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Bailey Abney
Mrs. Hilliard
Chemistry 10B
14 February 2014
Demonstrating Thermodynamics Using a Rubber Band
Although the term thermodynamics may seem intimidating, the topic is not nearly as
difficult to understand as may be anticipated. In fact, the concept can be demonstrated with a
simple, everyday office supply: a rubber band. Yes, an ordinary rubber band. Suppose an
experimenter took a rubber band and held it up to their forehead in a relaxed state. The rubber
band began to warm up to the same temperature as the skin due to the direct contact. When the
rubber band was quickly stretched across the skin, the experimenter noticed that their forehead
felt warmer. Believe it or not, these simple observations display many scientific concepts
associated with thermodynamics.
When scientists study thermodynamics, they single out an object to study, called the
system, and everything that does not make up the system is deemed the surroundings. In the
described experiment, the rubber band served as the system while the forehead served as the
surroundings. At the beginning of the experiment, the rubber band, or system, was in a relaxed
state and possessed potential energy, or stored energy. This energy was converted to energy in
motion, known as kinetic energy, when the rubber band was stretched. While the experiment was
being conducted, two different transfers of energy also occurred. When the rubber band was
pressed against the experimenters forehead, it gained energy. When a system absorbs energy
from its surroundings, the reaction is called endothermic. In contrast, an exothermic reaction
occurs when a system gives off energy that is in turn absorbed by the surroundings. An

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exothermic reaction was demonstrated when the rubber band was stretched and the forehead felt
warmer.
Furthermore, enthalpy, which expresses the change in heat energy during a reaction, can
be used to show whether a reaction is exothermic or endothermic. When the system gained
energy, the process being endothermic, the enthalpy value was positive. The enthalpy value was
negative when the system lost energy, which took place when the reaction was exothermic. Of
course, there is also scientific reasoning behind the transfer of energy that occurred during the
experiment at an atomic level. The molecules that make up the rubber band are naturally coiled
and disorganized, and this is the state that they prefer to be in. When the rubber band is stretched,
the speed of the molecules increases as they fight to become disorganized again. This causes the
rubber band to release heat. The rubber band absorbed heat while it was relaxed because the
molecules were not fighting their current state.
The First Law of Thermodynamics is yet another scientific concept demonstrated by the
rubber band experiment. When either the system or surroundings lost energy the other gained
energy. This is called an inverse relationship. The system and the surroundings cannot gain
energy at the same time, nor can they lose energy at the same time. This is because energy
cannot be created or destroyed, as stated by the First Law of Thermodynamics. Instead, energy is
transferred in one of two forms. In this case, energy was transferred in the form of heat. The law
also states that the amount of energy in the universe is constant. Again, this is shown by the
inverse relationship between the system and surroundings concerning the transfer of heat.
The simple act of relaxing and stretching the rubber band allowed the experimenter to
display the concepts of kinetic energy, potential energy, endothermic and exothermic reactions,
the difference between a system and the surroundings, as well as the First Law of

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Thermodynamics. These same concepts can also be displayed by putting ice into a glass of
water. The ice absorbs energy from the water, which causes it to melt, and the water becomes
colder due to this loss of energy. If the ice is the system, then it can be said that the system
gained energy while the surroundings lost energy. If the water is viewed as the system, then the
system lost energy and the surroundings absorbed energy. In short, thermodynamics are present
everywhere, even in everyday objects. It is these ordinary objects that allow us to understand
thermodynamics in a clear, uncomplicated manner.