Over a century ago, scientists first asked a question — Can liquids that usually mix together be manipulated so they act like they can’t? On June 19, LSU chemistry professor John Pojman led an experiment to find the answer.
That answer is yes, but only if they’re in space.
Pojman and his colleagues at William Jewell College in Missouri conducted an experiment that tests how fluids move between each other. They monitored particle movement in liquids to look for small movements, a phenomenon that is usually taken over by gravity and can’t be measured on Earth.
To test their theory in orbit, they turned to Blue Origin, a company started by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Blue Origin’s initial purpose is to one day provide space tourism, but the company also works with scientists who use the technology for space-related projects.
Pojman said since the reaction he was studying was so minimal, it was impossible to conduct the experiment on Earth because the gravity overpowers the reaction. The experiment involved heating liquids until they converted into a different polymer, and because gravity causes heat to rise, it needed to be conducted in weightlessness.
“The effect we’re looking for is very small, so if we tried to do this on Earth, it would just get all mixed up,” he said. “There was literally no way on Earth that we could do this experiment.”
During the time in space, a laser light shined on clear liquids so that Pojman and his team back on Earth could observe the particle movement. Once the rocket reached weightlessness, an ultraviolet LED light triggered the chemical reaction.
Pojman and his colleagues began preparing the project for space six years ago. Blue Origin covered the cost for the trip itself, and the team received grants from the Louisiana Space Consortium, which is an organization coordinated through the University that connects NASA with colleges and universities to develop collaborative research.
The chemical system for the project was designed at the University, but the programming and research for the experiment itself was conducted by undergraduate students at William Jewell College.
The experiment was only in weightlessness for a couple minutes, and the team has already proposed a more detailed plan to NASA to get the project in orbit for around an hour for more accurate data.
Although his experiment will probably not have any immediate everyday applications, the outcome of the project will help answer a question that is central to the understanding of physics and chemistry.
“The effects we’re looking at are really very subtle, but it’s a fundamental question that was asked over one hundred years ago,” Pojman said. “This effect can be important in some cases, but how important still remains to be seen.”