help needed please

First i say sry for this post it is going to sound basic in this forum(my first time posting in this forum). I have a science project that i must do and have no clue how to do it.

I have to make a two letre coll drink bottle in a self propelled vechicle preferable propelled by chemicles but not really neccasary but it counts a 1/4 of my grade. i was going to try solar power but i have no clue how to build a solar pannel. We're no allowed to buy anything premade to use in our project.

sory about the spelling and the basic topic

Two liter cola bottle?

give some more specifics, like how far or how fast, or maybe just give the exact directions to us.

Sounds like the need for the old vinegar & bakingsoda engine. Something like that?

Depends on how big the vehicle is and how big your engine is. There's all sorts of sites on this. One of my favorites was the Junkyard Wars build of a long distance motorized bike that carried its team several miles on a tiny amount of gasoline.

I don't have the time to look it up right now, but it's one of the earlier seasons here:
tlc.discovery.com...

They also had in one of the episodes a "windup car."

I can think of a number of ways to build something on a model-car scale (I have done a few builds with Lego blocks)... so what you ultimately do depends on what you've got. Heck, you could even use wind power.

Take a look at the Junkyard Wars site (if you're lucky, they may be rerunning these on your tv) and I think you'll get some ideas.

Are you trying to build a vehicle that can stop and start again under its own power or are you looking at something to just go forward?

I have made water pressure rockets before. You can use coke bottles or even better, the 2 ltr plastic ones are the best. But, if you want it to go straight and not up, it will just take a small amount of obvious changes to get it going. Now, this is be more of a rocket or a dragster. ha ha home.san.rr.com...

But, if you need it to be able to stop and start, then you will want to look in a different direction.

How about lemon power... www.energyquest.ca.gov...

If you really want to try doing this using chemicals, using a couple squirts of an alcohol-based hair spray inside the bottle and igniting it with a spark gap would provide you with a very high instantaneous pressure rise with no harmful by-products. Be aware though that it is VERY loud (read: sounds like an explosion) and not exactly the safest thing to do...

You may also want to look at electromagnetic energy.

Just some thoughts, but if you go with chemicals, be careful.

The lemon power idea mentioned earlier is a cool way to make a battery.
Limes work as well, and are usually a little smaller, maybe giving you a chance to use more of them in series
with each other. More pucker power.

But you can't use ANYTHING premade? Even a little motor from one of those Tiny Remote controlled cars?

Anyone know how to build a simple motor?

Originally posted by spacedoubt
Anyone know how to build a simple motor?

Well, here is a motor... it would seem to work ok it modified a bit. www.exploratorium.edu...

Here are some others.... pick your poison....

good luck...

www.amasci.com...

www.saburchill.com...

www.mse.engineer.gvsu.edu...

home.houston.rr.com...

Couldn't you simply fill the bottle with Hydrogen and touch it off with a firecracker??

Oh...nevermind.

Thanks, i will try all these ideas and Mrjingles just a two leter cola bottle that just has to move forward, preferable nothing that explodes like my last two that i tried with chemicles, it was cool but did not help me at all.

Thanks for all the help. I'll star following links now.

thanks tose links helped alot + i found out i can use a simple motors and stuff but no premade batteries

thanks again

I know this works...


of course mount the bottle on its side, with the wheels parallel like a car.

Use the cap and put a small (1/8") hole in the center of the cap.

Fill the bottle with about enough water to cover the hole +1" or so, when placed for motion.

BUT when you add the special ingrediant it must be up!

A can of "Freeze-It" Freon or propellent based electronic freeze spray is used to activate.

Use the nozzle that is with the can, and spray the freezit into the bottle, while standing up, with the coke cap with the hole ON and tight..

This is the tricky part, you must be fairly fast in putting the bottle down for motion on the wheels.

The freon spray will expand as it warms to room temp, creating internal pressure.

The water will be forced out the hole providing propulsion force.

It is quite fun, although short lived...a dozen or two seconds.

It may take a couple of practice runs to get the hang of it.

Non volitile too!