Jeffrey Fairley conducted an experiment over 12 days to test how acidic beverages like grape soda and lemonade affect tooth decay. Eggs were used to represent teeth and submerged in the beverages, with one also in water as a control. Over time, the grape soda egg darkened most while the water egg showed no effects. pH tests found grape soda to have the lowest pH of 3, indicating highest acidity, while lemonade was 4 and water 8. Repeating the experiment twice gave consistent results, confirming that highly acidic drinks like grape soda can cause the most tooth decay if consumed regularly.

1. Jeffery Failrley
Trail dates 12/11-22/13
Chemistry I
Beverages Affect Tooth Decay
Introduction: The experiment that is being performed here will give result of how acidic
beverages affect tooth decay and how quickly it can happen. The eggs used in this
experiment will act as an actual persons tooth and this will give me the result on how the
human tooth can decay by drinking acidic beverages. To perform this experiment I had to
gather all of the materials that were required, once I got the grape soda, lemonade,
needle, eggs, mason jar, measuring cup. For trail I did the exact same thing, which was
taking a needle and sticking it through three eggs on each end of the eggs, and extracting
the egg's yoke from the core of the egg. The the purpose for the wholes in the top and
bottom of the was to create an window effect so the yokes would extract more easily, and
so that the eggs would sink and allowing the liquid substances to infiltrate the core of the
egg. This would result in both the outer and inner shell of the eggs would be either gain a
new coloration of the liquid substance or stay it original color. I later got the mason jars
and filled all three of them with two hundred milliliters of water, grape soda, and
lemonade. Once this process was finished I took one egg at a time and submerged them
under the liquids so that the eggs would be totally under the substances. On the fourth
day of the trail I took the pH levels of egg substance and placed my findings in table 4-1
and used table 5-2 as a reference to my findings.
Abstract
How Certain Beverages Affect Tooth Decay
I think that soda pop will erode teeth the worst due to its high acidity level. In my
research paper I will explain to you about delicate the tooth enamel and how it can never
be restored only protected. We will also investigate the teeth and bone structure in the
humans mouths from the time they are born to the time they become a full adult. The
teeth changes the years, they also go through a lot, for example. You have to chew and
everything that you eat, accept liquid based food of course; however, the teeth have to bit
down on all type of textured food. Like hard and soft food, and as they do this for so long
they become warn down. So the next thing what causes such heavy erosion and what is
the possible solution to this treacherous problem, and that's what I am here for to help
find a solution. This is my mission to solve this use the by using the following variables
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2. {Grape soda pop, water,and lemonade} to get a result.
(Data)
Trail 1
12/11/12 Day 1
• The first step that I did was gathered all of my materials. And they are
grape soda, lemonade, needle, eggs, mason jar, and measuring cup
• The next thing I did was gut 3 eggs using a needle to remove the inside.
Putting one hole in the bottom of the egg and the other in the top
• I got three mason jars and filled them up with 200mL of fluids. One with
jar is filled with water, the next is filled with grape soda, and the other is
filled with lemonade.
• Once each jar had their liquids it was time to drop the eggs in so that they
may sink and completely be surrounded around fluids.
12/12/13 Day 2
• I checked on the eggs and they have become slightly coated with color of
the beverage.
• I noticed that the grape soda egg was darker than the lemonade egg due to
the coloration of the liquid substance
• The water egg is looking the same with not coloration effect once so ever.
• But I still do think the grape soda will do the most damage to the
egg( tooth), but we will see in the next 5 days
12/13/13 Day 3
• The eggs are starting to get darker and lighter, which means that acid erosion is
taking effect.
• The grape soda egg is the darkest of all and the egg is start to look every ugly and
bad
• The lemonade egg has some acidity effect, but not as bad as the grape
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3. • The water is liking the same with no erosion taken place at all
12/14/13 Day 4
• Today is the day that I take the pH level using purple cabbage
• First I break off a couple pieces of the cabbage and put them in the blender and
added 30mL of water into it
• Once the blending was complete I strained the leaves through coffee filter so that I
could use it as test strips
• I put the strips into the jars to get the pH level and they are listed in the table
below
pH Levels of Liquid Substances
Table 4-1
Substance Name pH Strip Color pH Level
 Water  blue  8
 Grape Soda  Very dark red  3
 Lemonade  Dark red  4
pH Levels
Table 5-2
Color Pink Dark Red Violet Blue Blue-Green Green-
Yellow
Approx. pH 1-2 3-4 5-7 8 9-10 11-12
Acid/Base Acid Acid Acid/Neutr
al
Base Base Base
Trail 2
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4. 12/15/13 Day 1
• Today I start the second trail. I will use the materials listed; grape soda,
lemonade, needle, eggs, mason jar, and measuring cup
• The next thing I did was gut 3 eggs using a needle to remove the inside. Putting
one hole in the bottom of the egg and the other in the top
• I got three mason jars and filled them up with 200mL of fluids. One with jar is
filled with water, the next is filled with grape soda, and the other is filled with
lemonade.
• Once each jar had their liquids it was time to drop the eggs in so that they may
sink and completely be surrounded around fluids.
•
12/16/13 Day 2
• As I was examining the eggs today I seen that the grape soda egg is becoming very
dark
• The water egg is still looking the same, there is no damage to the outer shell
• The lemonade egg is continuing to look yellowish , which is the color of the
liquid substance.
12/17/13 Day 3
• The water egg is still looking the same with no erosion on it at all
• The lemonade egg is still continuing to color and get eroded
• The grape soda egg is becoming darker and darker by the day
12/18/13 Day 4
• Today is the day that I take the pH level using purple cabbage
• First I break off a couple pieces of the cabbage and put them in the blender and
added 30mL of water into it
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5. • Once the blending was complete I strained the leaves through coffee filter so that I
could use it as test strips
The results in the second trail are the same as the results in the first trail, and the tables 5-
2 & 4-1 will be used to show data analysis.
Trail 3
12/19/13 Day 1
• I will use the materials listed; grape soda, lemonade, needle, eggs, mason jar, and
measuring cup
• The next thing I did was gut 3 eggs using a needle to remove the inside. Putting
one hole in the bottom of the egg and the other in the top
• I got three mason jars and filled them up with 200 mL of fluids. One with jar is
filled with water, the next is filled with grape soda, and the other is filled with
lemonade.
• Once each jar had their liquids it was time to drop the eggs in so that they may
sink and completely be surrounded around fluids.
12/20/13 Day 2
• Today I am checking all of the eggs to see how vast has the coloration succeed
• The grape soda egg is becoming a dark purple which is the color of the soda
• The lemonade egg is turning light yellow and taking the color of the lemonade
• The water egg is normal coloration
12/21/13 Day 3
• The lemonade egg is starting to eroded from the acidity level of liquid
• The water egg is looking very normal as usual
• The grape soda egg continuing strain the egg with the purple color
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6. 12/22/13 Day 4
• Today is the day that I take the pH level using purple cabbage
• First I break off a couple pieces of the cabbage and put them in the blender and
added 30mL of water into it
• Once the blending was complete I strained the leaves through coffee filter so that I
could use it as test strips
All three trails will use table 4-1 & 5-2 to show analytical results.
Conclusion:
As I was performing this experiment I did all of the same steps with no revision to the
process and all three trails came back the same with no inconclusive results. So this tells
me that the acid found in acidic carbonated beverages is high and the beverage will cause
teeth erosion if drunk daily. There was some strong correlation with coloration of the
beverages. In dark colored beverages the pH level was higher than the lighter color
beverage, which is shown between the grape soda and lemonade. The tap water egg was
my control variable and the egg pH level and coloration stayed the same with no tooth
decay at all. In conclusion, my result were very conclusive and deemed my hypothesis
correct saying that the grape soda egg would cause the most tooth decay and have the
highest pH level.
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7. 12/22/13 Day 4
• Today is the day that I take the pH level using purple cabbage
• First I break off a couple pieces of the cabbage and put them in the blender and
added 30mL of water into it
• Once the blending was complete I strained the leaves through coffee filter so that I
could use it as test strips
All three trails will use table 4-1 & 5-2 to show analytical results.
Conclusion:
As I was performing this experiment I did all of the same steps with no revision to the
process and all three trails came back the same with no inconclusive results. So this tells
me that the acid found in acidic carbonated beverages is high and the beverage will cause
teeth erosion if drunk daily. There was some strong correlation with coloration of the
beverages. In dark colored beverages the pH level was higher than the lighter color
beverage, which is shown between the grape soda and lemonade. The tap water egg was
my control variable and the egg pH level and coloration stayed the same with no tooth
decay at all. In conclusion, my result were very conclusive and deemed my hypothesis
correct saying that the grape soda egg would cause the most tooth decay and have the
highest pH level.
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