DATA TABLE

TYPE OF FOOD TEMP OF TEMP OF MASS OF MASS OF

WATER B4 WATER AFTER FOOD BEFORE FOOD AFTER

OREO 21 88 7.58g 0.86g

CRACKER 22 39 2.56g 0.92g

CHIP 20 31 1.66g 0.35g

(RUFFLES)

INVESTIGATION
1. The various food types that were burned and their energy content are the experiment's
independent value. The quantity of thermal energy released during combustion serves
as the dependent variable in this experiment. The volume of water in the can serves as
the experiment's controlled variable.
2. The amount of energy released in relation to the energy contents of various foods and
the various food types is the type of relationship being tested in this experiment.
3. THERMAL ENERGY RELEASED FROM THE DIFF. FOODS
OREO CRACKER CHIP (RUFFLES)

Q= mcT Q= mcT Q= mcT

Q= (100g)(4.186)(88-21) Q= (100g)(4.186)(39-22) Q= (100g)(4.186)(31-20)
Q= 28,046.2J Q= 7,116.2J Q= 4,604.6J

Initial mass - final mass Initial mass - final mass Initial mass - final mass
(7.58g - 0.86g = 6.72g) (2.56g - 0.92g = 1.64g) (1.66g - 0.35g = 1.31g)

Amt. of E released: Amt. of E released: Amt. of E released:

= Q / mass = Q / mass = Q / mass
= 28,046.2J / 6.72g = 7,116.2J / 1.64g = 4,604.6J / 1.31g
= 4173.54 J/g = 4339.15 J/g = 3514.96 J/g
4. The ruffles chip had the lowest energy content per gram while the cracker had the
highest energy content per gram. Due to the high amounts of energy released when the
oreo was burned (it had the highest amount of energy released with about 28KJ, which
was more than double the other foods), I expected it to have the highest energy content
per gram, but my hypothesis and predictions were wrong. Similar to this, the results
compared to what I predicted about the cracker's combustion were off; I thought it would
have the lowest energy per gram because it would release the second-least amount of
energy when burned, but it actually had the highest energy content per gram.
5. Foods cannot be compared without knowing their "per gram" values because
comparisons require a constant unit or value. Comparing foods with various per-gram
values would produce inaccurate results. It would not be accurate to measure and
compare the amount of energy released because the food samples tested did not all
 have the same size. For the measurement and comparison of the amount of energy
released with 1 gram of the food under test compared to other foods, the per gram
values are crucial.
6. Carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and sugars make up several ingredients in the foods that
were tested. Carbohydrates, which are composed of C-H bonds, are the kind of
macromolecules that are present in all different kinds of food. Due to the electrons' equal
distances from the relatively small nucleus, C-H bonds are known to have extremely high
energies. A fat molecule is also known to be high in energy and almost entirely
composed of C-H bonds. The fact that the oreo cookie is a relatively fatty food product
and that fat is highly flammable due to its high energy content caused it to release a lot
of thermal energy.
7. Before each food sample started to react on its own, it needed to be applied with energy.
Some of the food sample's initial bonds require thermal energy to be broken, and this
source of activation energy must be overcome for the combustion reaction to proceed.
The use of thermal energy and heat as a source of activation energy is problematic for a
number of reasons, so this is not an option in living cells. The first is that some proteins
and DNA's structural components can be destroyed by high temperatures, which results
in denaturation and a loss of function that may cause cell death. The second reason is
that an increase in thermal energy would be problematic because it would speed up and
affect all of the cell's reactions, not just one particular one.
8. Some of the bonds that are present are broken when thermal energy is used as the
reaction's initial activation energy. However, the reaction still goes on, and the new
bonds that start to form in the products are what provide the reaction's activation energy.
The breaking of these bonds releases enough energy for the reaction to continue by
breaking additional bonds in additional molecules within the food sample. The presence
of oxygen would also cause the reaction to continue. The presence of oxygen
accelerates the reaction until it is finished as thermal energy is used to ignite the food.
9. Because the mass of the water is taken into account when calculating the amount of
thermal energy released and, consequently, the amount of energy per gram of a food
sample, I believe my results might have been different if there had been more or less
water in the can. The formula Q = mcT, where ‘m' is the mass of the water, is used to
calculate the thermal energy absorbed by the water. It has an overall impact on the Q
value if this amount of water is increased or decreased. The amount of energy released
may have a greater effect on changing the water's temperature if there is a reduction in
the volume of water, whereas an increase in the mass of the water would require more
thermal energy.
10. I was not surprised by the large differences in energy content between the various food
types tested because the molecules and bonds that make up these molecules vary.
Foods with high energy bonds, like carbohydrates and fats, were anticipated to release a
lot of energy.