KITCHEN EXPERIMENTS -- MEASURING THE ANGLE



Experiment 4 -- Using a hollow tin can

Particles measured:

  • Rice
  • Mung beans

    Equipment used:
  • Hollow tin can with top and bottom removed
  • A large piece of paper
  • Clinometer

    Method:
    1. Stand the tin can onto the large piece of paper
    2. Pour rice into the tin can until it is filled
    3. Lift the tin can up slowly to let the rice settle on the paper as a conical pile
    4. Measure the angle with the clinometer
    5. Repeat the experiment for mung beans



    Results:
    Different particles have different angles of repose The angle of repose of:
  • Rice was 40°
  • Mung beans was 31°



    Comments:
    The can must be lifted up very slowly to prevent the particles from flowing too fast. This method always produced a flat top and a convex slope. Therefore the measurement was only made at the bottom part where the slope is the steepest.