It is the kind of experiment which gets even older kids excited about science.
Students in the Belgian city of Leuven have set the new world record for most Mentos fountains by launching 1,360 simultaneous geysers.
After they each dropped a tube of the mints into a bottle of Diet Coke, Ladeuzeplein square became a sudden sea of foaming soda yesterday, with carbonated streams shooting up to 29 feet high.
Films of the Mentos-Diet Coke mix have been posted on Internet entertainments sites attracting at least 10 million viewers.
The previous World Record was set in the U.S., when 973 Cola bottles were launched simultaneously.
The craze has developed into an advertiser's dream with a 20 per cent increase in sales of Mentos Mints last year.
The sweet-maker estimates the craze is worth $10 million free advertising a year. Coca-Cola has also signed deals with leading Internet video celebrities and even ran a Diet Coke-Mentos video on its website for three months.
Although there is no exact scientific explanation for the phenomenon, scientists agree that the reaction is physical, not chemical.
The most popular cause is believed to be the thousands of tiny pores on each Mentos Mint, which act like nucleation sites allowing carbon dioxide bubbles to form in the drink.
The bubbles form all over the sweets and when its sink to the bottom it causes the carbon dioxide to whoosh out of the bottle.
There are reports that eating Mentos and drinking Cola simultaneously can result in death caused by the reaction, but no fatalities have been reported so far.
Students in the Belgian city of Leuven have set the new world record for most Mentos fountains by launching 1,360 simultaneous geysers.
After they each dropped a tube of the mints into a bottle of Diet Coke, Ladeuzeplein square became a sudden sea of foaming soda yesterday, with carbonated streams shooting up to 29 feet high.
Explosion: Belgian students in Leuven out-fizz previous records for adding Mentos to Diet Coke
Films of the Mentos-Diet Coke mix have been posted on Internet entertainments sites attracting at least 10 million viewers.
The previous World Record was set in the U.S., when 973 Cola bottles were launched simultaneously.
The craze has developed into an advertiser's dream with a 20 per cent increase in sales of Mentos Mints last year.
Covered: Seconds later everyone in Ladeuzeplein square is soaked through with sticky soda
The sweet-maker estimates the craze is worth $10 million free advertising a year. Coca-Cola has also signed deals with leading Internet video celebrities and even ran a Diet Coke-Mentos video on its website for three months.
Scientsts: The men in white coats ensure the bottle explode properly before the attempt
Although there is no exact scientific explanation for the phenomenon, scientists agree that the reaction is physical, not chemical.
The most popular cause is believed to be the thousands of tiny pores on each Mentos Mint, which act like nucleation sites allowing carbon dioxide bubbles to form in the drink.
The bubbles form all over the sweets and when its sink to the bottom it causes the carbon dioxide to whoosh out of the bottle.
Getting ready: Students wait for orders to drop in the Mentos
There are reports that eating Mentos and drinking Cola simultaneously can result in death caused by the reaction, but no fatalities have been reported so far.