• Question: why do apples go brown when exposed to oxygen not orange or rainbow?

    Asked by Ellie to Adrian, Gaia, Jim, Scott, Vicky on 10 Mar 2016. This question was also asked by Gabz.
    • Photo: Scott Lawrie

      Scott Lawrie answered on 10 Mar 2016:

      On the inside of apples (and pears, potatoes etc) are things called enzymes. Enzymes increase the speed that chemical and biological things happen. When exposed to oxygen, these enzymes ‘oxidise’. That’s exactly the same thing that happens to Iron when it gets wet, making rust. So apples are effectively rusting! As you know, rust is brown 😎

    • Photo: Gaia Andreoletti

      Gaia Andreoletti answered on 10 Mar 2016:

      Because in contact with oxygen they go under a process named oxidation. A trick, try to put some lemon on the apples and you will see that they will not go brown.

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