Science Homework Help???!!!!!?

Question

I have to answer this question. A soda can that has a little bit of water in it and is heated for a while over a propane tank( the can has steam coming out of it and the water inside it is boiling) then is suddenly dumped in a tank full of room tempurture water and the can then pops and crunches, how did the can crush and why???????( when we pulled the can out of the water it looked like someone steped on it.

Please, Please, Please help! It is due tomarow, and i have no clue to what the answer is! Thank You!

Answer 1

when you stepped on it the can

Answer 2

When something enclosed, like a can, is heated up, the air inside "swells", and builds enormous pressure.  Think about what would happen if you put an airtight container in the microwave...  Too long, and it will explode.  The opposite is true for cooling something; if you drank half a bottle of soda and put the airtight bottle back in the fridge after it's warm, it will collapse on itself gradually from the internal air cooling down.  i.e. Hot air is more dense that cool air.

When something like a can, with only a very small opening for venting, is heated to high temperatures, and then cooled almost instantaneously like that, there isn't enough room for cool air to enter the can, therefore, the can will collapse because of the immediate loss of density in the air.

Hope this helps!

*Edit*

Autumn's link explains it better, but Hey!, I tried!!

Answer 3

The last paragraph of this page will answer your question.

http://www.paulstravelpictures.com/Steam...