Demonstrations are an effective method to get students interested in and excited about chemistry. Flame tests for certain cations garner “oohs” and “aaahs” from the student audience. Recently, this Journal featured several variations on methanol-fueled flame tests (1–4). In seeking a safe way to show the flame tests for large audiences, we thought using a porous support material that would absorb the methanol solution would be ideal. Trials with balsa wood, soaked overnight in the methanol solutions, produced only the typical yellow flame of sodium when ignited. Similar yellow flames were obtained with pieces of cellulose sponge. Both the wood and sponge, of course, charred as the methanol burned away.
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