we got to shake it 10x so far, and it's just so exciting every time! i'm going to send a bottle in to kindergarten with my daughter.

[@coopersmith9850]

I did this experiment for my depth study in year 11 chemistry and it was so much fun!

[@WilliamEllison]

I can make toilet water turn Yellow in fewer steps.

[@zach3096]

Are you 12? Obnoxious and not funny

[@WilliamEllison]

Take it easy guys. I'm just making a joke. Ya know? Trying to get a laugh. I would suggest counseling or maybe an outside Job. Fresh air and Sun light

[@nopushbutton]

Yeah well I can turn that same water red just as easy... hemorrhoids suck

[@tohopes]

*𝐅𝐄𝐖𝐄𝐑

[@WilliamEllison]

tohopes That's correct. I will change it for you.

[@LFTRnow]

I like making this in small ~5 ml bottles. Divide all the numbers at the beginning by 100 and add 1 drop of blue (its a lot so it is slower, but it works).

[@6alecapristrudel]

You can also do a much slower, less exotic version of this. You need a fairly dilute solution of copper(II) ammonia complex. Just stick a piece of copper metal in the bottle and wait. It turns colorless but it takes a long time (1-2 weeks for me), but the transition from colorless to blue is quite fast. CuCl2 makes a green version as per a Nurdrage video.

[@acaterpillargivingbirth]

It looked familiar and I realised that we did this in my chemistry class ! We used sodium hydroxide instead of potassium hydroxide, that was fun

[@robertdraxel7175]

Oh man, you always are of great help to me in chemistry. Thanks!

[@Lemon_Sage9999]

F I J I F O R L I F E

[@polloprestigioso]

Titus Block A L W A Y S S A D , A L W A Y S M E T H Y L E N E B L U E .

[@Adoptulous]

Titus Block was hoping to see an A E S T H E T I C comment chain. Was not disappointed

[@origamigek]

Kinda cool how this almost magical experiment is actually pretty simple.

[@SourdoughVideo]

If anyone would like to understand why the solution is blue I would recommend reading about conjugated double bonds and HOMO LUMO transitions. In a very simplified somewhat incorrect synopsis, the more conjugation you have the closer the unstable and stable pi orbitals are which means that lower energy light is able to excite the electrons. This brings the emitted light into the visible spectrum allowing us to see it. This is how our shirts are colored and how sunscreen works.

[@misterhat5823]

If you added a small bit of oil, would it prevent oxygen from reacting with the top of the solution since it would float on top? But shaking it should allow the reaction to occur.

[@phantomzpro250]

I used this for my science presentation. Thanks Nigel.

[@CNSninja]

I wonder if adding an amount of paraffin mineral oil to the bottle (just enough to cover the surface of the solution and separate it from the oxygen in the bottle) would work out well to prevent the top of the solution from turning blue until it's shaken. I don't know for certain if paraffin mineral oil would react with anything in the solution though. It's of pretty low reactivity, and it's just a 10-carbon chain with some hydrogens. It could be an interesting way to get the solution perfectly clear if it would work the way I'm imagining. I've never actually taken a proper chemistry class though, so I don't know if this is nonsense or not.

[@salbutamolsulphate9988]

I once did a similar demonstration for my science fair when I was 12. I think it was called the Traffic lights reaction, which uses indigo carmine instead of methylene blue. It looked so cool.

[@BackYardScience2000]

The chemical traffic light shifts back and forth between red, yellow and green.

[@nilnileer]

There's a video on that

[@somethingsomething404]

Add a drop of a thin oil to seal off the top from oxygen so none of it is blue

[@pauljenkkins6169]

10 milliliters of dextrose lmao love you nile

[@mushroomtoad2000]

methylene blue can be easily obtained in a local fish store

[@DJAsHeRMusic]

Fukano Nakito why what's it used for for fish?

[@goldencharm8882]

Daniel Asher I know the reply's four months old but I'm going to answer in case other people are wondering: Methylene blue is for treating bacterial and fungal infections, and can prevent fertilized eggs from rotting when close to dead or unfertilized ones. Its also used as an alternative for malachite green in the fosh are sensitive.

[@xiuxiu1108]

Brings back memories our analytical chemistry lab :)

[@ShroomLab]

You should have uploaded it to nile blue (nile red 2). Why do you neglect this channel so much?

[@NileRed]

I actually have 3 full videos written for it. It is just a different format and new to me so I procrastinate. I need to work out exactly where and how I am going to film them and produce them. I can guarantee Ill upload something before the end of october at the LATEST. I really hope itll be done in the next 2 weeks though.

[@ShroomLab]

I appreciate your hard work on the vids. Already looking forward to hearing some narration.

[@amandafernandez1262]

Thank you for the detailed explanation!!!! This really helped me out

[@holygrail4222]

is it because there is no blue pigment? the blue that we are seeing is a fractal of blue spectrum being reflected, while the other colors of light are passed or absorbed by the geometric structure of the compound. when the solution sits then the geometry of the compound changes as oxygen is displaced, making it clear when no light gets reflected.

[@emanueleross9521]

I was wondering why you decided to use KOH istead of NaOH, which is easier to find in local stores. I've been conducting this experiment for a while and I always used NaOH and it works as well.

[@NileRed]

I used KOH because it dissolves easier. That is pretty much it. It would be much easier for most people to use NaOH though

[@PenJahattt]

Nile Red and Nile Blue are apparently names of organic dyes :O

[@vojtator]

No shit sherlock

[@dildoshwagins2222]

I promise officer it’s a cool science experiment.

[@thatilluminati_3421]

Could you repeat this indefinitly? Aka how many times do you have to shake it for it to not turn blue again? Also, is it consistant enough to time something with it?

[@macropusmacropode5813]

Eventually you will run out of glucose. So, no to the first question.

[@dirtyharry4345]

y'know this really sounds like that "disappearing ink" trick that people used to be able to buy in novelty stores...how about those x-ray glasses eh? i'm creepy enough to try them on, and stare at women like i can see their hoof...

[@seanmacattram361]

thatIlluminati _ to

[@ytrewq6789]

Love the variation of the overdone iodine clock... This one, most "including I". Has not seen or heard of before this..... Thanks NileRed!...

[@richardsellers8460]

Thanks for the great video, Nile. I was wondering whether if this process is exothermic or endothermic?

[@aamirshaikh7798]

Thanks it was such a good idea to our Chemistry expo. Your blue bottle experiment

[@clamchance2404]

is it only work in fiji bottle?

[@twitchingdan]

cage freeEthin46 Any bottle will do as long as it is ＡＥＳＴＨＥＴＩＣ

[@jbolo5378]

Holy cow, thats how those asian street magicians are doing the trick

[@cuberynth3079]

This should have been on Nile blue

[@mrcoldcase]

Hello, How many times the color changing use to occur? I'd like to prepare a permanent demonstration of chemical reactions, putting this solution in a looping system including an agitation step (to turn it blue) and a non agitation step (to turn it clear again) The idea is to run with this looping several times a day. Also the original idea is never exchange the solution. It's possible?

[@NileRed]

It eventually runs out. I dont think it would work more than a day. It slowly discolors and stops working

[@dirtyharry4345]

there is a chemical reaction that does a similar thing- it goes from red to blue and back over and over - but there needs to be a medium to allow it to grow like a crystal would out of a super saturated solution. also, the blue becomes surrounded by the red and back on and on...until all of the medium is used up...but very cool looking leftovers, the bands and all...just can't remember where i read about that, pop sci, discovery or sci american...

[@chililion]

@@dirtyharry4345 Are you talking about either the Briggs-Rauscher or Belousov-Zhabotinsky?

[@badw01f23]

eyyyyyy. i was just thinking about watching another one of your videos. just my luck. and this is a really cool experiment

[@NileRed]

Thanks!

[@BalticLab]

Can you use sodium hydroxide?

[@googleeatsdicks]

I would like to suggest a topic: The reduction of pyridine to piperidine. And a question: Could you substitute the mercury in your aluminium isopropoxide synthesis with gallium? I read that gallium aluminium alloy is a great substitute for Al-amalgam.

[@theginginator1488]

On the first note, chemplayer already had a video reducing pyridine to piperidine On the second, yes you can

[@NileRed]

haha, its always nice to answer your own questions! :)

[@hardwareful]

towards the end it doesn't look like adding more methylene blue would make the process slower, as said in the middle of the video. Maybe the indication is more sensitive to residual oxygen concentration, but I'd be interested in speeding up th reaction as much as possible while keeping the amount of base down.

[@fauxpassant]

Some sources call it leucomethylene blue vs methylene blue - colourless vs blue...

[@jort93z]

Wouldn't it be a lot easier to take a fine(preferable fancy colored) powder that is not solvable in water and create a suspension. Then the powder would settle on the bottom of the bottle and you could shake it again to "color" the liquid. Would be a similar effect I think. if not better because the particles on the bottom of the bottle are harder to see.

[@rajeshshahi1000]

Man I am eagerly waiting for the N2O video.

[@thiagoribeiro9069]

With the increase of temperature, shouldn't the solubility of O2 would diminish, causing the reaction to go slower? Perhaps the agitation would minimize this enough for the reaction to occur almost instantaneously. But even if the kinetic is favored by an increase of temperature, I would expected a decrease of available oxidizer, causing the reaction to at least finish faster. In 100ºC, I would expected a very quick, perhaps no change in color even if there is agitation.

[@petermaddin5611]

KOH is more difficult and expensive than NaOH to come by. Is there a special reason for using KOH. I understand there is a case for KOH in some experiments. 16 gm KOH = 0.285 moles, aprox. 11 grams NaOH mole equivalent. I have both but I have to order in KOH but NaOH can be obtained from the supermarket.

[@firexgodx980]

I'm still hoping for the nitrocellulose to smokeless gunpowder video. I'll donate a lot for that video.

[@j.r9411]

Apparently nitrocellulose is classified as a high explosive in America now making it a felony to possess it. Unfortunately I've wanted to see the process too

[@IvorMektin1701]

Cody made it in one of his videos.

[@firexgodx980]

J.R Shaw No it's not, the NRA shut that down

[@j.r9411]

Oh that's great news glad to here the ATF didn't get away with that one

[@NileRed]

I would love to do that actually. The only issue I have now is I have no sulfuric acid...makes me sad

[@imJennJohnson]

What other chemical indicators are there that make different colors?

[@CraneLoverMary]

Can you put this into smaller containers and have it still work?

[@kyliemartin7824]

So if you were to put different amounts of the glucose, it wouldn't work as well?

[@jmm1233]

remembers the chem teacher demonstrating this , tho they used Methyl red as the dye

[@Sameer-ll1yf]

How long do you have to wait.

[@GBXHampstead]

Great! I'll be using this for my 5th Grade Science Convention.

[@nilnileer]

Sounds nice! :)

[@flaviussevero]

Can using KOH be risky? I would like to repeat this experiment with a class of 9 year olds... thanks!

[@Doppelbuckel]

How often can this be repeated until it stops working?

[@emanueleross9521]

Until you have dextrose in the solution. If the color change rate gets too slow you can try adding more glucose to react with methylene blue.

[@gavinkemp7920]

they use the term glucose because it the scientific name for glucose/dextrose and as far as i know is only named dextrose in the us.

[@HettyPatel]

Can u do the blue ball experiment next?

[@kd8fki]

Put less than .5 grams of dry ice into a bag allow some gas to form in the bag with a syringe pull 10ml of gas from the bag. Add the co2 slowly as it will fall to the top of the solution thus making an oxygen barrier and making all solution even top layer of solution should not oxidize and making it clear as well. Shaking would break the barrier and make oxidized “blue solution” when allowed to sit this leveling of gasses should keep solution to become non oxidized solution and the oxygen would then be above the carbon dioxide and solution below. Try it out let me know how it works

[@neetprepgo7191]

Can you please tell me the exact time it takes for the solution to become colourless from blue

[@zachariahstovall1744]

You could use this for a bet. Saying you could turn water blue with magic.

[@THE_MR_MAN]

very interesting for sure

[@joshuasamuels4802]

it almost seems like you just made disappearing ink. that would a cool video!

[@lucasbelknap8455]

Mercury distillation would be lit fam

[@calcaware]

Why can't this reaction cycle happen indefinitely? Will the Potassium Hydroxide slowly react with the Dextrose over time?

[@IDKWHT2WRITE]

I did this experiment i have a question it's been a few hours the bottle became yellow like pure yellow it still turna blue but it is yellow why?

[@paul3dwards]

Curious if it changes color with pressure.

[@ceriand]

Does this work with thymolphthalein? It would be also interesting to see a synthesis of thymolphthalein from Thyme.

[@Chemi4001]

So Dextrose is D-Glucose or a straight chain one, right?

[@EverDarkness147]

is it possible to do the opposite ? like vanishing the color with shaking or other kind of energy ?

[@BogdanZB]

Why does it become purple under sunlight?

[@belleedalumpines6895]

Is it okay to use liquid dextrose and don't use distilled water anymore?

[@aterack833]

So when are you going to make a rave club with all the colour changing chemicals? (At least this and the stoplight and the modified one, and that Russian one)

[@stephenearley4917]

Is it toxic or can I just dump it down the sink with some water?

[@skatiaris21]

I got a question: the rate law is first order with respect to MBox. If you perform the experiment the more MB you add the more time it takes. thus the rate(1/t) will decrease… how can it be first order then? first order means it will increase

[@Sonicgott]

Can sodium hydroxide and sucrose produce a similar result?

[@poorman-trending]

Can methylene blue be extracted from urine after consumption?

[@Indigofrost]

can this be done in reverse? have the solution blue ( or any color) then when shook makes it clear?

[@duroncrush]

There is a another reduction reaction you might be able to explain.. There are several videos showing molasses used as a powerful rust remover, but it takes weeks. I've seen speculation that it is caused by sugars reducing the iron oxide. If that is the case would adding potassium hydroxide speed up the reaction.

[@NileRed]

I guess it could speed it up if it is going through the same mechanism. You can always try it out and see!

[@duroncrush]

I just set up a test using molasses, corn syrup, and a saturated sugar solution. Then I saw this video and now I'm considering trying dextrose, and KoH.

[@NileRed]

tom adams try it out and let me know! Message me though because i dont always see all the comments

[@zeratulrus142]

So... did it work?

[@rapturas]

OIL RIG: Oxidation is loss, Reduction is gain :)

[@NileRed]

haha yeah. I forgot to mention one of those tricks. I really should have

[@1HeartCell]

Hey, I am learning something tru this channel! Thank you :)

[@lastnamefirstname9972]

Hey NileRed, me and my friend are chemistry students and we are thinking about starting a chanel similar to yours. Do you have any tips or advice?

[@tyt0uoff146]

Potassium making or Potassium Hydroxide synthesis

[@rakinkazi9780]

can this reaction occur indefinitely?

[@videosentral3871]

No. Since one of the side product of dextrose in the reaction is not a equlibria equation (as Nile explained in the video). So it can not be infinitely reacts.

[@ficolas2]

No, but it will probably take a looooong time until it stops ocurring

[@videosentral3871]

+ficolas2 not very long tho. It maybe lasts for 1 day, and its already a long duration.

[@NileRed]

Again, something else I forgot to mention! It usually fails because you run out of oxygen. Just open the bottle again, air it out and youre good to go. It won't go forever though, even if you keep opening and closing it. Youll run out of the reducing solution.

[@videosentral3871]

+NileRed nile i have a question. Do you learn in any university? If yes, can i ask where and what faculty/ degree you want to have / you already have. I have a interest in chemistry and going to university next year with Pure Chemistry faculty. Do you have any suggestion? Thx!

[@TheMindpack]

One question I had while doing this experiment myself. Is the oxygen used up or if you let it stand to change color back to clear is the oxygen released again? From my observation after a few times the pressure in the bottle is decreased (basically the bottle gets deflated). So either there is a temperature change or there is consumption of gas in the bottle.

[@MadScientist267]

There's a reaction that demonstrates how this works if you want to see it for yourself... And easier, possibly safer, than filling the bottle full of pure O2 lol NaOH sequesters CO2 in the presence of water and will cause a bottle to all but completely collapse. NaOH + CO2 -> Na2CO3 + H2O Put a little vinegar and baking soda in the bottom of a plastic bottle and let it react out, just enough of each to fill the bottle with CO2. Cap loosely (must vent!) until the reaction is over and the bubbling stops completely. Now drop a bit of excess NaOH in it, slam the cap home and shake it up... The hydroxide will start eating the CO2 out of the bottle, and since it's the only significant gas present, a rather tidy vacuum is formed, and the bottle collapses.

[@ibrahimkocaalioglu]

How about inserting electrodes and apply some voltage. Electrically controlled reaction :)

[@ui2760]

Which concentration is potassium hydroxide?

[@Robotnik75XYZ]

Does this work with sodium hydroxide and sucrose?

[@Aetherismə]

Why do you have all the cool stores near you?!

[@VaradJoshi1999]

Tysm NileRed!! Becoz of this video, my chemistry teacher has crush on me....!!!

[@goodsir2551]

;D

[@Elviloh]

Are they using the same principle to make disappearing ink ?

[@giuseppefusivelarde1362]

after a while the water in the bottle turns yellow. why?

[@spookywizard4980]

Giuseppe Fusi Velarde dextrose decomposes =( been struggling with this issue

[@devibiyani1366]

we have to use distilled water or normal mineral water?

[@ningzhao8226]

Can you do a video on how to make methylene blue