One of the timeliest scientific observations made by humans must have been the warmth

provided by fire, and since that time the unexpected utility of heat as a tool has contributed to
many of the most profound technological advances in humanity’s history.

The science of heat flow, or more generally energy flow, is called thermodynamics.
Many of the fundamental foundations of thermodynamics have been deliberated in our lectures
on gas laws and the kinetic molecular theory of gases where we learned that heat and kinetic
energy (the energy of motion) of gaseous atoms/molecules are equivalent. Now we are ready to
turn our attention to subtler aspects of thermodynamics relating to thermal energy being
extracted from or stored within a wider array of chemical compounds than gases. In this set of
experiment, we will focus our attention upon one particular area of thermodynamics, namely
calorimetry, is the science or act of calculating alterations in state variables of a body for the
resolution of deriving, the heat transfer connected with changes of its state due, for example, to
chemical reactions, physical changes, or phase transitions under quantified
restrictions. Calorimetry is performed with a calorimeter (Buchholz 2001). The Calorimeter is
the method of measuring the heat of chemical reactions or physical changes as well as heat
capacity.

The container we use as a calorimeter should thermally insulate the matter we’re
interested in studying, it should prevent matter from entering or exiting once our measurement
has begun, and it should allow for easy measurement of temperature changes.

A coffee cup calorimeter is a constant pressure calorimeter. As such, the heat that is
measured in such a device is equivalent to the change in enthalpy. A coffee cup calorimeter is
normally used for solution based chemistry and as such commonly encompasses a reaction with
diminutive or no volume change (see Figure 1).

Here is a coffee cup and its parts:

 Source:
https://ch301.cm.utexas.edu/section2.php?target=thermo/thermochemistry/coffee-cup-
calorim.html

2. Specific Heat Capacity

Experimentally, measuring heat flows is somewhat difficult. We use thermometer to

measure changes in temperature that can be operated as indirect measures of heat flow. In
order to precisely relate measured temperature changes to the flow of particular amounts of
thermal energy, a proportionality constant that relates these two quantities called the heat
capacity The Specific Heat Capacity is the amount of heat per unit mass required to
raise the temperature by one degree Celsius.

The connection between heat and temperature change is usually expressed in

the form shown below where c is the specific heat. On the other hand, the Law of
Conservation of Energy states that the whole energy of an insulated system remains
constant, it is said to be preserved over time. This law means that energy can neither be
produced nor destroyed; rather, it can only be converted from one form to another. Most of
the chemists use a technique called calorimetry to regulate the specific heat of a
substance. Calorimetry, or the measurement of heat transfer, is based on the Law of
Conservation of Energy. This law states that energy is not produced nor destroyed; it is only
converted from one form to another. Mathematically, the proportionality can be expressed as
shown in equation 2.1:

qrxn  qsolution  qcalorimeter 

1 kJ
qrxn 
ΔΗ solution  1000 J
qrxn  (msolutioncwater T )  Ccal T  molsolute

where c is the specific heat capacity (in J/(g ˚C)), q is the quantity of thermal energy
released/absorbed (in J), m is the mass of the sample (in g), and ∆T is the change in
temperature (in ˚C), which is taken as Tfinal-Tinitial for the sample. Since specific heat
capacities are positive constants for a given material, heat flow is directly proportional to
changes in temperature. Thus if the change in temperature (∆T) is positive, then q is also
positive indicating the absorption of heat by the sample (an endothermic process).
Alternatively, if ∆T is negative then q is also negative indicating the loss of heat by the
sample (an exothermic process).
 3. Heat of neutralization

The Heat of neutralization the change in heat that happens when one equivalent of an acid
and one equivalent of a base undergo a neutralization reaction to form water and a salt. It
is defined as the energy released with the formation of 1 mole of water.

qcalorimeter  qHCl  q NaOH  0

qrxn  [Ccal ΔTcal  mHCl cwater ΔTHCl  mNaOH cwater ΔTNaOH ]

The study was conducted at the PHL Building, 4th Floor, Lyceum of the Philippines –
Laguna, April 13, 2018. This study aimed to conduct a successful experiment about Calorimetry.
The specific objectives were:
1. Calculate the heat the neutralization between sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid
is endothermic and exothermic.
2. to find out the heat released or changed in a reaction.
3. to learn how to measure Heat flow and,
4. to learn about Exothermic and Endothermic chemical reactions