Science · 6 pages · 12 min
Why oil and vinegar separate in a bottle
The water in vinegar sticks to itself, so the oil is squeezed out and floats.
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From the opening
Oil and vinegar separate because vinegar is mostly water, and water molecules cling to one another much more than they cling to oil. The oil is pushed into its own layer, and because that layer is usually less dense, it floats. The opening covers why water prefers other water, why the shaken cloud clears, and why the oil layer floats.
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Inside
- Why water prefers other water
- Why the shaken cloud clears
- Why the oil layer floats
- What an emulsifier changes
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Immiscibility of polar water and nonpolar oils
- Hydrogen bonding that leads water to exclude oil