Water Explosion Experiments (OTA)

[st_hotflashes]

Out on a patch a grass, far enough away from the Inn to be safe, but close enough so she wouldn't get any surprises - hopefully - from wildlife that might like her for a snack, Liz had set up an experiment. There were several large containers, some glass, other plastic, all with water inside of them and spaced out from one another. She had a big bag of salt and a small portable stove that she had, with the help of Alec and his strength, enclosed to create more of an oven. She wore gloves, had an apron on, and she had safety goggles on too. She sat near the oven waiting for the salt to melt - the temperature it needed to get to was high.

After some time, she took a long pair of tongs and pulled out a red hot cup. Carefully she walked over to the first basin of water and poured the liquid salt into it. The water exploded and she jumped back a little, then she laughed.

Comments

[st_hotflashes]

She thought about it for another moment. "How about copper? I saw some in one of the maintenance sheds probably meant to fix wiring. The melting point for Copper is 1983 degrees Fahrenheit so it would definitely stay solid long enough for the salt to melt."

[st_artandstoke]

"You're the brains here," Jag agreed with a nod. He was just here to supply heat.

And enjoy the geyser.

[st_hotflashes]

Liz told Jag she'd meet him by the pool with the bag of salt. She headed for the inn and in fifteen minutes re-emerged with metal wires and some other material. She set to work backing a contraption where salt could hang in the middle and if you pulled the wire, it would release the liquid into the middle of the pool. The container for the melted salt was larger too, so that they could get more 'bang for their buck'.

Once everything was set up, she stood back and looked at Jag. "Ready?" She held out the wire. "When I say go, you can pull too, if you like."

[st_artandstoke]

Jag watched her work, and helped out where he could, with a pang of longing for Ernesto and his magic tricks. Not that this was anything as discreet as his tricks had to be, but it was still ingenious.

"I'm all right," he assured her at her offer, not really needing any extra role in this. She could pull on the wire. He was happy handling the fire side of things.

He moved his hands in a wide circle in front of him (always the performer), and sent a long lick of flame to curl up under the container and become a hot plate hanging in mid-air, and licking up the sides of the container.

[st_hotflashes]

Liz watched with silent amazement as Jag produced flame and then heated up the salt. Since Liz couldn't see the material or use a thermometer to make sure it was hot enough, she had to go off time. When she was pretty sure that the salt was melted and hot enough for it to be worthwhile, she pulled on the chord. The liquid dropped into the pool and there was a sudden, violent spurt of water that rose from the water which caused a lot of water to splash onto the sides of the pool as well. Some of the mist sprayed in the direction of Jag and Liz. Once it was done, Liz began laughing.

[st_artandstoke]

Jag instinctively took a step back, looking up to see how high the water reached. He was already laughing by the time the water splashed back down, raising an instinctive hand to (ineffectively) ward off the splashes that came their way. He wiped his hand over his now wet face, grinning. "That was a success."

[st_hotflashes]

She nodded in agreement. "Thank you." Her eyes eventually moved away from the pool to Jag. "I'd have never thought to make such a big version of this experiment, and I'm glad I did!"

[st_artandstoke]

"Everything is better with the odd geyser," Jag replied with a smirk. He looked back towards the pool. "So we've got salt water for the day, haven't we? Reckon it's safe to swim in?" He didn't know anything about all those chemical reactions, and he'd trust her word for it, but yeah. Now he was wet, he might as well get into the pool, was his thinking.

[st_hotflashes]

Liz's smile widened. "Yeah, it's totally fine now. You're exactly right. The water will have absorbed the salt. It's completely harmless now." Which was one reason science was so cool, clearly.

[st_artandstoke]

"Well I don't know about you, but I fancy a swim," he answered with a smile, as he toed off his shoes.

[st_hotflashes]

"I think I'll let you have that fun. I should probably go clean up all my mess back out before it gets to late." She gestured to where they came from.

[st_artandstoke]

"Your loss," Jag answered, pulling off his socks.

[st_hotflashes]

This was probably true, but Liz was one of those 'party poopers' who thought about responsibility before fun most of the time. Still, she continued to smile. "Enjoy your swim"