Macademics: Elephant Toothpaste

So for Macademics this month I decided to give you guys a lab to try at home! I'm a chemist mainly because I love being in the lab so here's a fun one I love sharing. It's called "Elephant Toothpaste" because it's huge and looks like what an elephant would use if they actually used toothpaste. I'll give you the lab instructions and then give a little chemistry explanation to what's going on.

Things you need:

  • A clean 16 ounce plastic soda bottle

  • 1/2 cup 20-volume hydrogen peroxide liquid (get this from a beauty supply store)

  • 1 Tablespoon (one packet) of dry yeast

  • 3 Tablespoons of warm water

  • Liquid dish washing soap

  • Food coloring

  • Small cup

Note: This gets messy! So be careful, watch your eyes and make sure you try this out in a place that's easily cleanable.


  1. Carefully pour the hydrogen peroxide into the bottle.

  2. Add 8 drops of your favorite food coloring into the bottle (or as much as you want)

  3. Add about 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap into the bottle and mix it up.

  4. Then in a separate small cup, combine the warm water and the yeast together and mix for about 30 seconds.

  5. Now pour the yeast water mixture into the bottle (be careful) and enjoy!

So what's happening...

This is a catalytic and exothermic reaction.

First, the foam is made of oxygen filled bubbles. The yeast you used sped up (catalyzes) the process of getting rid of the oxygen from the hydrogen peroxide and since this reaction happens really quickly, a lottttt of bubbles form at once.

Now, if you paid attention to the bottle, you may have noticed it warmed up. This makes it an exothermic reaction because it created heat. (The opposite of that is an endothermic reaction and those need heat to work).

Remember this was created with hydrogen peroxide, soap, and water so this stuff doesn't require special cleanup and can go down the sink. Just don't get it in your mouth.

Want other fun labs to try? Check out this link:

At Home Science Experiments

If you try any of these out at home, take a picture/video of it and use the #MacScientist handle! Be sure to tag me on any of my social media so I can share it! (IG: devyjanai, FB: Devin Swiner, or Twitter: @Devin_Eleven)

Hope you have some fun!

-The Chemist

#Macademics #MacScientist #BlackChemist #BlackWomenInSTEM #BlackStemLikeMe #Science #AtHomeLab #BlackGirlMagic #ElephantToothpaste


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