When capping a bottle of pop, will it retain carbonation better if I squeeze the bottle to remove excess air?!
Let's say I've taken two glasses of pop/soda/coke out of a plastic 2L bottle!. Should I squeeze the bottle somewhat while I screw the cap on, so that there's as little ambient air left in the bottle as possible!? (After a while in the fridge, the carbonation does escape the pop anyway so that the bottle is "re-inflated" by the next time I use it!.) Is it better to leave the bottle un-squeezed, so that the carbonation has less room to expand into!?Www@FoodAQ@Com
Answers:
You should do just the opposite, leave as much air in the bottle as possible!. The carbonation comes out of the liquid until the pressure inside the bottle prevents more CO2 from escaping the liquid (equilibrium)!. If you keep in as much air as possible, less CO2 needs to escape the soda to pressurize to equilibrium and the soda will stay fizzier longer!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
No, you should not!. The lower pressure causes more carbonation (CO2) to leave the soda!. This is why air pumps are sold that fit over the mouth of the bottle to repressurize the bottle!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
no you should not do this, it will only lessing the carbonation level in the drink due to the low levels of carbon that will remain in the bottle!.Www@FoodAQ@Com