In science class, we were to perform an experiment to test how hypertonic a solution was to an egg. A hypertonic solution has less water in it than is in the egg.
We first peeled off the shell by immersing the eggs in 90mL of vinegar for three days. When we got back, all of the shell of my egg was removed. We decided to test how hypertonic laundry detergent and VitaminWater were to the egg. We immersed four de-shelled eggs, two into each solution.
After the first day, the results were quite obvious. The eggs immersed in VitaminWater were beginning to expand because water had been moving into the cell; apparently, the concentration of water in VitaminWater was greater than it was in the egg cell. The opposite happened to the eggs immersed in laundry detergent.
When we first saw our eggs, there was a one-inch thick membrane of semi-solid laundry detergent surrounding the eggs. It made the egg take on the appearance of an embryo. Upon taking the eggs out, we realized that almost all of the laundry detergent had taken on this solid form.
We proceeded to wash our eggs and our hands, but had no idea that the laundry detergent was notoriously difficult to wash off our hands.
When we examined the eggs, the surface was wrinkly and calluses were starting to form. But this would compare to nothing as we observed the next day. It was the first day’s results, ten times worse. The egg’s membrane had become so loose that we could lift the egg by the membrane and shake its contents around. The calluses were so abundant that the membrane had become a thick wall of bumps. On the other hand, the eggs immersed in VitaminWater were filled with the orange liquid and looked like they were ready to burst.
Eventually, we popped our eggs. Unlike some, where the contents exploded out of the hole, ours leaked out slowly. We had to squeeze our eggs to get the contents out. What was left was a membrane that I swore could have been converted into a small sack for storing things.
Never repeat this experiment, unless you want your hands to have a gooey feel and if you want to see what I mean by a one-inch thick membrane of semi-solid laundry detergent. I don’t think you would want to try this, considering that all my classmates cringed at the sight of my egg.
Peace out,
Deathgleaner