When carrying out the enthalpy change of a reaction between two aqueous solutions, the immediate surrounding is the solution itself, so a thermometer can be placed in the solution to record the temperature change.
To correct for heat loss a cooling curve can be used. The temperature is measured every 30s until it stays constant. The reactants are mixed and the temperature is taken every 30s until the temperature has fallen for several minutes, A temperature time graph is plotted. To find the correct temperature, you can extrapolate back to the time when the reactants were mixed.
Determining the Enthalpy Change of a Reaction
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Specification: OCR Chemistry A (H032), AS-level, 3.2.1 Enthalpy changes. Topic: Enthalpy.
Key terms in this lesson
- Enthalpy
- A measure of the total energy of a chemical system.
- Enthalpy change
- The heat energy that is transferred between the system and its surroundings during a process carried out at constant pressure.
More in Enthalpy
- Enthalpy Change of Combustion
- Enthalpy Change of Neutralisation
- Measuring the Enthalpy Change of Combustion
- Accuracy of Experimental Value
- Cooling Curves
- Average Bond Enthalpy
- Calculating Enthalpy Changes from Bond Enthalpies
- Limitations of Bond Enthalpy Calculations
All 19 lessons in Enthalpy · All OCR AS-level Chemistry topics