Why don’t oil and water mix? - John Pollard
1,233,255 Views
13,291 Questions Answered
TEDEd Animation
Let’s Begin…
Salt dissolves in water; oil does not. But why? You can think of that glass of water as a big, bumpin' dance party where the water molecules are always switching dance partners -- and they'd much rather dance with a salt ion. John Pollard explains how two chemistry principles, energetics and entropy, rule the dance floor.
A surfactant is a molecule that can dissolve in both oil and water and can be added to an oil spill to help facilitate the mixing of the oil and water (which can make it easier to disperse an oil spill). Can you build an explanation using the dance analogy for how a surfactant might work on mixing oil and water? Then try to build an explanation without using analogies or personifying the molecules. (Remember, by avoiding personification of molecules you cannot say that they “like” or “want” things. Just focus on energetics and entropy!)
Sign in to answer questionAbout TED-Ed Animations
TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »
Meet The Creators
- Educator John Pollard
- Animator Andrew Foerster
- Sound Designer Devin Polaski
- Narrator Addison Anderson
