Learning Activities

From www.See-the-Sea.org, created by See the Sea, Charitable Foundation

 

ACTIVITY NAME:

Oil & water do not mix

SUBJECT:

 Science and Math

GRADE LEVEL:

 7-12

ESTIMATED TIME:

 Homework or in class reading time 15 minutes prior to activity + 30 - 45 minutes of class time.

BACKGROUND:

 Have your students read about oil pollution in our Toxic Pollution section.

OBJECTIVE:

 To show that oil and water do not mix, and learn about the consequences of oil pollution in the ocean.

KEYWORDS:

 pollution, crude oil, natural seepage, oil slicks, contaminate, density

MATERIALS:

 empty soda bottle

blue food coloring (or other colors, if preferred)

about 8 oz light colored vegetable oil
TEACHER TIPS: Food coloring may be purchased at the supermarket in a package with multiple colors (red, yellow, blue and green). Blue food coloring may be purchased separately in larger bottles from a restaurant supply store (such as Smart and Final).

To cut down on cost and disposal of used oil, a single "Wave in a Bottle" could be made by the teacher and shown as a demonstration.  Please note that the shelf lives of different oils vary. Please separate the oil from the water after the activity for re-use or for oil recycling and recycle the plastic bottle.

PROCEDURE:
  1. Clean and remove the label from a 16 oz. soda bottle.
  2. Fill the bottle half full with tap water.  Add a few drops of blue food coloring.
  3. Fill the rest of the bottle with oil.  Screw the lid tightly onto the bottle.  (You may want to glue the bottle shut to prevent accidental leaks.)
  4. Ask the student to gently shake the bottle from side to side.

QUESTIONS:
  1. Do oil and water mix?
  2. If the density of water is 1, is the density of oil more or less than 1? What properties lead you to your answer?
  3. How does the density of oil affect the way oil spreads in the ocean?
  4. The blue colored water represents the ocean and the vegetable oil represents oil from pollution.  Why do you think it is important not to pour oil down the drain?
  5. What are the percentages of the 6 largest sources of oil pollution in the ocean?
  6. What percent of the total annual oil pollution is caused by human activities? 
  7. How can oil pollution be prevented? What can you do to prevent oil from entering the environment?
  8. What are some of the problems caused by oil pollution?