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Soda "explodes" because of the breakdown of Carbonic Acid into Carbon Dioxide and Water. H2CO3 --> H2O + CO2. But the reaction needs "nucleation sites" to get started; generally these consist of insoluble impurities, or previously created bubbles of Carbon Dioxide.

When cold soda is opened slowly, bubbles form, but they generally rise and pop before the reaction can cause any "explosion". Shaking the soda introduces gas bubbles, which provide many more nucleation sites. Increasing the temperature speeds up the reaction.

Mints have a very high surface area due to their roughness, and provide a huge amount of nucleation sites. Grinding them into powder first will increase the effect. Using activated carbon instead of mints would probably be even better, but it wouldn't taste as good afterwards.

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12y ago

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