Dry Ice Demonstrations

Dry ice is the solid form of carbon dioxide, which sublimates directly from a solid to a gas without becoming liquid. Since dry ice is not always easy to obtain, this category brings together demonstrations that take advantage of it, ensuring that when it is available, teachers have a full set of options ready.

Demonstration	Materials	Difficulty	Safety	Summary
Big Dry Ice Bubble	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	A bowl of water with dry ice is sealed with a soapy film that stretches into a giant bubble. As fog from the dry ice fills the bubble, it grows larger until it bursts.
Dry Ice Balloon	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	Pieces of dry ice are put inside a balloon causing it to inflate.
Dry Ice Bubble Tower	★★★	★☆☆	★★☆	When dry ice is added to a soapy water solution in a tall cylinder, bubbles filled with fog stack on top of each other, creating a snake-like tower that spills over the sides.
Dry Ice Bubbles	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	A homemade dry ice bubble generator creates fog-filled bubbles that can be bounced on fabric or gloved hands without popping. The bubbles release a burst of fog when they finally break.
Dry Ice Carbonated Ice Cream	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	By mixing a simple ice cream base with dry ice, the mixture freezes rapidly while also becoming lightly carbonated.
Dry Ice Comet	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	Dry ice is combined with water, dirt, and other ingredients to make a model comet. The mixture forms an icy clump that produces jets of gas when exposed to light and heat, simulating how real comets behave near the sun.
Dry Ice Detergent Bubbles	★★★	★☆☆	★★☆	Adding dry ice to warm soapy water produces a steady stream of fog-filled bubbles that overflow from the container. The bubbles are safe to touch and pop.
Dry Ice Film Canister Rocket	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	A film canister filled with water, food coloring, and a piece of dry ice builds up pressure as the solid carbon dioxide sublimates, launching the canister into the air and creating colorful splatter art.
Dry Ice Flame Extinguisher	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	A lit candle inside a cup goes out when dry ice is added. As the dry ice sublimates into carbon dioxide gas, it displaces oxygen around the flame, showing that fire needs oxygen to burn.
Dry Ice Fog	★★★	★☆☆	★★☆	Dry ice is combined with hot water in a lidded bucket to generate a thick white fog that spills over the rim and creeps across the floor.
Dry Ice Frozen Bubbles	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	Blowing bubbles into a container with dry ice causes them to freeze solid. The bubbles can be picked up, examined, and will eventually thaw and pop as they warm.
Dry Ice Jack-O-Lantern	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	Placing dry ice and water inside a jack-o-lantern creates thick fog that spills out of its carved face, producing a spooky Halloween effect.
Dry Ice pH Colour Change	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	Adding dry ice to a beaker of water with universal indicator creates bubbling fog and a color change. As carbon dioxide dissolves into the water, the solution becomes acidic and shifts from green through the color spectrum to orange. Adding base resets the cycle.
Dry ice Rainbow Colors	★★★	★★☆	★★★	When dry ice is added to indicator solutions, the solid carbon dioxide sublimates, producing bubbles and fog that look like boiling. As carbon dioxide dissolves in water, it forms carbonic acid, lowering the pH and causing the indicator solutions to change color dramatically from their basic to acidic forms.
Dry Ice Singing Spoon	★★★	★☆☆	★★☆	When a spoon or other metal object is pressed against dry ice, it produces a loud singing or screeching sound. This occurs because the dry ice sublimates rapidly, causing vibrations between the metal and the carbon dioxide gas.
Freezing Flowers With Dry Ice and Alcohol	★★★	★★☆	★★★	A mixture of dry ice and isopropyl alcohol creates a very cold liquid at around -90 °C, which can instantly freeze flowers, candy, or fruit, making them brittle and easy to shatter.
Witches Cauldron with Dry Ice Fog	★★★	★★☆	★★☆	This Halloween demonstration uses dry ice and hot water in a cauldron-like container to produce a bubbling fog effect. The sublimation of dry ice creates dense white clouds that spill over the container’s edges, resembling a witch’s cauldron.

Materials
★☆☆ Easy to get from supermarket or hardware store
★★☆ Available in most school laboratories or specialist stores
★★★ Requires materials not commonly found in school laboratories

Difficulty
★☆☆ Can be easily done by most teenagers
★★☆ Available in most school laboratories or specialist stores
★★★ Requires a more experienced teacher

Safety
★☆☆ Minimal safety procedures required
★★☆ Some safety precautions required to perform safely
★★★ Only to be attempted with adequate safety procedures and trained staff