COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Chem 1E- Chemistry for Engineers

Group Number: Date Performed:

Course & Section: Rating:
Group Number: ____________________
Group Members:
1.

EXPERIMENT NO. 2: CALORIMETRY

I. Introduction

The word calorimetry came from the Latin word calor, meaning heat and the Greek word metry,
meaning to measure. Calorimetry is the process to measure the amount of heat released or absorbed
during a chemical reaction. There had been different ways and methods in order to measure heat, and
since the birth of calorimetry in the late 18 th century, a large number of techniques have been
developed. At first, the techniques were based on simple temperature methods, but in present,
advances in technology have enabled users to collect data and maintain samples under conditions that
were not possible before.

Many chemical and physical transformations involve energy transfer in the form of heat. The
magnitude and direction of heat may be determined using calorimeter. In reactions that occur in
aqueous solutions, energy is transferred to or taken away from the water. If heat is absorbed by the
system, the reaction is endothermic and if heat is released the reaction is exothermic. The heat of
reaction can be calculated using a coffee cup calorimeter by measuring the change in water
temperature (the experiment is run under constant pressure). The equation:

q rxn=mC p ∆ T
Where:
m= mass of water
Cp= specific heat of water, 4.184 J/g ºC
∆T= Change in Temperature

Ideal calorimeter is a thermally isolated system designed to prevent heat flow to the surroundings. It
is conducted under adiabatic conditions where no heat flows in and out of the system. In this
experiment we will be using a computer simulation software to solve for the equilibrium temperature
and the heat of reaction.
 COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Chem 1E- Chemistry for Engineers

II. Objective
a. To perform simple calorimetry experiment using computer simulation software.
b. To calculate the heat of reaction using the calorimeter
c. To explain the principle of the 1st Law of Thermodynamics.
d. To explain how heat is generated in a molecular level during a chemical reaction.
e. To explain the relationship among the amount of substance involved, the change in
temperature and the amount of heat exchanged.
III. Procedure
Design your own procedure based how you performed the experiment using the computer
simulation software.

IV. Diagram

Digital Temperature
Indicator

Automated Stirrer

Insulating Cover

Metal Inner Vessel

Metal Outer Vessel

 COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Chem 1E- Chemistry for Engineers

V. DATA AND RESULTS

LIQUID-LIQUID MASS TEMPERATURE

Ethanol 50 g 50 deg. C
Water 100 g 100 deg. C
SOLID- LIQUID
Copper ball 50g 140 deg. C
Water 80g 60 deg. C
ACID-BASE SOLUTION VOLUME CONCENTRATION
HCl 50 mL 0.50 M
NaOH 80 mL 0.50 M

LIQUID-LIQUID

Time (seconds) Temperature

5
10
15
20
25
30

SOLID-LIQUID

Time (seconds) Temperature

5
10
15
20
25
30

ACID-BASE SOLUTION

Time (seconds) Temperature

5 21.54
10 22.22
15 22.47
20 22.56
25 22.62
30 22.62
 COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Chem 1E- Chemistry for Engineers

VI. COMPUTATIONS

SYSTEM Teq (actual) Teq (solved)

LIQUID-LIQUID
SOLID-LIQUID
ACID-BASE SOLUTION

VII. GRAPH AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS

VIII. QUESTIONS
1. Why do you think the equilibrium temperature obtained from simulation, and linear
regression has different values? Explain the theory behind.

2. Determine the specific heat of the copper ball and discuss the precision and accuracy of your
results. A relative error of less than 10% is acceptable in this experiment.

3. Explain clearly what errors did you encounter during the experiment that must have increase
or decrease your calculated value for specific heat by referring to the equation. ( Cp=0.385
J/g C)

IX. CONCLUSIONS