Discovering Instant Cold Packs: Heat of Solution—ChemTopic™ Lab Activity

Familiar first-aid devices, commercial instant cold packs consist of a plastic package with a white solid and an inner pouch of water. Firmly squeezing the pack causes the inner pouch to break, and the solid dissolves in the water, producing a change in temperature. With the inquiry-based Discovering Instant Cold Packs: Heat of Solution—ChemTopic™ Lab Activity, design and carry out a procedure to determine the enthalpy change that occurs when a “cold pack solid” dissolves in water.