Question

after the cold pack returns to room temperature, what can you say about the total energy (chemical, thermal, and anything else) stored in the pack? not enough information to tell it is greater than when you took the cold pack out of the first aid kit it is equal to when you took the cold pack out of the first aid kit it is less than when you too the cold pack out of the first aid kit

Answer 1

The total energy stored in the cold pack is equal to when it was taken out of the first aid kit

Step-by-step explanation:

When a cold pack returns to room temperature after being activated, we can comment on the total energy (chemical, thermal, and others) stored in the pack. To understand this, we must consider the conservation of energy principle, also known as the first law of thermodynamics.

This principle states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only converted from one form to another. When the cold pack is activated, an endothermic reaction occurs, where the chemical energy stored in the reactants (ammonium nitrate and water) is used to absorb thermal energy, resulting in a decrease in temperature of the pack. Once the pack returns to room temperature, this absorbed thermal energy has been dissipated into the environment to warm the pack back up.

The chemical energy originally in the cold pack has been converted into thermal energy and released. Therefore, the total energy in the pack is equal to when you took the cold pack out of the first aid kit, only that now it exists in a different form that has been spread into the surroundings.