Discussion

In my hypothesis I said that 70% would be absorbed and 30% would be contained. My hypothesis was correct. I thought this would happened because I knew containing the oil would be much harder than to absorb it. Also I knew that the paper towels would be the most successful material because we were given a large quantity of them(5). Also being able to absorb the oil will be much more useful on a small scale, for example the small bin that we used for our experiment. But on a much larger scale such as the ocean containing oil would be much more effective and easier than to absorb it because there is such a large amount of oil and water. If I had to do anything different with this experiment I would use not only just paper towels but also cotton balls because the would be much more effective than absorbing the oil without taking much more water. Also I would add the dish soap first to contain the oil then absorb it because I could then absorb more oil without taking much water.