Floating Popsicle Raft!

Photocredit: Jensen Li

For my other mini project, Jensen Li and I decided to create a mini raft using old popsicle sticks, tape, and Elmer's glue. We glued each popsicle stick facing flat onto another one into a square shape. The raft was built about 14 sticks high. For the bottom of the raft, we taped a row of about ten popsicle sticks together with no gaps, all facing flat. Then we glued them to the walls of the raft. Before we put the raft in the water for our test, we covered the bottom in a gray masking tape to be sure that the water would not seep through the sticks. When we placed it in the water, it floated. It was a success! After a few seconds of completely floating, the raft began to slowly submerge a few centimeters. This allowed the water to go through the gaps in the walls of the raft. The raft sank approximately 1 inch and then stayed at that level for several minutes until we determined that the test was over. In order to make a more efficient raft, we could have made sure that there were no gaps in the walls or bottom of it and we could have used a lighter, less dense type of material so it would float with more ease, as well let the glue dry so it would have had a more stable structure.

Scientific Facts:

• The density of the sticks are low enough to float as opposed to a rock or more dense object
• The tape is air tight sealed and can keep the water from leaking through
• The wet glue caused a mis-shaped structure and water to leak through the raft
  

More Information:

How to Make a Tin Foil Raft