EXPERIMENT 9

ENTHALPY OF REACTION—HESS’S LAW

INTRODUCTION
Chemical changes are generally accompanied by energy changes; energy is absorbed or evolved, usually as
heat. Breaking chemical bonds in reactants requires energy, and energy is released as new bonds form in products.
Whether the combination of these steps absorbs or releases energy depends on the relative sizes of the energies
associated with breaking and forming bonds.
The amount of heat involved in a reaction depends not only on what the reaction is, but also on the temperature
at which the reaction occurs and whether the reaction occurs under conditions of constant pressure or constant
volume. In the laboratory, many reactions are conveniently carried out at constant pressure in beakers or flasks
that are open to the atmosphere. The amount of heat absorbed or released under this condition is the enthalpy
change, H, for the reaction, where
H = Hproducts - Hreactants (9-1)
Enthalpy, H, can be thought of as the heat content of a substance; this heat is stored as potential energy in the
form of bond, and other, energies. When atoms rearrange during a reaction, the heat content of the products is
usually different from the heat content of the reactants. This difference in heat content appears as heat absorbed
or released. This heat is generally indicated in Joules for the reaction as written. For example, in this experiment
you will examine an acid-base neutralization in aqueous solution:
H3O+(aq) + OH-(aq) → 2 H2O(l) ∆H = -55.8kJ (9-2)
The enthalpy change for this reaction could be given in J/(mol of H3O+), or in J/(mol of OH−), or in J/(mol of
H2O). To avoid confusion it is customary to report H for the reaction with the numbers of moles of reactants and
products simply as written. Thus, for reaction 9.2, in which 1 mole of H3O+ and 1 mole of OH− combine to form
2 moles of H2O, H = -55.8 kJ, as shown.
Note that the enthalpy change, H = Hproducts − Hreactants, is positive if heat is absorbed; that is, if Hproducts >
Hreactants, the reaction is endothermic. The enthalpy change is negative if heat is released. If Hproducts < Hreactants, the
reaction is exothermic. This is illustrated in the following diagrams:

reactants
products

H H heat evolved
heat absorbed

reactants
products

H > 0 (endothermic) H < 0 (exothermic)

Experiment 9 9-1
 In an exothermic reaction, the overall process causes the system to become more energetically stable; excess
energy is released as heat. The system changes from a higher energy state to a lower energy state. It seems
plausible intuitively that reactions would have a natural tendency to proceed spontaneously to a state of lower
energy; in fact, a negative enthalpy change is part of what causes some reactions to occur spontaneously.
Physical changes also have associated enthalpy changes. For the melting of water, for example:
H2O(s) → H2O(l) ∆H = + 6.1kJ (9-3)
In this process, no chemical bonds are broken or formed. The energy input converts the potential energy from
that characteristic of the rigid solid-state organization of water molecules to that characteristic of the liquid state,
in which water molecules move over, under, and around one another, but are still held together in a relatively
small volume.
Similarly, enthalpy changes accompany the dissolving of solids or the dilution of solutions. For example,
when AlCl3(s) dissolves in water, the Al3+ and Cl− ions must be separated. In the solid state they are packed
together in a way that results in the greatest stability (cations surrounded by anions and vice versa). In liquid water
the water molecules are extensively H-bonded to one another. They must be separated to create cavities for the
Al3+ and Cl− ions to occupy. Both of these processes cost energy, i.e., they are endothermic. In contrast, energy is
released when Al3+ ions are hydrated, becoming closely surrounded by the negative ends of six polar water
molecules in solution. Similar interaction of Cl− ions with the positive ends of polar water molecules also releases
energy. The balance among the energies for all these processes determines whether the overall Hsolution for AlCl3
will be positive or negative. (It turns out to be negative.)
Enthalpy is one member of an important class of thermodynamic functions known as state functions. A state
function has the unique characteristic that its value for a system does not depend upon the history of the system.
No matter how a system was formed, the value for any state function depends only on the present state of the
system. This has the extremely useful practical consequence that the change in any state function for a process
depends only on the initial and final states and thus is independent of the pathway by which the process takes the
system from the initial state to the final state. Another way of stating this for enthalpy is in the form of Hess’s
Law of Constant Heat Summation: If a reaction (or physical process) is carried out in a series of steps, H for the
overall process is equal to the sum of the enthalpy changes for the individual steps. It is a consequence of Hess’s
Law that, as long as we begin with the reactants in one particular state (given temperature, etc.) and end with the
products in another particular state, the overall Hrxn is the same, no matter what individual steps are carried out,
or in what order, to convert the reactants to the products. We will examine how well this principle holds for two
different chemical reactions in this experiment.

TECHNIQUE
Calorimetry is the measurement of the heat change for a reaction, and the device used to measure heat changes
is a calorimeter. In this experiment, the calorimeter consists of two nested Styrofoam cups with a MeasureNet
temperature probe inserted into the cup to monitor the temperature. If the reaction is exothermic, the heat released,
which will ultimately be transferred to the surroundings, is temporarily trapped by the insulating walls of the
Styrofoam cups and causes the temperature of the calorimeter contents to rise. For an endothermic reaction, the
temperature of the calorimeter contents falls. The Styrofoam cups temporarily prevent heat from entering the
system from the surroundings, and the calorimeter contents must supply the heat absorbed in the process. In either
case, the size of the temperature change is used to determine the quantity of heat released or absorbed.
Experiment 9 9-2
 The amount of heat released or absorbed is related to the temperature change by the equation
q = m  c  T = C  T (9-4)
where q = amount of heat,
m = mass of material undergoing the temperature change,
c = specific heat of the material undergoing the temperature change,
T = temperature change = Tfinal − Tinitial, and
C = m  c = heat capacity of the material undergoing the temperature change.
In highly accurate calorimetric measurements, it is necessary to consider contributions to the heat capacity, C,
from the solution present, the calorimeter walls, and even the temperature probe itself (that is, everything which
undergoes the temperature change). While heat capacity data for many solutions can be taken from tables in
chemical handbooks, calorimeters and temperature probes differ, so their contributions to C must be determined
experimentally. (In practice the total heat capacity of calorimeter and contents is determined by measuring the
temperature change caused by adding a known amount of heat with an electrical heating device.) We will greatly
simplify the analysis by means of reasonable approximations:
1. We ignore the small contributions from the calorimeter walls and temperature probe.
2. We estimate the heat capacity of the calorimeter contents by considering only the amount of water
present and treating any solution added as though it were just water with a density of 1.000 g/mL. This
works fairly well since, although the separate values of m and c for a solution are different from m and c for
an equal volume of pure water, the product m  c changes little. So, in this experiment we will approximate
the specific heat of all solutions as 4.184 J/(C  g of water present).
As EQUATION 9-4 indicates, q (the amount of heat absorbed or evolved) is proportional to T. It is often quite
simple to measure T. If no heat escapes from or enters the calorimeter from outside, we need only to measure
Tinitial, mix the reactants, and then measure Tfinal. If the temperature in the calorimeter is close to room temperature
and T is small, this works well.
This situation is illustrated in FIGURE 9-1, in which an endothermic process takes place (step 1, from T2 to T3),
followed by an exothermic process (step 2, from T3 to T4). The entire temperature range shown is less than 5C,
so the temperature is always close to room temperature. The lack of drift is evident in the data, from the essentially
constant values before and after each of the processes. (The temperature scale is greatly expanded in FIGURE 9-1,
so even nearly constant values may appear to be changing a little.) The interpretation of FIGURE 9-1, particularly
with regard to the labeled temperatures, T1 through T4, is discussed in the Results section of the handout.
We must be careful with the sign of T when we use it to determine H for the process. When T is negative, the
value of q obtained from EQUATION 9-3 will also be negative. As discussed above, a negative T is the result of
the occurrence of an endothermic process, for which H is positive. Similarly, a positive T results from an
exothermic process, for which H is negative. Therefore, in general,
∆Hprocess = -q (9-5)

Experiment 9 9-3
 T1 = 23.51C
T2 = 23.30C

T4 = 22.02C

T3 = 19.55C

Figure 9-1. Temperature vs. time plot for two-step experiment.

OBJECTIVES
• to determine the temperature changes for a series of chemical processes
• to determine the enthalpy changes for the chemical processes
• to compare the enthalpy changes with available literature values
• to test the validity of Hess’s Law

EQUIPMENT NEEDED
100-mL beaker temperature probe
8-oz. Styrofoam cups (2)
100-mL graduated cylinders (2)

CHEMICALS NEEDED
distilled water NH4Cl(s); ammonium chloride
1.00 M HCl; hydrochloric acid 1.00 M NaOH; sodium hydroxide
NaOH(s); sodium hydroxide

PROCEDURE
The measurements in this experiment can be carried out in a relatively short time. However, the analysis and
interpretation of the results will probably take somewhat longer. Therefore, before you spend any time on the
analysis, be sure that you have data of adequate quality. Show the plots you obtain in the steps below to your
instructor for his/her comments and approval. There should be plenty of time (should your instructor advise it) to
Experiment 9 9-4
simply repeat one or more of your measurements. In that case, discard the defective results and replace them with
the new.

A. Enthalpy Changes—NH4Cl and NaOH Reaction

In this part of the experiment you will compare two different pathways for carrying out the following overall
process:
NH4Cl(s, 2.675 g) + H2O(l, 50 mL) + NaOH(aq, 1.00M, 50 mL) → NH3(aq) + NaCl (aq) (9-6)
Notice that 2.675 g of NH4Cl contains 0.0500 mol of NH4Cl, and that 50 mL of 1.00M NaOH solution contains
0.0500 mol of NaOH. Therefore, 0.0500 mol of NH3 and 0.0500 mol of NaCl will be formed when the reaction
occurs.
In the first pathway (call it SOLID FIRST), you will first dissolve the NH4Cl in the water, recording any
temperature changes that occur, and then add the NaOH solution to the NH4Cl solution, while continuing to record
any temperature changes occurring. (The resulting plot of temperature versus time should resemble FIGURE 9-1.)
In the second pathway (call it SOLID LAST), you will reverse the order (first adding the NaOH solution to the water
and then dissolving the NH4Cl in the resulting diluted NaOH solution). Note especially that both pathways have
the same starting and ending points. Thus this experiment will provide data allowing you to test the validity
of Hess’s Law.

Setting up the Workstation

Note: If the workstation is displaying a plot of data from a previous user’s experiment, select New from
the File menu and touch Discard.
1. Touch the Duration box and change the duration of the experiment to 300 seconds. Touch Done, then
OK.
2. Touch the Graph icon (the box with the squiggly line), then Graph, and finally Graph Options. The
scaling of the temperature vs. time plot that will appear on the workstation screen as the experiment
proceeds can be adjusted here. The value in the Right box should be set to 300. Set the value in the Top
box to 40 and the value in the Bottom box to 10—this will show the data collected when the temperature
is between 10 and 40oC (y-axis). Touch OK.

A.1. SOLID FIRST Path

a. Set up the calorimeter by nesting two Styrofoam cups together. Obtain ~110mL of 1.0 M
NaOH solution and ~220 mL of distilled water in separate beakers.
b. Use separate graduated cylinders to measure 50.0 mL of distilled water and 50.0 mL of
1.0 M NaOH. Pour the distilled water into the calorimeter.
c. Carefully weigh out as close to 2.675 g of NH4Cl as possible, within (0.005 g) using the
top-loading balance.
d. Touch the Collect icon (green arrow) to begin collecting data. Place the temperature
probe in the solution in the graduated cylinder containing NaOH solution and begin stirring
until the temperature reading is fairly steady. Record its temperature. Rinse and wipe off the probe
quickly and place it in the calorimeter, where it will now indicate the temperature of the distilled
water. Stir with the temperature probe until the temperature becomes essentially constant, and

Experiment 9 9-5
 record the temperature. Note: Although you will be able to determine the initial temperatures of
those liquids from the plot you will print out, you should also record these values on the report
sheet at the end of the handout, since the values obtained from the LabQuest workstation screen
are more precise.
e. Quickly transfer the NH4Cl into the distilled water in the calorimeter and stir. Continue
until the temperature becomes essentially constant. Record the temperature.
f. Quickly transfer the NaOH solution into the calorimeter and stir. Continue until the
temperature becomes essentially constant. Record the temperature.
g. Touch the Stop icon (red square) to stop collecting data (or wait until it stops
automatically at 300 seconds) and go to your TA’s computer to make sure the temperature curve
looks OK. If you wish to rescale your plot, select Autoscale Once from the Graph menu. You
will be able to send a screenshot of the temperature plot to your email account from your TA’s
computer (or you can use the workstation at your bench area)—make sure to give the file a
descriptive name such as ‘Reaction 1—Solid First’ in the Subject box.
h. Pour the calorimeter contents down the drain, then rinse and dry all equipment.

A.2. SOLID LAST Path

a. Touch the file cabinet icon to start Run 2.
b.–d. These are exactly the same as in the SOLID FIRST Path.
e. Quickly add the NaOH solution to the water already in the calorimeter and stir. Continue
until the temperature becomes essentially constant, and then record the temperature.
f. Quickly transfer the NH4Cl into the solution in the calorimeter and stir. Continue until
the temperature becomes essentially constant, and then record the temperature..
g.–h. Same as in the SOLID FIRST Path.

B. Enthalpy Changes—NaOH and HCl Reaction

In this part of the experiment you will compare two different pathways for carrying out the following process:
NaOH(s, 2.00 g) + H2O(l, 50 mL) + HCl(aq, 1.00M, 50 mL) → H2O (l) + NaCl(aq) (9-7)
Notice again that, as in Part B, the amounts have been chosen so that 0.0500 mol each of NaOH and HCl will
react to form 0.0500 mol each of H2O and NaCl.
In the first pathway (SOLID FIRST), you will first dissolve the NaOH in the water, recording the resulting
temperature, and then add the HCl solution to the NaOH solution, again recording the resulting temperature. In
the second pathway, you will reverse the order (SOLID LAST). As in Part A, both pathways have the same starting
and ending points, so this experiment will also provide data for a test of the validity of Hess’s Law.

B.1. SOLID FIRST Path

Touch the file cabinet icon to start Run 3. Reset the graph limits to 10 and 40 using Graph
Options from the Graph menu.
a. Obtain ~110 mL of HCl solution in a clean beaker.

Experiment 9 9-6
 b. Use separate graduated cylinders to measure 50.0 mL of distilled water and 50.0 mL of
1.0 M HCl. Pour the distilled water into the calorimeter.
c. Carefully weigh out as close to 2.000g of NaOH as possible, (within 0.005 g) using the
top-loading balance.
d. Touch the Collect icon to begin collecting data. Place the temperature probe in the
solution in the graduated cylinder containing HCl solution and begin stirring until the
temperature reading is fairly steady. Record its temperature. Rinse and wipe off the probe and
quickly and place it in the calorimeter, where it will now indicate the temperature of the distilled
water. Stir with the temperature probe until the temperature becomes essentially constant and
record the temperature.
e. Quickly transfer the solid NaOH into the distilled water in the calorimeter and stir.
Continue until the temperature becomes essentially constant. Make sure the NaOH has dissolved
completely. Record the temperature.
f. Quickly transfer the HCl solution into the calorimeter and stir. Continue until the
temperature becomes essentially constant. Record the temperature.
g. Touch the Stop icon to stop collecting data (or wait until it stops automatically at 300
seconds), check your temperature.
h. Pour the calorimeter contents down the drain, then rinse and dry all equipment.

B.2. SOLID LAST Path

a Touch the file cabinet icon to start Run 4.
b.–d. These are exactly the same as in the SOLID FIRST Path.
e. Quickly add the HCl solution to the water already in the calorimeter and stir. Continue
until the temperature becomes essentially constant.
f. Quickly transfer the solid NaOH into the solution in the calorimeter and stir. Continue
until the temperature becomes essentially constant. g.–h. Same as in the SOLID FIRST Path.

At the end of the experiment, open the File menu on the workstation and select New. Touch
Discard to clear out the workstation for the next team of students.
Rinse the temperature probe with water.

Waste disposal
Combine any leftover NaOH and HCl solutions and pour down the sink.

Experiment 9 9-7
RESULTS
A. Enthalpy Changes—NH4Cl and NaOH Reaction
Use your printed graphs for the SOLID FIRST and SOLID LAST pathways for this overall process to determine
the enthalpy change for each step you carried out. In each case you need C and T, which are combined in
EQUATION 9-4 to give q, the amount of heat released or absorbed in the step. EQUATION 9-5 then gives the
enthalpy change, H.
Estimate the heat capacity C as described in the TECHNIQUE section. Thus, for example, the heat capacity for
the first step is 50.0 mL  1.000 g/mL  4.184 J/(C g) = 209.2 J/C. Use this value and your measured value for
T to calculate H for this step. Using FIGURE 9-1 as an example, T for the first step is T3 − T2 = −3.75C.
Therefore H = −q = −(−3.75C  209.2 J/C) = +785 J.
Carry out the analogous calculation to find H for the second step. Be careful here, since the initial
temperatures of the two solutions you are mixing are not the same. It is useful to imagine two separate containers
of water of equal volume, one at 20C and the other at 30C, being mixed together. Heat would flow from the
warmer water to the cooler water until they were at the same temperature. Since the heat capacities of the two
liquids are the same, this final temperature would be the average of the two, or 25C. (For the first step of the
Solid First pathway, it would be the average of the initial temperature of the NaOH solution and the initial
temperature of the NH4Cl solution, which, of course, is the final temperature of the first step). From FIGURE 9-
1, this average is (T1 + T3) / 2 = (23.51C + 19.55C) / 2 = 21.53C. The change in temperature caused by the
actual reaction occurring upon mixing is the change from this average temperature to the final temperature after
mixing, T4 in FIGURE 9-1. Therefore T = 22.02C - 21.53C = +0.49C. To calculate H for the second step,
remember that the amount of water present is doubled from what it was in the first step, since we treat the solution
added as though it were just water. Calculate the new heat capacity and use your temperature data to find H for
the second step. In this example, H = −0.49C  2  209.2 J/C = −205 J.
Analyze your results for both pathways and enter them in the data sheets provided.

B. Enthalpy Changes—NaOH and HCl Reaction

Treat your data from this part of the experiment in exactly the same manner you treated the data in Part B.
Use the measured temperature changes to determine the enthalpy changes for the individual steps, and enter your
results in the data sheets provided.

C. Test of Hess’s Law

Transfer the enthalpy changes for the individual steps from your results in Parts B and C to the blanks provided
in the data sheets for Part D. Use Hess’s Law of Constant Heat Summation (see the INTRODUCTION) to calculate
the overall H for each of the two pathways for each of the two overall processes studied. Calculate the difference
between the two overall H values in each case and enter it into the data sheet. The size of this difference depends
mainly on two things: the validity of Hess’s Law, and the quality of your experimental technique. If Hess’s Law
is valid, the value should be zero, within experimental error (since our calorimeter is rather crude, 10% error
would be acceptable).

Experiment 9 9-8
 EXPERIMENT 9
REPORT SHEET
Name: _______________________________________ Date:__________

A. ENTHALPY CHANGES – NH4Cl AND NaOH REACTION

SOLID FIRST Pathway SOLID LAST Pathway

Mass of NH4Cl ______________ _____________

Initial temperature (NaOH(aq)) ______________ _____________

Initial temperature (water) ______________ _____________

FIRST STEP:

Initial temperature (water) ______________ (average) _____________

Final temperature ______________ _____________

Temperature change ______________ _____________

Heat capacity ______________ _____________

q ______________ _____________

Enthalpy change ______________ _____________

SECOND STEP:

Initial temperature (average) ______________ (diluted solution) ______________

Final temperature ______________ ______________

Temperature change ______________ ______________

Heat capacity ______________ ______________

q ______________ ______________

Enthalpy change ______________ ______________

Experiment 9 9-9
B. ENTHALPY CHANGES – NaOH AND HCl REACTION

SOLID FIRST Pathway SOLID LAST Pathway

Mass of NaOH ______________ ______________

Initial temperature (HCl(aq)) ______________ ______________

Initial temperature (water) ______________ ______________

FIRST STEP:

Initial temperature (water) ______________ (average) ______________

Final temperature ______________ ______________

Temperature change ______________ ______________

Heat capacity ______________ ______________

q ______________ ______________

Enthalpy change ______________ ______________

SECOND STEP:

Initial temperature (average) ______________ (diluted solution) ______________

Final temperature ______________ ______________

Temperature change ______________ ______________

Heat capacity ______________ ______________

q ______________ ______________

Enthalpy change ______________ ______________

Experiment 9 9-10
 EXPERIMENT 9
REPORT SHEET (CONT.)
Name: _______________________________________ Date:__________

C. TEST OF HESS’S LAW

NH4Cl + NaOH Reaction:

SOLID FIRST Pathway SOLID LAST Pathway

H for first step ______________ ______________

H for second step ______________ ______________

Overall H ______________ ______________

Difference between the two overall H values _________________

NaOH + HCl Reaction:

SOLID FIRST Pathway SOLID LAST Pathway

H for first step ______________ ______________

H for second step ______________ ______________

Overall H ______________ ______________

Difference between the two overall H values _________________

Experiment 9 9-11
 Notes for Experiment 9

Procedure considerations and helpful hints:

• 1M HCl and 1M NaOH are caustic materials! Wear your goggles! Avoid spilling. If
you spill some on your clothes or skin, rinse with water as soon as possible. If you spill
a large amount on the floor or benchtop, notify your TA.

• Solid NaOH is very caustic! Do not let it come into contact with your skin! Clean up
any NaOH spills around the balance area!

• The calculations in this experiment are challenging! You should perform the
calculations for at least one pathway before you leave so that your TA can help make
sure that you are doing them correctly.

• In order to answer one of the Discussion questions, you will need to look up the heat
of solution values for NaOH and NH4Cl. These values can be found by searching the
internet (e.g., ‘heat of solution NH4Cl’) Note the units for these values given at
the top of the table.

10/22

Experiment 9 9-12