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Make a PET Jellyfish from a Water Bottle

Make a PET Jellyfish from a Water Bottle
Contributors
Dean Campbell
Professor | Bradley University
Learning Objets
Summary
Dean Campbell,* Ali Patel, Emma Stancu

In this activity, participants make a model jellyfish from a disposable plastic water or soda bottle and learn about properties and "green" aspects of plastics. This activity also illustrates the E-factor using the masses of the product and waste in the jellyfish production process.
Keyword Tags
Polymer Chemistry
Polymers
E-Factor
File (PDF, PPT, image, etc)
pet-jellyfish-activity.pdf
pet-jellyfish-activity-answers.pdf
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.59877/YMVF2870
Learning Goals/Student Objectives
The objectives for this activity are for students to:
- experience some polymer properties, especially how they differ at temperatures above and below their glass transition temperature
- calculate the E-factor and to consider its limitations
- contrast renewable and nonrenewable resources
Object Type
Activities/Technology (e.g., in-class activities, online games, hands-on activities/manipulatives, outreach, virtual tools, etc.)
Audience
Middle School
High School (Secondary School)
Introductory Undergraduate
Common pedagogies covered
Hands-on learning
Green Chemistry Principles
Waste Prevention
Use of Renewable Feedstocks
U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Clean Water and Sanitation
Life Below Water
Safety Precautions, Hazards, and Risk Assessment
Wear goggles for this activity. Avoid touching the oven and hot plastic with your bare hands; use tongs or oven mitts instead. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polylactic acid (PLA) can also melt, potentially off-gas noxious fumes, or even burn when overheated. It is recommended that the plastic is heated on a sheet of aluminum foil rather than directly on the shelf of the oven.
Teacher Recommendations or Piloting Data (if available)
We ran a previous version of this activity for middle-school students during a week-long summer workshop. The students cut up water bottles that had accumulated during previous days of the workshop (we washed the bottles). After they had cut the bottles, labeled them with permanent markers, and clipped the "tentacles" together, the students placed the bottles on a cart which was brought to a large drying oven. After the jellyfish had shrunk in the oven, they were returned via the cart for the students to add the paper tags and take home.

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Submitted by

Dean Campbell
Reviewed by
Sonia Reyes Gómez
Published on
Moderation state
Published
Time required (if applicable)
approximately an hour
Other notes/information
The Related Learning objects include the activity itself (including a worksheet with questions) and answers to the worksheet questions.

Recommended reading:
1. Omnexus. Glass Transition Temperature. https://omnexus.specialchem.com/polymer-properties/properties/glass-transition-temperature (accessed March 2025).
2. Kuntzleman, T. S. “Temperature Experiments with the Scrub Daddy Sponge.” ChemEd Exchange. Feb 21, 2018. https://www.chemedx.org/blog/temperature-experiments-scrub-daddy-sponge (accessed March 2025).
3. Campbell, D. J.; Peterson, J. P.; Fitzjarrald, T. J. “Spectroscopy of Sound Transmission in Solid Samples.” J. Chem. Educ., 2014, 91, 1684-1688.
4. Campbell, D. J. “Polypropylene and the Cold Snap.” ChemEd Exchange. February 20, 2021. https://www.chemedx.org/blog/polypropylene-and-cold-snap (accessed March 2025).
5. Campbell, D.; Davids, R.; Smith, I.; Jung, K. “Demonstrating the Glass Transition of Polylactic Acid with a Rattle.” ChemEd Exchange. March 27, 2024. https://www.chemedx.org/blog/demonstrating-glass-transition-polylactic-acid-rattle (accessed March 2025).
6. Sheldon, R. A. “Metrics of Green Chemistry and Sustainability: Past, Present, and Future.” ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng., 2018, 6, 32–48.
7. Faygo Union. Report All You Need to Know About Plastic PET Bottle Preforms. https://faygoplas.com/all-you-need-to-know-about-plastic-pet-bottle-preforms/ (accessed March 2025).
8. Report of the PRESIDENTIAL COMMISSION on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident. https://history.nasa.gov/rogersrep/v4part4.htm (accessed March 2025).