In the lamp you have two liquids which are:1 Very close in density.2 Insoluble in one another.iquid motion lamps (which most people know as lava lamps) have been around for decades.
The secret behind the lamp’s “lava” is science. Oil is lighter, or less dense, than water, so it rises to the surface. Salt is heavier, or more dense, than water, and sinks to the bottom. When you add the salt, blobs of oil attach to the grains and sink. Then the salt dissolves, and the oil returns to the top A lava lamp (or Astro lamp) is a novelty item used more for decoration than illumination—the slow, interesting rise and fall of variously-shaped blobs of wax is suggestive of lava, hence the name. The lamps are available with a variety of styles and colours of wax and liquid.  This site can help you in that search. Now you apply heat to the bottom of the mixture. In a liquid motion lamp, the heat usually comes from a light bulb. The heavier liquid absorbs the heat, and as it heats up, it expands. Liquid motion lamps (which most people know as lava lamps) have been around for decades. The theory behind a liquid motion lamp goes something like this: In the lamp you have two liquids which are: 1  Very close in density. 2  Insoluble in one another As we mentioned, there are two components in the lava lamp: a wax compound and a liquid compound. The wax — the “lava” — is said to be a blend of paraffin and perchloroethylene (PERC, aka dry cleaning fluid or brake part cleaner). In this case, it’s basically wax and water. When the wax is heated by the lightbulb in the bottom of the lamp, it goes from being denser than the water — thus sinking to the bottom — to becoming the lighter of the two materials, thereby starting to float. Lava lamps can be fun and fascinating to watch. Your lava lamp's flow may not be as lively as that of another lava lamp, but that does not necessarily make it defective or in need of repair. Check the operation instructions that came with your lava lamp before taking corrective measures to alter a lamp that has slow or zero flow. (Nick Richards/Demand Media). Replace the bulb if you have had your lava lamp for some time and other measures do not correct your lava flow problem. Check your owner's manual to ensure the correct bulb type and size is installed in your lamp. Nick Richards/Demand Media. Allow your lamp to rest between uses. The lamp contains blobs of coloured wax inside a glass vessel filled with clear or translucent liquid; the wax rises and falls as its density changes due to heating from an incandescent light bulb underneath the vessel. The appearance of the wax is suggestive of pāhoehoe lava, hence the name. When heated, the wax mixture becomes less dense than the water, because the wax expands more than water when both are heated. p. 1, lines 40 & 45 It also becomes fluid, and blobs of wax ascend to the top of the device where they cool (which increases their density relative to that of the water) and then they descend. Okay so last year in March I got a lava lamp from my friend (its regular size) and when I pluged it in it heated up for an hour or so but didnt work so I left it on for like 8 hours and it still wouldnt move.  A lava lamp (or Astro lamp) is a decorative novelty item, invented by British accountant Edward Craven Walker, the founder of Mathmos, in 1963. When heated, the wax mixture becomes less dense than the water, because the wax expands more than water when both are heated. p. 1, lines 40 & 45 It also becomes fluid, and blobs of wax ascend to the top of the device where they cool (which increases their density relative to that of the water) and then they descend.
http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/science/make-a-groovy-lava-lamp/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DL3Ez9bxMTo http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/science-questions/question36.htm http://myria.com/whats-inside-lava-lamps-and-how-do-they-work http://www.ehow.com/how_7667115_do-lamp-lava-doesnt-flow.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lava_lamp https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20101222124922AAZWWFj https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lava_lamp
what makes a lava lamp work