Making a C60, Bucky Ball, Buckminsterfullerene model
Step 1. un-pack the parts and separate the straws.
Step 2. connect five black 'atoms' with five of the straws
(use the colour straws that you have the most of for this)
Step 3. Join the 5th straw into the last black atom so that you make up a pentagon - a 5 sided shape
(you will have to bend them as they want to make a hexagon).
Be careful not to make a hexagon (6 sides).
Step 4. Make up 12 separate pentagons
Step 5. After you have made up the 12 pentagons (you will have some parts left over)
start to join them up using the 5 spare 'connections' on each atom.
Use the other colour straws for this.
Step 6. Connect five pentagons around a central pentagon to form a sort of star.
Step 7. Then continue to add straws to connect the five outer pentagons with each other.
This will make the structure start to curve-up to form a bowl shape. It is half the Bucky Ball.
Step 8. make up two of these bowl shapes. Each should have 6 pentagons and 5 hexagons.
Step 9. Start to join-up these two halves of the ball with more straws. They need to go together correctly.
Make sure that when you have added just two more straws, that a hexagon is formed NOT a square or an octagon (8 sides) !
Dont go any further until you are happy that this is so.
Step. 10. Continue to add straws to join up the model.
Step 11. ... the last straw to go in.
Step 12. The completed C60, Bucky Ball, or Buckminsterfullerene model - well done !
return to C60 page
return to 'Things to Make' page
link to the 'Cochranes of Oxford' model kits (as used above) site
NOTE: Although none of the experiments shown in this site represent a great hazard, neither the Creative Science Centre,
Jonathan Hare or The University of Sussex can take responsiblity for your own experiments based on these web pages.
THE CREATIVE SCIENCE CENTRE
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