Chemical Insights - Heat Packs

A skier is trapped by a sudden snowstorm. After building a snow cave for

protection, she realizes her hands and feet are freezing; she is in danger of
frostbite. Then she remembers the four small packs in her pocket. She removes
the plastic cover from each one to reveal a small paper packet. She places one
packet in each boot and one in each mitten. Soon her hands and feet are toasty
warm.
These magic packets of energy contain a mixture of powdered iron, activated
carbon, sodium chloride, cellulose (sawdust), and zeolite, all moistened by a little
water. The paper cover is permeable to air .
The exothermic reaction that produces the heat is a very common one-the
rusting of iron. The overall reaction can be represented as
4Fe(s) + 3O2(g) 2Fe2O3(s)
Ho = -1652kJ
Although in reality it is somewhat more complicated. When the plastic envelope
is removed, O2 molecules penetrate the paper, causing the reaction to begin.
The oxidation of iron by oxygen occurs naturally. Any steel surface exposed to
the atmosphere inevitably rusts. But this oxidation process is quite slow-much
too slow to be useful in hot packs.
However, if the iron is ground into a fine powder, the resulting increase in surface
area causes the reaction with oxygen to be fast enough to warm hands and feet.
The packet can produce heat for up to six hours