CESJDS Science Fair

2010 Project Summary

Name: Jeremy Liss
Project Title: Observing Evaporation Using Plastic Wrap
Abstract
Purpose:
I wanted to test what plastic wrap was best and see if there’s actually a difference between wraps.
Hypothesis: My hypothesis is that the more PVCs per each sealing, the less the water will evaporate. I think that the plastic Glad cling wrap will keep the most in because it clings on the cup and Glad is a very trusted brand.
Independent Variable: Type of Sealing
Dependent Variable: Amount of water evaporated
Procedure:
Step 1) Measure 8 oz of water and put it in to the cup, repeat for the other 2 cups.
Step 2) Label each cup using black sharpie with the brand wrap they will have.
Step 3) Cover each cup with the correct wrap and put rubberbands around the neck of the cup.
Step 4) Leave cups in window sill, and wait 2 weeks.
Step 5) After 2 weeks, measure how much water is left in the cup and measure the difference to see the evaporation.
Step 6) Record Data.
Results
Data table and Graph:
Wrap / Original Water (oz) / Evaporation (oz)
Saran / 8 / 2/10
Glad / 8 / 3/10
Target / 8 / 1/10
Conclusion and Analysis:
The purpose of my experiment was to see which wrap is most trusted, which is the best. My household uses Glad wrap so I assume that they are high quality brand and make good wrap. My hypothesis is the denser the plastic, the less it will evaporate. In my project, I used styrofoam cups, 8 ounces of water in each, and waited two weeks to see how much the evaporation was. My data shows that my hypothesis was completely off. I thought that Glad would have the least evaporation, but it turns out it had the most. Surprisingly, a store brand name did the best, Target. The data shows how much water remained after the 2 weeks.
My experiment didn't really go as planned. I thought that I would lose at least an ounce of water. The way to make this more successful is to do this project in the summer. I had this in the window sill during the winter when the sun is not as hot so it caused very little evaporation. There will be a lot more evaporation when this is done in the summer.