Gas filled bulb and U-tube monometer

Ball and ring; Plate with hole

Relevant Resource questions :

Concepts demonstrated :

• Thermal expansion of liquids
• A crude thermometer

Equipment needed :

• Bottle and tube with white cardboard
• retort stand
• bunsen burner and matches
• wire gauze
• CCD camera

Place bottle on the retort stand and heat.

Accessories (ie posters etc) :

None.

Physics involved :

This is a simple but effective qualitative demonstration of the thermal expansion of liquids.

How to use the Demonstration :

• Heat the liquid and observe the rise of the liquid in the tube. This is a quick experiment used to demonstrate thermal expansion in a liquid.
• Perform the experiment using other liquids.
• Ask the students to work out C for the liquid being used (eg water) given the change in volume for a particular change in temperature.

• Thermometer

• Update experiment.
• Remake on lower priority.

• It may be worthwhile making the experiment quantitative. For example use 1l of liquid rising through a tube with a 1mm diameter.