Why are ice packs endothermic?

[serenag2c]

Why are the chemical reactions in an instant cold pack endothermic? I would think that because freezing is involved, heat is not being added to the system and bonds are not being broken, therefore making the process exothermic?

[hiranya sundar 2D]

Since freezing is involved, heat is actually being taken away from the system I think. Because the reaction needs energy in order to come to completion, heat is taken in and stored inside the bonds of the reaction that is happening, so the system appears to be freezing because it is converting heat into chemical energy, thus making the process endothermic.

[Sophia Balotescu 2B]

Since ice packs get cold because of a chemical reaction and not a physical phase change it's better to think of it as the ice pack absorbing the heat from the surroundings and your body. It feels cold because its absorbing the heat that is in contact with it.

[Dahlia Kirov 3A]

Hey!

The reason why it is endothermic is because an input of energy in the form of heat is required in order to activate the mixture that makes an ice pack cold in the first place. Dissolving the ionic compound in a chemical icepack necessitates energy, and its the dissolving of the ionic compound in water that produces the coldness of an icepack.

[Krikor_Kevranian_1F]

From my understanding of what's in an instant ice pack, it has ammonium-nitrate fertilizer in some sort of concealed part in the pack with the water. When you squeeze the pack to make it cold, the water and the ammonium-nitrate fertilizer mix together causing the mixture to become an endothermic reaction.

[Henley Roy- 1D]

Hi,
If we consider the ice pack as a system, it is technically making its surroundings, or whatever it is being used to cool, colder. Therefore, it must be taking heat in from its surroundings, and must involve endothermic reactions in order to be taking in heat.

[jadensy1L]

Hi! Ice packs absorb heat from the surroundings making it an endothermic reaction. That is why when you hold an ice pack, your hand becomes cold because the heat is leaving your hand and being transferred into the ice pack.

[nataliemartin2H]

An endothermic reaction absorbs heat from its surroundings, making the surroundings colder as a result. To know the answer to this problem when asked on an assessment, we don't need to truly understand what is happening during the reaction, we only need to measure the temperature change of the surroundings. Since an endothermic reaction absorbs heat, its surroundings will be colder. An exothermic reaction is the opposite, making the surroundings warmer as a result. We know that as a result of shaking an instant ice pack, the pack cools and makes it surroundings colder as a result of the reaction. So, an instant ice pack is endothermic. This is how you might quickly determine whether or not an unfamiliar reaction is endo vs. exothermic.

[Leily Garcia 1C]

Ice packs create a reaction when chemicals are mixed together. The reaction absorbs the heat around it, therefore becoming cold quickly forming an endothermic reaction.

[005966393]

Since it's endothermic, it takes heat from the surroundings for the reaction, which has the effect of cooling the surroundings down due to heat being transferred.

[105679122]

It is really helpful to take a step back from the problem in front of you and just think about what is happening as a result in the system. The ice pack is making things colder, when we touch them our hand gets cold due to the icepack taking our warmth. Therefore, energy is absorbed. The ice pack is taking my energy in the form of heat instead of us taking the heat.

[chloema7 1I]

Ice packs are endothermic because the chemical reaction that makes these ice packs cold absorbs energy and therefore, cools down the environment around it.

[Varun Sekar 2E]

Ice packs are endothermic because it is cool to the touch. In other words, if we consider the ice pack as a system, it is gaining heat from its surroundings, which is an endothermic reaction. Similarly, a hot cup of coffee is exothermic. This is because heat is released via the reactions inside causing it to be hot when we touch it.

[Thomas Tran 3D]

Hi,

I think cold packs are endothermic because they are absorbing heat (energy) from the surroundings. Heat moves from warmer objects to colder objects, so the heat from the surroundings would be transferred into the cold pack.

Hope this helps!

[905988526]

i like to think of it as ENdo= ENtering the system, and EXo= EXiting the system. So energy is being absorbed and therefor entering the system in order for the solids to form.

[Akilah Beatty 2k]

Ice packs absorb the heat from its surrounding. Something that helps me is that endothermic reactions absorb heat, whereas exothermic reactions release heat.

[205898077]

An ice pack is endothermic because it absorbs heat and melts.

[805810326]

Endothermic pertains to a process in which heat is being added into a system. Likewise in a system such as an ice pack, heat is being added to the ice pack when touches any surface outside of the freezer or its respective cooling environment. When heat is being added to the system this causes it to melt, likewise the heat absorbed by the ice pack causes it to melt which makes this an endothermic process. I hope this helps.

[Jessica Gebraeel 1A]

Ice packs absorb the heat from their surroundings to create the cold effect. Any form of melting is endothermic in the same way because it requires heat to occur. In other words, heat is a reactant in the reaction. It wouldn't make sense if it was exothermic because then it would be releasing heat, which is quire literally the opposite of its purpose!

[Bailey Shioya 2D]

Reactions that are endothermic absorb heat from its surroundings. Thus, an ice pack is endothermic because it’s takes in the heat from warmer surroundings, initiating the melting process.

[Isabella_Khatchikian_2I]

The chemical reaction inside an instant cold pack is endothermic. When the contents of the pack mix, they absorb heat from the surroundings causing the outside to feel cold.

[Saahithi Kari]

Ice packs are considered endothermic because the system (the ice pack) is absorbing heat from the surrounding environment and your body, which makes it cold to the touch. This idea that a system absorbs heat from its surroundings fits the definition of an endothermic reaction.

[isabella1012]

because they draw in heat from its surroundings and that's why it feels cold