Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

For my project, I'm going to experiment with different types of fabric (such as polyester, cotton, etc.) and different types of dye to see which can withstand sunlight exposure, constant washing, etc. and still maintain a vibrant color. I'm unsure of a hypothesis for this and I kind of need advice in general as to how to go about this project.

I am not too familiar with this particular project, but I personally take an interest in making clothes of my own and I feel some of these video and information sites may help.
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dyelog/B10 ... index.html (for this site, scroll down for more help information links)

http://www.youtube.com/user/onceFOB (this is my personal youtube site and on my favorite lists are clothing help sites, on how to make your personal clothing)
Try also youtubing information and googling.

Sorry I could not be of much help, I will post more information if I get any more insightful info.

MCR,

Try taking a look at Science Buddies' science fair project guide, particularly the section about developing hypotheses: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... esis.shtml . That should help you decide what your hypothesis for this project would be (I would guess something along the lines of 'Method X of tye-dying clothing will produce the longest-lasting color').

Hi MCR,

This is a good topic for a science fair project and I'm sure you will learn a lot by doing it. Jin and Melissa have given you some good advice to get started on background research and developing your hypothesis. And I would like to give some additional advice so you will have an excellent project when you finish. I have seen many projects like this in science fairs through the years, and most of the time, the projects don't include the science behind dyeing, and the results are colorful, but very qualitative. So I recommend that you include the science of dyes binding to fabric, and also do try to obtain results that are as quantitative (measurable) as possible.

This is really a chemistry project; the dyes react with the fabric to make a covalent bond. The dyes fade when the double bonds in the dye molecules are broken to form single bonds. Here are two websites that I found that include a little information on the chemistry of dyeing; however, I'm sure there's better information available.

http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/chemistry_ ... sson.shtml
http://www.creative-chemistry.org.uk/ac ... dyeing.htm

If you are using different fabrics, you will need to find out about the chemistry of the fabrics also.

When you develop your hypothesis, try to think of a way to design a quantitative experiment. You might use a UV lamp with a measurable output and expose the dyed fabrics to a certain number of hours of UV light. You will also need to find a way to measure the decrease in color on the fabrics. Be sure you do lots of background reading on the topic and develop your hypothesis before you design your experiment.

Good luck!


Donna Hardy

Thanks alot for all of the advice. It's going to help a lot and I'll try to make some updates with my project as it progresses.

I'm unsure what category this project falls under. Would it be chemistry? I also need help formulating a title for my project. Any ideas?

Hi mcr,

This is definitely a chemistry project. Your title could be in the form of a question that is related to your experiment. Something like,’” which fabric protects the double bonds best?", since the dye molecules are losing their color due to the loss of double bonds. A good title can really help a project. If you will let me know a little more about your experiment and results, I could try to think of something else.

Donna Hardy

Right now my question is "What fabric and dye combination makes for the strongest adhesion?" After doing some research, I don't really think this is the best title/question for my project. What changes should I make?

Hi mcr,

If you change the word "adhesion," to "bond," "chemical bond," or "covalent bond," the title would be more chemically accurate. If you want to add some intrigue, then maybe something like "Which covalent bond is most resistant to UV light?" Does this give you any other ideas?

Donna Hardy

Yes this helps a lot. I think I'm going to change my question to "What fabric and dye combination creates the strongest chemical bond?"

Hi mcr,

This is perfect! I really like your revised title; it is a great introduction to your topic.

Let us know if you need any advice on the rest of the project.

Donna Hardy

i finished conducting my experiment, but now im not sure how to decorate my board... any ideas?

Hi mcr,

Congratulations on finishing your experiment! What were your results? Did you discover anything new?

It's good to be thinking about the decorations on your board, because this will complement the science presentation and make the project more enjoyable to look at. With a project like this, I assume that you have samples of dyed and faded fabric to display that will make your presentation colorful. For the background, you could choose a bright, clear color that complements your fabric samples and paint a tie-dyed pattern as a background, or just choose a solid bright color combination for a background. If you add any drawings or pictures, make sure they are related to your project results. Stand back and look at what you are doing to make sure it looks good to you. Monochromatic and complementary color combinations work best. Don't worry too much about the decoration part of the display and do spend most of your effort on writing up the results and making sure you have included all of the required sections of the presentation. If your science fair is being judged on a point basis, there will be a few points allotted to the quality of the display, but most points are for the content of the project.

I hope this helps. Let us know how you do at the science fair.