Moving liquid with visible motion

Community Projects
1

I’m working on an art project and would like to have a component which visibly moves liquid. This would have a feel similar to something in a cartoon laboratory, where a green liquid is semi-rapidly moving through a series of tubes (but has no real functionality).

I was thinking of bending clear acrylic tubes to create a variety of shapes and then pumping food colored water through these tubes.

How would I go about introducing air bubbles into this liquid to make the movement more visible?

If I had a closed system with a few air bubbles using a circulation pump similar to listing below, I would imagine (I think at least…) these air bubbles would eventually converge into one large air bubble.

If I used a refillable system with a submersible pump similar to the listing below, I suppose I could just make that pump suck a mixture of air and water by floating the pump at just the right level, maybe? I also imagine this would be loud and extremely annoying.

One other idea I had was to throw some glitter (or other very small debris) into a closed system and move it with the water, but I think the idea of many small bubbles just seems way cooler.

This liquid will not be used for human consumption, so sanitary concerns aren’t a primary concern for this project.

Any ideas to create bubbles, simulate this effect, or introduce some other kind of movable debris into the system?

Circulation pump: https://www.amazon.com/bayite-BYT-7A014 … bc7414e520

Submersible pump: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10455

2

An aquarium air pump might be good for this. That and an airstone will make thousands of tiny bubbles.

Check the aquarium section of your local pst store for these.

3

For visual effect, I’d go with a peristaltic pump and transparent tubes where it’s all exposed. Inject some air into the tube after the pump. Perhaps add some detergent to help the bubbles persist.

4

In the PC water cooling world, they make fluids that have a pearlescent quality to them that make the movement of the fluid very obvious. That may be easier than trying to keep bubbles in your pipes, which can cause problems for some pumps. Just search using the terms “pc water cooling glitter” or something similar on google or youtube for examples.