Summer Science: Invisible Ink

EFFINGHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - In this Summer Science experiment students at Effingham College and Career Academy show us how to create invisible ink using a lemon.

MATERIALS:

- Half a lemon

- Small bowl

- Cotton swabs or Paint Brush

- Heat source (ex. Hair dryer/straightener)

STEP ONE:

- Cut lemon in half, squeeze juice from lemon into bowl.

STEP TWO:

- Use cotton swab or paint brush to write a message using the lemon juice onto a piece of paper.

STEP THREE:

- Let message dry for roughly 20 minutes.

STEP FOUR:

- Hold your message up to your heat source and watch as ‘invisible ink’ appears.

HOW IT WORKS:

- When the lemon juice is heated a reaction occurs as the intermolecular forces holding the molecules in the juice together begin to break. The sugars in the lemon juice oxidize and react with the air around them causing the juice to darken.

Copyright 2023 WTOC. All rights reserved.