Turning Styrofoam into Cinnamon Candy

Introduction

• Sponsored by Nebula
• Goal: Turn Styrofoam into cinnamon candy
• Styrofoam: Made from polystyrene (composed of styrene molecules)
• Similarity between Styrene and cinnamaldehyde (cinnamon flavor molecule)

Materials Needed

• Styrofoam cups
• Acetone (nail polish remover)
• Magnesium oxide (catalyst)
• Solvent: Dimethylformamide (DMF)
• Hazardous chemicals: Phosphorus oxychloride
• Other materials: Sodium acetate, diethyl ether, sodium sulfate

Process Overview

1. Collecting Styrofoam

   • Acquired a bag of Styrofoam cups
   • Styrofoam is 95% air, needs volume reduction

2. Eliminating Air from Styrofoam

   • Dissolve Styrofoam in acetone
   • Result: Polystyrene Goo
   • Dry polystyrene by spreading on a tray, break apart regularly
   • Final result: Dry polystyrene chunks, blended into powder

3. Breaking Down Polystyrene

   • Convert polystyrene back into styrene using heat and magnesium oxide
   • Collected styrene by distillation
   • Purified styrene through further distillation
   • Validated purity with FTIR and H-NMR

4. Transforming Styrene to Cinnamaldehyde

   • Involves Vilsmeier-Haack reaction
   • Prepare Vilsmeier reagent by reacting phosphorus oxychloride with DMF
   • Add styrene to Vilsmeier reagent, then add sodium acetate solution to convert intermediate to cinnamaldehyde
   • Further distillation to purify cinnamaldehyde
   • Validate and confirm purity with FTIR and H-NMR

5. Making Cinnamon Candy

   • Use sugar, water, and corn syrup heated to 'hard crack' stage
   • Add cinnamon oil and red dye to mixture
   • Pour onto silicone mat to cool and form dough-like consistency
   • Roll through customized candy machine to form heart shapes
   • Sugar-coating step skipped for aesthetic preference

Challenges Faced

• Avoiding fire hazards with acetone vapors
• Ensuring complete drying of polystyrene goo
• Troubles during candy making (solid chunks forming in sugar mixture)
• Re-melting sugar mixture to salvage cinnamon oil
• Difficulty in candy rolling process

Results

• Successfully produced cinnamaldehyde through chemical processes
• Cinnamon flavor confirmed through taste test
• Created cinnamon heart candy, texture similar to Jolly Ranchers
• Plans to refine candy-making skills in the future
• Next project: More dangerous experiments like turning air into a bomb

Conclusion

• Despite challenges, the project was a success
• Achieved the goal of turning Styrofoam into edible cinnamon candy
• Future content to be available on Nebula

Additional Notes

• Nebula platform: Ad-free content, early access to videos, exclusive projects not suited for YouTube
• Supported by Patreon, offering early access and exclusive videos to patrons