Blue Bottle
Description: A bottle half-full of a colorless liquid is shaken and turns blue. On standing undisturbed, the blue color fades. The cycle may be repeated several times. Other colors can be produced by substituting other indicators for the methylene blue commonly used.
This demonstration is also available on JCE “Chemistry Comes Alive!” Vol 3 CD-Rom
Source: Shakhashiri, B.Z. Chemical Demonstrations: A Handbook for Teachers of Chemistry.
Year: 1985 Volume: 2 Page: 142
Keywords: Blue Bottle, Oxygen, Methylene Blue, Oxidation
Rating: 
Hazards: Some
- Skin corrosion hazard
- Spill hazard
- Acute toxicity hazard
- Short term aquatic toxicity hazard
- Corrosive to metals
- Serious eye damage
Effectiveness: Good
- Some connection from demo to course material
- Good contrast of system behavior
- Time to results is low
- Good reliability
- Repeatable phenomenon
- Mild effects are seen by audience
- Secondary effects are observed
Difficulty: Low
- Simple procedures
- Simple manipulations for most to perform
- Use of toxic reagent
Safety Precautions:
- Eye protection required
- Gloves required
- Absorbent materials on hand
- Sodium bicarbonate on hand
- Prevent release of reagents to the environment
Class: Acid Base Chemistry
Division: General, Organic Chemistry
The demonstration Blue Bottle may be found under Organic Chemistry- Blue Bottle.
Return to General Chemistry Demonstrations