[Jaakko]

Hi all! This has puzzled me for a looong time. When I was a kid (like 20 years ago) I saw from TV a magician show where he had a tall about an inch or two wide glass pipe standing on a table. He then poured two substances in there and when he added the third, a puff of foam literally jumped out of the pipe. I have a hunch that the first ingredint was something like liquid soap.

But what were those other two substances? They  had to be something that react fast when mixed together to form gas so that the produced gas would "bubble" the liquid soap. I already tested this thing with acetic acid (10%) and baking soda, but that didn't work at all.

Would baking soda react violently with hydrogen peroxide (like 3-30%) to form oxygen?

I would appreciate all the answer, so thanks in advance! =)

[Borek]

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/marshmallow.html

Note it is not a marshmallow, name is wrong. This experiment is known as 'elephant toothpaste' and it is hydrogen peroxide mixed with potassium iodide (with some detergent added for foam makiing).

[Jaakko]

Thank you very much for that piece of information! Now I wonder where to get potassium iodide...

[mike]

Other things that may work as a catalyst: MnO₂, blood, liver, potato, platinum, yeast. You could experiment and see which things work well.

[niertap]

blood doesn't, its a chemical in broken cells.

[Mitch]

blood doesn't, its a chemical in broken cells.

huh?

[Borek]

blood doesn't, its a chemical in broken cells.

huh?

I suppose he means it is not blood per se, but enzyme that blood happens to contain. Lousy wording, correct thinking.