[norcal joe]

Ok, how do water containers packed with dry ice “explode”? Sorry if that’s a dumb question.

[Uncle Miltie]

Dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide. When the carbon dioxide ice thaws, it expands dramatically into its gaseous state. When the force of the gases exceeds the plastic water bottle’s ability to contain it, the bottle “explodes” with a big bang, which is not too terribly dangerous.

[Uncle Miltie]

My daughter and I developed a dry ice cannon for a school science project. It would shoot the rubber cork about 15 feet using a piece of dry ice about the size of a quarter.

[freedomlover]

Ok, how do water containers packed with dry ice “explode”?

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I’m guessing, as I didnt go look it up online, that as the dry ice melts the CO2 turning from solid to gas expands the bottle and eventually the bottle ruptures.

Just a guess.

[SpaceBar]

The basic idea is to drop a small jelly bean sized piece of dry ice into a two liter plastic coke bottle with a small amount of water on the bottom. The CO2 evolved of course makes it explode. Although generally harmless, they are LOUD, and could probably cause permanent hearing damage in an enclosed area like a restroom and generally scare the crap out of people.