Triboluminescence



What happens when you crush a Wint-O-Green Lifesaver in a dark room?

WARNING!!! Wear safety goggles if you try this!






Triboluminescence!




Here's an explanation (from Earth & Sky):

WintOGreen Lifesavers produce an example of what's called triboluminescence. It's a two step process. Step one happens when sugar crystals break -- they tend to split along planes with positive charges on one side and negative on the other. As the pieces of candy move apart, the charges want to get back together, so they jump across the air like tiny lightning bolts.

Because WintOGreen Lifesavers are naturally fluorescent, now step two can take place. The "lightning bolts" give off invisible ultraviolet light -- which cause the fluorescent Lifesavers to give off their own visible fluorescent light. You may have seen something like this in mineral displays under black lights. The black light shines in the ultraviolet, causing the minerals to fluoresce, or glow. In the case of WintOGreen Lifesavers, the fractured sugar crystals generate the ultraviolet -- and the wintergreen molecules absorb it. the result is that, as you chomp your candy, sparks fly.


Here's a link to more information about triboluminescence.



Photos by Lewis Kozlosky

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