The Hand

Warmer
Challenge
Cole Weber, Tony Molloy,
Ingrid Borgesen, Emilie Baxter

Big Question
How can we make an effective, safe, environmentally
friendly, and inexpensive hand warmer?

Brainstorming
Clickit2heatit
Unique compared to other groups
Most practical (reusable)
Easy to use
Inexpensive

Investigation
Calorimetry: a technique in chemistry used to determine enthalpy change of the dissolution.
Our Lab: Using a calorimeter, measure the total enthalpy change when a salt is added to the
water.

Investigation
Our Data:
Salt

Average
Temperature/Gr
am (*C/g)

NaC2H3O2

-0.76

CaCl2

2.81

LiCl

5.30

NH4NO3

-2.28

NaCl

-0.13

SrCl2

-0.59

Investigation
Does sodium acetate have a high specific heat?
- 100.83 J/molK
- Lithium Chloride: 48.03 J/molK
Why is sodium acetate the best salt for heat packs?
- Its ability to be a supersaturated solution
- Its inexpensive
- Its safe

What is Energy?
Energy: the ability to do work
Enthalpy: the sum of internal energy in a system and the product of pressure and volume.
Entropy: measure of disorder in a system.

Law of Thermodynamics
1st: the total energy of an isolated system is constant; energy can be transformed from one
form to another, but cannot be created or destroyed.
2nd: In any cyclic process the entropy will either increase or remain the same.

Energy
Enthalpy (q) - the total heat content of a system.
q = mc T
Mass of substance (m) : 160 g
Specific Heat Capacity (c) : 4.184 J/g*C
Temperature Change ( T) : 48*C - 24.5*C = 23.5*C
q = -15,731.84 J

Exothermic Reaction

The Exothermic Reaction

Definition: a chemical reaction that releases energy in the form of light or
heat.

The Endothermic Reaction

Definition: a reaction or process on which the system absorbs energy from its
surroundings.

Phase Change Reaction

Phase Change Reaction

The liquefying and solidifying of sodium acetate hydrate can be represented
by:

NaC2H3O2 3H2O(l)

NaC2H3O2 3H2O(s) + heat

Phase Change Reaction

The forward reaction which creates the heat in a hand warmer is an
exothermic reaction. This is a negative free energy change. This represents
the crystallization process.

Phase Change Reaction

The reverse reaction which is the melting process is an endothermic
reaction with a positive free energy change. This was evident by the need to
add heat to, or boil the pouch.

Our Prototype
A Supersaturated, Supercooled Sodium Acetate Solution
Supersaturated and supercooled means that there is more sodium
acetate than the saturated solution and the sodium acetate has been
cooled below its freezing point of 54*C without crystallization. In a sealed
container, the solution can be cooled to -10*C without freezing.

Our Prototype
The Nucleation Site
Start with a supersaturated, supercooled sodium acetate solution and a
piece of metal
The metal circle serves as the nucleation site, or where the reaction
occurs. When bent, a single molecule of sodium acetate trihydrate to
crystallize and act as a seed crystal that starts the chain reaction.

How Does It Heat Up?

The solution climbs to its
freezing point of 54*C
when the sodium acetate is
activated by the
crystallization, changing
from liquid to solid.
It will not exceed 54*C and
stay at 46*C for 30 to 40
minutes.

Troubleshooting
We made 4 prototypes:
1) 150 mL of water, 30 g of sodium acetate - NOT a supersaturated solution
2) 30 mL of water, 160 g of sodium acetate - frequent exposure to air did
messed with the sodium acetate concentration
3) 30 mL of water, 160 g of sodium acetate - when our several metal disks
failed and the plastic seal kept breaking, the solution kept spilling
4) It worked!

Reusable
Our hand warmer is reusable because when solidified sodium acetate
trihydrate crystals are then heated (boiled) to a temperature greater than
54*C, the crystals will melt, forcing the sodium acetate to dissolve in its
own water of hydration.
It can be reused 30 to 40 times.

Safety
Sodium acetate is a body tissue irritant, meaning if there is a leak, just
wash the sodium acetate off the skin with soap and water. Similarly, if sodium
acetate reaches the eye, flush out the eye to prevent irritation. If ingested,
there may be complications but it is far from fatal.
* Sodium acetate should be treated similarly to common household items like
baking soda and vinegar.

Cost of Materials per

Handwarmer
Materi
al

Amount
per
handwar
mer

Cost of
amount per
handwarmer

Sodiu
m
Acetat
e

80g

$2.32

Plastic

140cm2

$0.10

Metal
Disks

1 disk or
2 pennies

$0.30 or
$0.02

Food
Colori
ng

4 drops

$0.20

Pricing
Pricing Factors:
$2.92 to produce each hand warmer.
Reusability adds value and appeal.
Wow factor - reaction looks cool.
Safe to use
Our Price:

$4.00

Why Pick Us?

Phase Change vs. Chemical Reaction
The feel of a solid is more appealing than a liquid.
Its inexpensive.
Its reusable!