High G - Silly Putty

//by Diogo & Strom

Purpose:

In this experiment a test was conducted to see how silly putty would react to High Gs and stress. The viscosity of silly putty can be represented by how much the shape changes when Gs are imposed.


Materials:

  • Centrifuge
  • Camera
  • Silly Putty
  • Computer Paper

Sketch:

Sketch.JPG

Procedure:

  1. Make preparations to the Centrifuge
    1. Secure the Camera in the box with tape
    2. attach motor
    3. attach a peice of computer paper to the outside wall of the box to help the camera focus
    4. clear operation path
  2. Prepare the silly putty by shaping it into a sphere.
  3. Place the silly putty in the centrifuge, place it against the wall of the box(silly putty is sticky by default, therefore no other prep is needed). Measure the diameter.
  4. Begin spinning the centrifuge
    1. reach a stable speed
    2. Record the speed
    3. accelerate to a higher speed
    4. record the speed
  5. Stop the centrifuge and record the diameter of the silly putty.
  6. Develop Conclusions.

Hypothesis:

If enough force(Gs) is imposed on the silly putty, then it is safe to say that it will have an increase in diameter.


DATA:

Diameter
Before After
1.30 in 1.46 in
Speed(rpm)
Part 1 Part2
156 rpm 400 rpm

Conclusion:

In conclusion, our hypothesis was correct. The putty did indeed stretch out and the radius we measured increased. The radius increased by .16 in. at about 4 G's.

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