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In this activity from PBS Kids' Design Squad Nation, you'll have a chance to share a super-stong feat with your family and friends by proving that a balloon can be indestructible! Learn the nanoscience behind what makes it possible to skewer a balloon without popping it!
Materials
- Barbeque skewer
- Balloon (Helium quality, if possible)
- Vegetable oil or skin lotion (optional)
Process
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Inflate the balloon. Make sure it’s shorter than the skewer.
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Before you tie it off, let out a bit of air. That will relax the rubber a bit.
TIP: If it’s hard to tie off the balloon… Before you tie, pull out the neck, making it long and giving you lots of rubber to work with. This can be the hardest part of the trick. In a pinch, close the neck by wrapping it with a rubber band. -
Hold the balloon gently with one hand.
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With your other hand, push the skewer into the “button” of thick rubber at the top of the balloon.
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Twist the skewer as you push. Push slowly and firmly. The balloon will deform. Eventually, the skewer will work its way through the rubber button and into the balloon.TIP: If the skewer is curved or rough… Choose a straighter, smoother skewer, which will slide through the rubber more easily.TIP: If the skewer doesn’t slide smoothly… Make it slippery by coating it with vegetable oil or lotion.
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Make the second hole by aiming the skewer for the thick rubber neck opposite the rubber button.
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Still holding the balloon gently, poke the skewer through the thick rubber of the balloon’s neck. Push hard, if necessary.
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Amaze your friends: Pull the skewer through and out. The holes will close and hardly any air will escape.
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Destory the evidence! Before too much air leaks out and your friends notice the balloon getting smaller, pop it!
- Poke the skewer into the side where the rubber is stretched thin.
Results
Rubber is made of long, springy chains of molecules. Pushing the skewer into a thick pile of these molecules is like pushing your finger into a bowl of cooked spaghetti. Your finger pushes the spaghetti aside and slips between the strands. Even though they move aside, the strands stay in contact with your skin. In a balloon, the skewer pushes the rubber’s long molecules aside. They flex a little and squeeze against the skewer, making a tight seal. Engineers do seemingly amazing things by understanding their materials.
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