preview

Example Of Exothermic Reaction

Decent Essays

An exothermic reaction is one in which there is a release of energy (usually heat) from the system (Ashworth & Little, 2001). In other words, the energy of the system decreases, and thus H is negative. Because heat is being transferred out of the system (i.e., the reaction requires no external energy source), exothermic reactions are self-sustaining (Ashworth & Little, 2001). Notable examples of exothermic reactions include combustion reactions, where oxygen (O2) reacts with another substance, usually to form carbon dioxide and water (CO2 + H2O) (Kung & Lerner, 2014). Combustion can be seen in many facets of everyday life, from wood fires to the engines of many vehicles (the combustion of gasoline has the following chemical equation: 2C8H18 + 25O2 + 2N2 12CO2 + 4CO + 4NO + 18H2O + heat—this illustrates the convention of placing “heat” in a chemical equation, which, if listed as a product, is an indicator of an exothermic reaction; this equation is also an example of incomplete combustion, since an ideal combustion reaction would have no products save carbon dioxide and water; often, the oxygen fueling a combustion reaction is consumed before complete combustion can occur (Lew, 2015)). On a smaller scale, exothermic reactions can be used to create heating devices such as hand warmers, which can be calibrated (by analyzing the change in heat of the chemicals involved in the device) to produce an optimal amount of heat. [SOME MORE] Endothermic reactions, conversely, are

Get Access