“Ferrofluid” experiment

How to make ferrofluid at home

Have you al­ways dreamed of play­ing with fer­roflu­id? Here’s a sim­ple ex­per­i­ment that will let you make fer­roflu­id at home!

Reagents and equip­ment:

  • veg­etable oil;
  • strong mag­net;
  • laser print­er ton­er;
  • ethyl al­co­hol;
  • jar.

Step-by-step in­struc­tions

Mix the ton­er with a small amount of veg­etable oil to make a thick liq­uid. Hold the mag­net close to it and watch as the liq­uid is at­tract­ed to it. Then pour the liq­uid into a jar and add al­co­hol. Play with the liq­uid us­ing the mag­net.

Pro­cess­es de­scrip­tion

Laser print­er ton­er con­tains a sub­stance called mag­netite, which is mixed iron ox­ide (Fe₃O₄). It has the prop­er­ty of mag­net­ic at­trac­tion.

Safe­ty pre­cau­tions

Use dry ton­er and wear a pro­tec­tive mask and gloves.

Try it