Why wintergreen mints spark

Sir Francis Bacon first discovered Triboluminescence , also known as mechanoluminescence, in when he scraped a lump of sugar with his knife. You can easily replicate the colored light produced from grinding, cleaving, biting, or scratching a crystal at home with a hammer and some Life Savers. The flash of light results from a static electric discharge from fracturing the sugar crystal. The friction of the hammer on the sugar crystals excites the nitrogen air molecules. It turns out, there is a fluorescent chemical flavoring, methyl salicylate oil of wintergreen , in the Wintergreen Lifesavers.

What this means is that methyl salicylate is a substance that has the ability to absorb light at shorter wavelengths and then emit light at longer wavelengths, giving off visible light. Basically, similar to how fluorescent lights and neon tubes work. So when you bight into Wintergreen Lifesavers, the electrical discharge excites the nitrogen in the air, producing mostly ultraviolet light; which then in turn is absorbed by the methyl salicylate; this then emits light in the visible spectrum, creating a visible flash.

Many artificial flavors in hard candies will induce similar effects creating a flash in the visible spectrum, not just in the ultra-violet range. Other crystals, such as diamonds or salt, will do the same thing with the structure of the crystal being the determining factor on whether or not it will emit light when broken; so basically, whether it is a triboluminescent crystal or not. Interestingly, in many types of crystals, these sparks are powerful enough to induce combustion. Diamonds are one example of a crystal that will produce visible light.

Diamonds will in fact glow while being rubbed very vigioursly, such as while they are being ground or cut, making a red or blue color. There are even some rocks that emit light when rubbed together using these same principles. The Uncompahgre Ute Indians from central Colorado noticed this phenomenon with quartz crystals.

But this is where it gets good. The Wint-O-Green variety of Lifesavers has the magic ingredient, methyl salicylate. Other than providing the yummy mint flavor, methyl salicylate can absorb ultraviolet light.

It then re-emits the light, thus delaying and increasing the effect. It can cause problems from fever to vomiting to respiratory melt-down and, according to www.

It can kill cats, too. A piece of the puzzle remains a mystery, though, because good old Kathy McLaughlin was unable to tell us how much methyl salicylate is in the Wint-O-Green Lifesavers. Cancel reply. Your email address will not be published.

I have been purchasing life savers for quite a while. Do Life Savers spark in your mouth? All hard sugar-based candies emit some degree of light when you bite them, but most of the time it's faint. This is due to triboluminescence, which is the emission of light resulting from something being smashed or torn. Try it yourself! Did Creme Savers get discontinued?

Yes, Creme Savers — a spinoff candy of Life Savers — were produced in the late '90s in strawberry and orange flavors. Sadly, the candy was discontinued mids without a clear explanation. Cite This! Try Our Sudoku Puzzles!