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Tai Guo

Mrs. Stevens

Physical Science

12 December 2018

Does Dry Ice Sublimes Faster in Coke, Diet Coke, Or Coke Zero?

Did you know that Coca-Cola used to be free? It was, but now it costs money. People

bought it, not always for drinking, but to sometimes do experiments using coke just like me. The

most famous and easy experiment is probably putting mentos into coke, but I’m thinking of

something different. I was thinking of putting dry ice into different types of coke and see which

one will sublime faster. ​If I put dry ice into Coke, Diet coke, or Coke Zero,then it will sublime

faster in Diet Coke.

What Safety Precautions Should Be Taken While Working With Dry Ice?

Be careful because it can pool up in lower areas or basements because carbon dioxide is

heavier than oxygen. When transporting dry ice, keep the vehicle open so the fresh air can come

in and carbon dioxide won’t store in the vehicle. It’s okay to put small amount of dry ice in a

refrigerator or a freezer, it won’t create enough carbon dioxide to cause health problems. Don’t

touch it with bare skin, it’s so cold that it can burn your skin. Also, don’t ever eat dry ice,

because it can cause severe injuries. Lastly, don’t put it in small, sealed spaces because it can fill

the space up with carbon dioxide. (​Department)

How Do You Accurately Measure the Rate of Which an Object Sublimes?

It sublimes about 5-10 pound in a typical dry ice chest. Also it sublimes at -78.5 C. To

time it, use an accurate stopwatch. It sublimes about 0.2-0.4 per hour (​Dry). Videotape the
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process so you can go back and check it. Do it multiple times to make sure the time is correct.

Lastly, keep the weight of dry ice and the amount of liquid the same so that the result will be at

least close. (Baird)

What Factors Affect the Speed of Which Dry Ice Sublimes?

One of the factor is the temperature’s rising speed. Whether it’s in a liquid or not also

matters (Justice). The amount of liquid affect the speed too. The room temperature is one of the

most important factors. Also, the mass of the dry ice matters a lot. Lastly, the temperature of the

liquid the dry ice is in and the temperature of the dry ice itself (Baird).

What Does It Mean for an Object to Sublime and Why Does Dry Ice Do This?

For an object to sublime basically means that a solid is converted to gas without passing

the liquid state (Sublime). It also is a phase transition. When an object sublime, it never passed

through the statement of liquid. Also, desublimation is when gas is turned directly into solid

(What). Dry ice sublimes because it is solid carbon dioxide. It get depressurized and sublimes

(Pappas).

What Is the Difference Between Coke, Diet Coke, and Coke Zero?

Diet coke tastes lighter than Coke Zero, and Coke Zero tastes more like the original.

They are both sugar free and calorie free. However, Diet coke has a different blend of flavor than

Coke Zero (What’s). Coke zero also has more phosphoric acid than Diet coke. Yet Diet coke has

more sodium than Coke Zero. It also contains citric acid while Coke Zero does not (Haney).

Does Temperature Affect Dry Ice’s Speed of Sublimation?

If the temperature rise squick enough, an object can sublime. Not only the speed of

temperature rising, the pressure also matters (Perdue). However, if there is constant pressure, the
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state of matter will completely depend on temperature. The colder it is, the slower it sublimes,

the hotter the faster (Thryn). The speed of sublimation depends on the temperature. It also

depends on the size of the dry ice and the environment (Baird).

I thought that if I put dry ice into Coke, Diet Coke, and Coke Zero, then it will sublime

faster in Diet Coke.​ I found out that that is a false statement. In my experiment, the results ended

up different. Overall, however, there is a clear winner, or result. It was Coke Zero, which is

more phosphoric than the other two. The result is that Coke Zero had the average shortest

sublime time. After 4 trials and some math calculating this is proven to be the correct answer.
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Work Cited

Baird, Bryan. 16 Nov. 2018

“Department of Health.” Cancer - New York State Department of Health, 13 Jan. 2013,

www.health.ny.gov/publications/7081/index.htm

“Dry Ice Information - All about Dry Ice.” Dry Ice Information - All about Dry Ice, 29 Oct.

2018, dryiceinfo.com/.

Haney, Stephanie. “Diet Coke vs. Coke Zero Sugar: Which Sugar-Free Soda Is the Healthier

Option?” POPSUGAR Tech, 9 Mar. 2018,

www.popsugar.com/fitness/What-Difference-Between-Diet-Coke-Coke-Zero-Sugar-4456

2315​.

Justice, Lisa. “Sublime a Good Time with Dry Ice.” EXPLORIT SCIENCE CENTER: Science

Facts - About Temperature, 20 Oct. 2011,

www.explorit.org/news/sublime-a-good-time-with-dry-ice

Pappas, Stephanie. “How Does Dry Ice Work?” LiveScience, Purch, 16 June 2010,

www.livescience.com/32652-why-is-dry-ice-dry.html​.

Perdue, Matthew. “How Does Temperature Affect the State of Matter?” Sciencing.com,

Sciencing, 24 Apr. 2017, sciencing.com/temperature-affect-state-matter-8605451.html

“Sublime.” Dictionary.com, Dictionary.com, 2018, ​www.dictionary.com/browse/sublime​.

Thryn, Damien. “What Is the Effect of Temperature on States of Matter?” Sciencing.com,

Sciencing, 27 Apr. 2018, sciencing.com/effect-temperature-states-matter-8601348.html

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“What Is Sublimation in Chemistry? - Definition, Process & Examples.” Study.com, Study.com,

study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-sublimation-in-chemistry-definition-process-example

s.html

“What's the Difference between Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and Diet Coke?” History of Coca-Cola |

The War and What Followed | Coca-Cola GB, The Coca-Cola Company, 2017,

www.coca-cola.co.uk/faq/difference-between-coke-zero-and-diet-coke