Make Flubber!

Materials:

Container 1 (4 cup capacity)

1 1/2 cups warm water

2 cups white glue

food coloring (a few drops)

Container 2

1 1/3 cups warm water

3 teaspoons Borax

This version makes a lot of flubber. You may wish to reduce the amounts.

To Do and Notice:

1. Mix the ingredients in each container thoroughly. What do they look like? How are they different?
2. Pour container 2 into container 1. Gently lift and turn the mixture until only about a tablespoon of liquid is left. What do you observe? What does it feel like? The Flubber will be sticky for a moment or two. Let the excess liquid drip off and the Flubber will be ready.

What happens to the Flubber when...

it is stretched?
it is rolled into a ball and bounced?
it is stretched over the opening of the jar?
an object (golf ball, etc.) is rolled on it?

What else can you do with flubber?

A Closer Look:

Flubber is a polymer made by a chemical reaction. Polymers are very long chains of repeating units. When the two solutions are combined, polyvinyl acetate chains (a polymer from the white glue) are linked together in a 3-dimensional arrangement by borate ions (from the Borax) and other chemical bonds. This produces the thick, sticky polymer called Flubber.

Have fun and enjoy the Flubber! You can also check out the full Flubber experiment and the Flubber class/home activity.