I am a curious soul. And this really has me perplexed!We broke a bottle of Eucalyptus Essential Oil recently. The closest thing to salvage the oil was a sandwich bag, so we dumped it in there. I meant to transfer it to glass right away but the day got away from me & so before bed I set the whole bag in a styrofoam cup. I was assuming the EO would melt the bag & figured that putting it in the cup would at least keep the mess off the counter.
In the morning, the EO was still in the plastic bag! It didn't eat through the bag! I was shocked! BUT... it somehow ate a hole in the styrofoam cup!?!?!
How can a contained oil erode something it isn't in contact with?!?
Last night, at 7:20, I tried to duplicate the whole situation. I wanted a "controlled experiment" to 1) ensure there wasn't EO on the outside of the bag that really caused the reaction and 2) because it's just soo cool & I wanted to do it again! LOL!
An hour later, at 8
:14, the cup I poured EO directly already has a hole... a large part of it has already "melted" onto the counter. The first time there was no residue remaining. It's a much more dramatic reaction & much faster. Thus, I am certain no EO was on the outside of the bag the first time. The 2nd cup (with EO contained in a bag like the 1st time) seems to have started to become tacky... but it's too early to really tell.
An hour later, at 8
:14, the cup I poured EO directly already has a hole... a large part of it has already "melted" onto the counter. The first time there was no residue remaining. It's a much more dramatic reaction & much faster. Thus, I am certain no EO was on the outside of the bag the first time. The 2nd cup (with EO contained in a bag like the 1st time) seems to have started to become tacky... but it's too early to really tell.The next morning, this is what the 2nd cup (the one duplicating the original reaction) looked like. The
same thing happened. You can see the beginning of the hold here... and the bag is "stuck" to the styrofoam enough to lift the cup, though I can pull it away without causing any damage. The longer I left it, the more it ate away (though with no residue like when EO was directly in contact w/the cup). It eventually did eat a hole through just like the 1st cup. Nutty!
same thing happened. You can see the beginning of the hold here... and the bag is "stuck" to the styrofoam enough to lift the cup, though I can pull it away without causing any damage. The longer I left it, the more it ate away (though with no residue like when EO was directly in contact w/the cup). It eventually did eat a hole through just like the 1st cup. Nutty!What I want to know is... HOW and WHY did the EO eat through the styrofoam cup but not the bag? Is the plastic bag porus? I'm so curious!?!
I've been advised to try the same thing w/nail polish remover... so I'm working on that as we speak. I'll update the post with the results. Any answers out there?! You'll be my hero!
**2/15 Update**
I did the same "experiment" with nail polish remover replacing the EO... but I used "non acetone" nail polish remover & I think I was supposed to be testing for the effects of acetone. Oops. I'll scrounge up some of the type with acetone and repeat & post. There were NO noticeable effects w/the non-acetone nail polish remover to the bag or cup.
you've got me curious about EO too...hmmm :)
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