Science Projects on the Differences Between Sugar & Splenda

A science project on the differences between sugar and Splenda is a great way to demonstrate your ability to utilize the scientific method to examine everyday things. Splenda is a brand name for a sucralose-based sugar alternative. Sucralose is not metabolized by the human body and thus has no calories, making Splenda a great alternative for many individuals on low-calorie or sugar-free diets. Splenda is intended to act as a sugar alternative, so testing how well Splenda holds up against sugar in a few areas is a great way to create a memorable science project.

Taste Test

• The easiest and most apparent science project you can perform to identify the differences between sugar and Splenda is a simple taste test. Make a two batches of cookies from a recipe. Have one batch contain sugar, and the other contain the required amount of Splenda to substitute for the sugar. Have participants rate the taste of a cookie from each batch. Have them not only evaluate the quality of the cookie, but the level of sweetness for each. Chart your results and make an assessment as to the differences between the sweetness of sugar and Splenda in a prepared recipe.

Solution versus Suspension

• Design an experiment wherein you attempt to dissolve a few teaspoons of sugar and a few teaspoons of Splenda in separate glasses of cold water. Add the sugar to your glass of water and stir using a teaspoon until the sugar dissolves. Do the same with the Splenda. Wait a few minutes and evaluate which substance more easily dissolves in water. Discuss what kinds of implications this might have in recipes.

Sugar-coating

• Splenda has larger granules than sugar. Identify how this affects the ability to use Splenda to coat something. Bake butter cookies from a recipe and sprinkle sugar on top of one batch, while sprinkling Splenda on top of the other. Evaluate the differences in how well the sugar and Splenda sticks to the cookies. Why might this be? Do the larger granules in Splenda make it better for sugarcoating or do they fall off more easily?

Does Yeast like Splenda?

• Purchase two small packages of yeast from the grocery store. Dump the contents into separate glass bottles or containers with a small mouth, like a glass soda bottle. Add some water, and 2 tsp. sugar to one bottle, and Splenda to the other. Place a balloon over the mouth of each bottle. Over the next few days, observe the balloon. Which inflates more? When yeast consumes sugar, or Splenda, it releases carbon dioxide, which inflates the balloon. Whichever bottle contains the sweetener the yeast metabolize with the most, has the more inflated balloon. What implications might this have for baking recipes that rely on yeast to raise dough?