Marshmallow Powered Machine??

Question

Okay, first of all, I know it sounds stupid, just a heads up, so don't say something like, "Why would you ever to that!" or "LOL" or something like that, because you're only going to get 2 points that way.

I was roasting marshmallows recently, when I realized just how "flammable" marshmallows really are. They're perfectly harmless until exposed to heat, then they burst into flame like a match.

I was wondering if it would be possible to power something using marshmallows. (Not for anything big, just a future science fair project.) It would probably just be a lightbulb powered by a thing runned by marshmallows, but I'm sure you get the idea.

What is your opinion? Best answer goes to most detailed opinion.

Answer 1

for a science project with marshmallows you might try this: http://www.physics.umd.edu/icpe/newslett...

As David and Bill said, marshmallows are not a good fuel, they are largely sugar, and sugars contain considerable oxygen, for example glucose (a major component of corn syrup which is probably the first ingredient in most marshmallows) is C6H12O6 so there is a molecule of water (which doesn't burn)  for every atom of carbon, plus there is free water in marshmallows as well,  while charcoal, on the other hand, is nearly all carbon.

However, David is off a bit with his numbers, as he said himself, one has to "mind the conversion between Calories, joules, and Kilojoules etc"

The "calories" on the nutrition label are kilocalories, (4.184 kJ),  so if you burned 3kg of marshmallows you could make about  to 31 gallons of tea rather than half a cup, a single large marshmallow would be about enough to brew a cup of tea

Answer 2

David is correct. If you count the amount of heat you get from a bushel of marshmallows and compare it to a bushel of charcoal, you will get a lot - very lot - more heat from the charcoal.

If you take a hunk of marshmallow and a hunk of charcoal the same size and start them burning, the marshmallow will be gone in a few seconds. The charcoal will be burning for an hour.

Answer 3

maybe but you would need something to make the marshmallows turn into energy because by themselves they wouldn't work

at least that what i think i might be wrong

Answer 4

50 grams of miniature marshmallows contains 159 calories, or 670 Joules.

If you burnt 6 or 7 times this amount, you'd get 4200 Joules - enough to raise 1 kg of water 1 degree Celsius, or 12.5 grams of water from room temperature (20 C) to boiling (100C).

If you burnt 3 kg of marshmallows, you could make 1/2 cup of tea from room temperature water  - if my math is correct - you'd need to double check the specific heat of water, and mind the conversion between Calories, joules, and Kilojoules etc.

Answer 5

It's possible. Marshmallows do produce heat (radiant energy) when burned. The problem becomes turning the heat into a usable energy form. Heat is ussually, and most effecently converted through steam power. The thing to do then is to form a boiler to produce the steam to power a piston which moves a wheel. Look up a steam engine.

The problem is that you are left with a very messy residue when you're done burning a marshmallow.