Sciencemadness Discussion Board

How could I find the heat of combustion for butane given a butane lighter, metal can, and thermometer?

extra.email.forpop - 31-3-2009 at 16:32


sparkgap - 31-3-2009 at 16:35

Look into how bomb calorimeters work. ;)

sparky (~_~)

extra.email.forpop - 31-3-2009 at 16:44

What's the "bomb" and ignition unit?

Heat of Combustion

extra.email.forpop - 31-3-2009 at 16:59

What measurements/information do I need to calculate the heat of combustion of something?

Paddywhacker - 31-3-2009 at 17:38

Is this a homework question?

You need to combust a known quantity of the material and measure the amount of energy that it gives out, for example, by measuring how much it heats up a known volume of water. Look up Bomb Calorimiters, as the dude advised.

Swede - 1-4-2009 at 09:49

Weigh the lighter. Add a known mass of H20 to the can. Measure temp of water. Apply heat with lighter, measure resulting water temp.

Weigh the lighter again, giving you the amount of butane consumed. So now you know the moles of butane burned, the mass of the water, and the temperature change. From there, it's all math!