The Magical Sand

The Magic Sand

Chemistry lesson

with

Ms Elfianie

Poll

Check in:

How is everyone feeling today?

The Magical Sand

The Magical Sand

Open Ended

Evoke your senses:

How does sand look and feel like?

What happens when sand is mixed with water?

The Magical Sand

​​400 cm3 of water was added to sand and the mixture stirred. Share your observations after the video.

Open Ended

What did you see (observe) when sand was mixed with water?

Now, what happens when "magic sand" is mixed with water?

The Magical Sand

​​400 cm3 of water was added to "magic sand" and the mixture stirred. Share your observations after the video.

Open Ended

What did you see (observe) when "magic sand" was mixed with water?

The Magical Sand

​Sand and "magic sand" interact differently with water!

​

How can that be when both are made of the same substance, silicon dioxide​ SiO₂?

​

​

Water molecules are highly polar, which means that they have slightly positive and slightly negative charged ends.

​

This happens because the electrons in the molecule’s bonds are not shared equally between the atoms

​

The Magical Sand

​Water molecules

​

​

Natural sand is hydrophilic or "water-loving".

​The charges on the surfaces of the sand particles are attracted to the oppositely charged ends of water molecules.

Magic Sand is hydrophobic or "water-hating".

The grains of natural sand has been treated with hydrophobic coating, a silicon-based compound.

​

One end of the compound is

hydrophilic (pink end),

the other end is hydrophobic (sticking out from the grain of sand).

​

​Using nanotechnology, scientists have changed the way sand and water interact and created Magic Sand!

​

Nanotechnology

​Nanotechnology is the manipulation of materials at the nanoscale to take advantage of these properties. This often means working with individual molecules. Nanoscale refers to measurements of 1 – 100 nanometers (nm).

The Magic Sand

Nanotechnology & Nanoengineeering

The Magic Sand

​Nanotechnology & Nanoengineering

​