Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hello, I am trying to assist my nephew in his science fair project. He is trying to build a home-scaled delsalinization model. He has a hot plate heating water in a beaker, clear cast plastic tube going up, which joins to clear bendable tubing. He is trying to heat the water to create steam which will rise into the tubing. When the steam cools water will condense in the tube and the droplets will gather together and drip into a clean water collection barrell.

Sounds logical to me - but science isn't my forte. Can someone please tell me if he is on the right track? Thank You

Hi,

From what I can deduce from your post the short answer is yes, the project you describe sounds like it is on a promising track. To give you a reference point for making your own informed judgement here is a Science Buddies project writeup on the topic:

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... p022.shtml

I suggest you allow your nephew to pursue his project on his own as much as possible(possible exception - safety issues) unless he requests help. The goal of Science fair projects is to develop students skill and interest in conducting independent scientific research. This does not happen if the projects are “micromanaged” by adults.

Good luck to all of you, and have fun!!!

Best regards,

Barrett L Tomlinson