This is a question sent by a local student that is reading this Chemistry Blogsite very closely.
Hi there i would like to ask a qn regarding the chapter on energy changes and hope you will reply. (:
Q)?When steam is passed through white-hot coke, a reaction occurs and the temperature of the coke falls.What does this indicate?
Answer: The reaction is endothermic(this is a mcq qn)
My question to you is: “Why is the answer endothermic?Since the temperature of the coke falls, isnt it giving out energy?By giving out energy, thus the temperature falls.And the definition of exothermic is heat exits while for endothermic it is heat taken in.So, why isnt the answer exothermic then?
P.S i find this chapter the terms exothermic and endothermic quickly deceiving and confusing.
This chapter is in fact a very short chapter that does not require much memorization or calculation to score. But you do need to have a good foundation of the concepts behind it.
Below will be my suggested answer. Important concept to grasp for this topic on Energy Changes is to understand & differentiate SYSTEM (i.e. reactants , products) and its Surrounding (i.e. container, surrounding air, solution, etc). Click on image to have a clearer view)
PS: Check “comments” section below for suggested answers