Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

in materials section for this project "Space Sand" (white by Dunecraft) is listed however it is not available for purchase anywhere. Did you find the alternative? Did you try to make hydrophobic sand by coating silica sand with Scotch Guard?
My daughter, grade 9, wants to do this project for science fair.
Thanks for your help.

Hi Eliza, This is a really good question, and I think your solution sounds totally reasonable. You may need to experiment with how much spray to use to get the best column, but that's part of the fun of science...
Another expert here also mentioned:

C18 silica is a hydrophobic column packing material that has been used for this application also.

I don't know how easy that is to come by though.

Please let us know what works for you, I'm sure others will be interested in the answer. Good job being inventive!