Why must u use a 2L bottle for the mentos and diet coke experiment?

Question

Would results occur with a different type of mentos? Why can't u use a regular mint like peppermint or lifesavers?

Answer 1

Ah - I was watching Mythbusters and they actually did this and experimented with different sweets and sodas. They worked out that although you don't HAVE to use a specific sized bottle, the result is best with Diet Coke as opposed to regular Coke (due to the sweetners AND sugar AND caffeine AND carbonisation all together) And it has to be a regular Mentos, as the coated ones do not provide the tiny craters in the sugar which the mixture clings to to provide several tiny simultaneous reactions which accumulate to provide the spurt of liquid. Other round, uncoated sweets would also work, but different shapes wouldn't provide the uniform fizz and boiled sweets, again, do not have the craters in the surface.

Hehe wish I could type faster....would save me writing exactly what the guy above did..!

Answer 2

The guys at EepyBird (the ones who did that great video with all the fountains and stuff) did a zillion different tests and determined that a 2 L of Diet Coke and regular Mentos work the best. I saw a thing on Mythbusters where they'd seen the EepyBird video and decided to analyse it. Basically, when Mentos sink to the bottom of the Coke, the chemicals in them react with the Coke, and basically the Coke releases all of it's CO2 at once, which is the fizzing that you get. Mentos contain a certain kind of gum that seems to be a very strong key to this, but really it's all fo the chemicals in the Diet Coke and the Mentos working together. Lifesavers won't work because they don't contain exactly the right ingredients.

Also, they determined that it has to be the regular Mentos, not the shiny ones. When the Mentos are too smooth like that, there aren't enough places for the molecules in the Coke to latch on, so the raction doesn't happen nearly as fast.

Answer 3

It doesn't have to be a two liter bottle. It can be any size bottle as long as the neck/opening of the bottle is much smaller than the body. It's this size difference that allows the coke to shoot out like a fountain. If you used a regular cup to do the experiment, the coke would just fizzle and pour down the sides of the cup.

Answer 4

if u want to repaint ur house, then please use a smaller bottle.

Answer 5

You don't!