If the hockey puck is cold, then it will glide farther than a warmer puck because it will create less friction with the ice.

What is a hockey puck?

A hockey puck is something that hockey players use to shoot and score a goal. Hockey pucks are flat, solid, black disk-shaped objects made from vulcanized rubber.  

https://www.encyclopedia.com/manufacturing/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/hockey-puck

 

What is a hockey puck made out of?

The first hockey puck was made out of wood. Newer hockey pucks are made out of rubber that is vulcanized - a process that heats and hardens rubber into the small disk.  They are made that way so it won’t hurt the players when they block a shot but also so they can get a good shot off. 

https://www.purehockey.com/c/what-is-a-hockey-puck-made-of

 

How heavy is a hockey puck?

A hockey puck weighs about 6 ounces and that’s pretty light. It also can depend on how often the hockey puck is being used since it can be chipped or has some snow on it.

https://www.freshgear.com/hockey-faqs/how-much-does-a-nhl-hockey-puck-weigh/

 

Why are hockey pucks flat?

A hockey puck is flat because it glides down the ice better. Initially, the hockey puck was a ball but it didn't glide as well.

https://www.quora.com/Why-are-hockey-pucks-the-way-they-are

 

Why do hockey pucks glide?

A hockey puck glides because it is flat. A hockey puck slides across the ice and eventually comes to a stop because of friction between the surface of the puck and the surface of the ice.  

https://brainly.com/question/20793317

 

What is friction?

Friction is a force that is the motion of two contact areas. When they contact each other they create friction which is what we use to make the puck slide because friction is two objets connecting together.

https://byjus.com/question-answer/what-is-friction/

 

Does the NHL freeze their hockey pucks?

The NHL uses frozen hockey pucks for all its games, so the pucks aren’t too bouncy. The pucks are kept in a freezer in the penalty box at a temperature between -10 and -6.7 degrees Celsius to ensure they are frozen before they are put into play.

https://knowledgestew.com/hockey-pucks-frozen-nhl/?expand_article=1

 

Ask a NHL Player

I emailed former NHL player Matt Stajan. He said, 

“The NHL and most professional leagues will freeze the pucks for games. 

A frozen puck will slide/glide way better on the ice. It would also not bounce as much.  It actually makes quite the difference in how the puck feels when you handle and stick handle it.If i were to stick handle or pass a frozen puck, it would be way more crisp compared to a room temperature puck. ”

 

Ask a NHL Player

I emailed former NHL player Curtis Glencross and he said,

“I believe that having a frozen puck makes a big difference. The other key to making sure the puck doesn’t stick is,  the ice should be completely frozen and have no water on it after a flood, so that the ice freezes properly. I’m minor hockey, there is such a time pinch, teams tend to go on to soon and that makes for rough ice surface and pucks won’t slide flat. Which turns into a sloppy game or practice.”

 

Ask a NHL Player

I emailed former NHL player Troy Brouwer and he said,

“Yes I do think it makes a big difference. The puck slides much better on the ice being a colder temperature, rather than them trying to melt the ice if it was warmer. It also helps with how much the puck bounces. With pucks being rubber they bounce much more at a warmer temperature.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Controlled  Variables	Independent Variable	Dependent Variable
Ice surface Distance the slingshot was pulled back Thermometer Measuring tape Brand and weight of pucks Transportation method Freezing/boiling time	Temperature of the puck	Distance the puck glides

MATERIALS

1. A Slingshot -(Two bungee cords (36’) and a  broken cut sandal to hold the puck)
2. 15 hockey pucks (5 cold pucks, 5 room temperature pucks, 5 hot pucks)
3. Infrared Thermometer
4. Measuring tape
5. Freezer
6. Stove
7. Large pot
8. Water
9. Cooler (to carry the cold pucks)
10. Ice Packs
11. Thermos(to carry warm pucks)
12. Bag (to carry room temperature pucks)
13. Tape

PROCEDURE

1. Get all of my materials
2. Put 5 hockey pucks in the freezer (night before experiment)
3. Leave 5 hockey pucks at room temperature 
4. Boil 5 pucks in water for 15 mins
5. Take out the 5 pucks from the freezer and put in cooler
6. Put room temperature pucks in a bag
7. Take pucks out of boiling water and put in a thermos with the boiling water
8. Go to the hockey ice
9. Set up the slingshot using a hockey net
10. Use tape to mark the launch spot for the slingshot to shoot
11. Use the infrared thermometer to measure the temperature of a puck  
12. Put the puck in the slingshot launcher
13. Pull launcher to marked spot
14. Launch puck
15. Measure the distance of the puck
16. Repeat steps 11-15 for each set of pucks

 Trial 1

Pucks	Temperature (celsius)	Distance traveled (Inches)
Room Temp  puck	22.2 degrees (celsius)	291 inches
Cold puck	-13.9 degrees (celcius)	500 inches
Hot puck	59.6 degrees (celcius)	201 inches

 

in this trial i noticed that the cold puck whent the farthest in the first trial.

 

Trial 2

Pucks	Temperature (celsius)	Distance traveled (Inches)
Room Temp  puck	16.6 degrees (celsius)	284 inches
Cold puck	-11.7 degrees (celcius)	324 inches
Hot puck	64 degrees (celsius	144 inches

 

In this trial the room temparature puck whent pretty chose to the cold puck,but in the end the cold puck whent the farthest.

 

Trial 3

Pucks	Temperature (celsius)	Distance traveled (Inches)
Room Temp  puck	16.2 degrees (celcius)	418 inches
Cold puck	-12 degrees (celcius)	412 inches
Hot puck	68.2 degrees (celcius)	236 inches

 

in trial 3,the room teamparature puck beat the cold puck by 6 inches.This is different from all of my other trials and is an outliar.

 

Trial 4

 

Pucks	Temperature (celsius)	Distance traveled (Inches)
Room Temp  puck	13.9 degrees (celcius)	300 inches
Cold puck	-12.6 degrees (celcius)	394 inches
Hot puck	66.3 degrees (celcius)	200 inches

In trial 4,nothing unexpected happened in this trial. it was the same  with the cold puck gliding the farthest,the room temparature puck second and the hot puck third.

 

Trial 5

Pucks	Temperature (celsius)	Distance traveled (Inches)
Room Temp  puck	15.7 Degrees (celcius)	404 inches
Cold puck	-13.8 degrees (celcius)	506 inches
Hot puck	64.1 degrees (celcius)	260 inches

In trial 5,it was the same as the other trials. The cold puck went the farthest and the hot puck the shortest distance.

 

In all my trials i saw that the puck that was frozen and kept cold always glided the farthest down the ice. The room temperature puck was second and the hot puck always travelled the least amount of distance. I noticed in trial 3 my data shows that the room temperature puck went farther than the cold puck. This is an outlier because according to my other data the cold puck always went further. Another interesting thing I noticed is that two pucks travelled close to the same distance in trial 2. I wonder if some of the snow on the ice could have caused more friction during those trials and that’s why the cold puck didn’t go much farther like it did in the other trials.

 

  

 

In conclusion, the puck that slides the farthest was the frozen puck with the farthest going 506 inches. My hypothesis was correct.  I think that the frozen puck goes farther because when it touches the ice, it creates less friction because the temperature of the ice is the same as the puck. When the puck is hotter than the ice the puck melts the ice when it glides creating friction. Coach Brouwer also said that friction can be a problem and because the puck doesn’t bounce as much when it’s cold it can glide for a longer time.

If I were to do this experiment again, I would see if the ice surface made a difference to the outcome. I tested on an outdoor rink and would try at an indoor rink where the temperature is more controlled.  I also wonder if it would make a difference to test right after the rink was Zambonied.  Would the water on the ice cause more friction causing it not glide as far or would the smoother ice surface help?

It makes sense that the NHL would freeze their pucks to get the best performance.  Players are paid a lot of money and fans spend a lot of money to watch a hockey game. It is important that the puck glides properly and doesn’t bounce around the ice because that could affect the outcome of the game.  Knowing how much better a puck glides when it is frozen I will talk to my coach and ask him to freeze the pucks before our games because we use room temperature pucks. Room temperature pucks are still better than warm pucks but if we want to have the puck work the best cold pucks would be better because the the data shows that every bit makes a difference and the puck will glide farther.  

 

Environmental

• Since I used an outdoor rink for my testing, some of the snow on the ice could have caused more friction with the puck.
• There could be chips in the ice, resulting in the puck slowing down or speeding up without me knowing.
• There could have been some bumpy ice resulting in the puck bouncing and going farther or not as far.

Human Error

• It took time to set up each puck and measuring the distance it glided so the warm pucks could have cooled off and the cold pucks warm up.
• I could have misread the measuring tape.
• I may not have been exact when I pulled the slingshot back.

Instrumental

• The thermometer could be wrong and gave an inaccurate reading.
• The measuring tape could have bent without me knowing.
• The sling shot could have hit the ground and slowed the puck down.

 

https://www.encyclopedia.com/manufacturing/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/hockey-puck

 

https://www.purehockey.com/c/what-is-a-hockey-puck-made-of

 

https://www.freshgear.com/hockey-faqs/how-much-does-a-nhl-hockey-puck-weigh/

 

https://knowledgestew.com/hockey-pucks-frozen-nhl/?expand_article=1

 

https://www.quora.com/Why-are-hockey-pucks-the-way-they-are

 

https://brainly.com/question/20793317

 

 

 

I would like to thank my mom and dad for supporting me throught this. I would also like to thank my teacher Mme Boussaha for giving me suggestions whenever she thought I could do somthing better.