> chemistry > chemiluminescents > make-a-color-changing-glow-stick-using-the-unstability-of-rhodamine-b-nurdrage

Make a Color Changing Glow Stick

NurdRage - 2011-10-20

We make a glow stick that changes colour with time.

To do so, we prepare our standard chemiluminescent mixture: 

10mL Diethyl Phthalate
3mg of 9,10-bis(phenylethynl)anthracene
5mg Rhodamine B
50mg TCPO 
100mg sodium acetate
3mL 30% hydrogen peroxide (add last to start reaction)

First the red Rhodamine B glows and masks the 9,10-bis(phenylethynl)anthracene. But since Rhodamine B is unstable it slowly breaks down and eventually the glow stick will turn green. The whole process takes about ten minutes.

leann lewis - 2011-10-20

Chemistry is awesome. Wish I knew where to get the chems. Thanks for sharing, again.

ShamaLlama S - 2011-10-20

As an aspiring chemist, you give me inspiration. Thank you Nurdrage

CouchSprout - 2011-10-20

These videos are educational and entertaining at the same time! It's fantastic! :D

faceplantcharlie - 2011-10-20

Nurd you rock ! keep up the good work

Gartral - 2012-07-31

I wish these were commercially available! That'd be so sweet!

bartreardon - 2011-10-21

Nice. Would there be any practical way to delay the reaction for the secondary colour so that by the time the Rhodamine B breaks down you haven't burned through 10 minutes of "glow time"?

SatanicDoomElf - 2011-10-20

Have you done a video on how to grow crystals yet?

Deathbynature - 2011-10-20

You make me love science more. :3

EmeraldMachinist - 2011-10-21

Very cool, I would like to see you melt more stuff with gallium! kinda like that "will it blend" but "will it melt" :P

Hazel0283 - 2011-10-21

is this really your real voice? it is so deep!

Tyler Salzman - 2011-10-20

i remember making glow sticks in O-chem lab back in the day. Making nylon rope from liquid chemicals was pretty sweet too

T 290 - 2011-10-20

love every video you put up hope i can still explore the world of chemistry like you but i have yet to get liquid nitrogen

Kathryn O'Keeffe - 2011-10-20

Dude loving your voice :) & the Video

Alice Li - 2011-10-20

Woah. I cannot say just how awesome that is. :) Not to mention that it is christmas colors...

Soraslight - 2011-10-20

wow... just wow. I love this

SanDuuu - 2011-10-20

Great videos..i'm not that into chemistry but this stuff just gets me..it so fun to watch...experiments are better to be left to the pros such as you :) Keep up the good work and keep those videos coming ;) :) Cheers.

Dusan Skiljevic - 2012-05-31

Can I use the liquid from a fluorescent highlighter as a dye and some other chemicals to complete the solution before adding the 30% H2O2?

inurfac - 2011-10-20

before i took chemistry in school, i watched your vids.. now that i take chemistry, i can say that it helped me in class... having somewhat of previous knowledge. and plus ur vids now are even more entertaining to watch now that i understand more about chemistry itself =).

Hypercube - 2016-07-03

In another reaction with potassium-something-manganate, I thought that color-changing reaction would happen in this, but it seems I was wrong.

NurdRage - 2011-10-22

@Zanragnar That dye is organometallic and would quench the chemiluminescent reaction as well as catalyze the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. What we need are organic dyes with high quantum yields and no functional groups to get oxidized.

Andrew Hampshire - 2011-10-20

How come you still use the voice changing mask thing? I have to say i'm pretty used to it now and enjoy it, but it would be kinda cool if you did one video with your regular voice and maybe show yourself on it too. :) We're all pretty intelligent here, pretty sure that works as a good filter to keep stalkers and trolls at bay. Anyway, great video. Very enjoyable, as always. :)

Vince F - 2011-10-20

I always love it when I check my subcribtion box and see a new video from you. Keep uploading!

Tim L - 2011-10-20

Wow, your videos came back after school started.... Interesting....

KyuubiSam - 2011-11-28

How bright is the mixture on the final colour change?

Brntrogdor - 2011-10-20

@godulous Someone asks for that on almost every one of his videos, he always says, "It is far to toxic to deal with. Its not worth it." and, "Never."

Sebastian Rawson - 2011-10-20

Make a video on perchlorate production without electrolysis!!

Yaivenov - 2012-10-21

Aaand the very moment I post my big question about IR dyes I see this. :P I see the wavelength for the first dye, but do you have them for the others?

PyroDesu - 2011-10-20

Now, can this be combined (somehow) with Thermochromism?

EggsyMcKay - 2011-10-20

AWESOME!!!!

Zanragnar - 2011-10-23

@NurdRage I see. I figured it would be something like that. Where would be a good resource to learn more about the mechanism of action of these chemiluminescent reactions? It's an interesting subject I'd like to learn more about.

Yaivenov - 2012-10-21

Also, you mentioned that a mixture sans dye emitted it's energy as heat. I'm also curious how well this would work as an long-wave IR beacon for use with thermal imaging systems like FLIR, in much the same way short-wave IR glow-sticks are used with standard image intensification systems.

Matthew Mitchel - 2012-04-12

Hey Nurdrage i really enjoy all of your videos and have a sudden inspiration to experiment with science =P So first off thank you. Secondly, if my friend and i were to try to use this as a paint would it still function with the same vibrant glow, or does the solution have to be enclosed? Also how long do you think it would last. Lastly (sorry long comment) would it be reusable? If i were to add hydrogen peroxide to the same solution that just lost its vibrant glow, would it light up once more?

John Savage - 2011-10-20

I wonder If there's a way to catalyze the reaction to happen in seconds rather than hours....

SvensonIII - 2011-10-20

i love your videos..even though half the time i dont know what your talking about

Indianapolis Jones - 2011-10-20

Chemistry makes for great internet videos

TheSage555 - 2011-10-20

That was fucking awesome.

spyduderaj - 2011-10-20

@cragburn2 if you separate the compartments within the tube, sure it's possible, but for it to swirl around in the same compartment i don't think so

domlui0614 - 2011-10-20

@rovku Well both videos may be actually the same person, just that the guys who unmasked them put his voice at a different pitch on audacity... Anyway, I'd think that Nurdrage is a crew of scientific guys working together, and not JUST the guy who narrates it.

Helania Watford - 2014-12-28

But how do you make a multiple color glow stick like the red white and blue ones for fourth of July with out them mixing

MadCanada597 - 2011-10-20

@CadetLease You can download a video from youtube, save it as an avi file, burn that to disk, or just bring it in on a USB drive. Try saveavi dot com Dont even need anything to do it. Thanks for the video. Very interesting.

Petawatt - 2011-10-20

Has this been patented yet? Might be worth filing for if the decaying dye does not decay on the shelf at the store before it gets sold. Neat little effect.

BookProX - 2011-10-20

Cool stuff for Halloween fun! Like the other video of yours: Make Flowers Glow in The Dark... awesome!

Khellendros - 2011-10-20

nice, never thought of that. I would have guessed that the individual chemicals would mess with each other.

billeethesciencegeek - 2012-02-24

@MrmarioRBLX a catalyst is merely an ingredient added to speed a reaction, so its probably safe to say that anything that raises the PH and does not inhibit the other chemical's reactions it will cause the reaction to be more vigorous.

silverslayer21 - 2011-10-20

could you make a three color glow stick my adding another color to mask the second color?

Bob Hoff - 2014-08-26

Question.  It was stated elsewhere that the dyes and the TCPO are carcinogenic.  It was my understanding that this glow liquid was the same as what is in the retail version of the glowsticks that state are non-toxic.  I know those two terms are not the same.  Are those glow sticks carcinogenic?  Or is it when you have larger quantities that you're working with you might be exposed more?  Is it less of a danger if it is diluted with the other chemicals?  I ask because I had hoped to find a way to make a glowing liquid and use it in a garden sprayer to light up disc golf baskets at night.

Starry Night - 2014-05-28

"I believe in Science..."

narfnak - 2011-10-20

how do you pronounce bis(phenylethynl)anthracene so gracefully?

musiicfaen - 2013-05-26

Never knew chemistry can be THAT interesting... it's so boring in school!

mcsintac - 2012-08-17

I would like to know how to make an IR Glow stick... in the Army we had Infrared Chem Lights that were only visible in out NVG's... I have ALWAYS wondered how it worked...