You dissolve a salt in water. How would you determine if the reaction is exothermic or endothermic??

Answer 1

How else but by measurement.....?

You evaluate the chemical exchange.

#NaCl(s) +Deltastackrel(H_2O)rarrNa^+ + Cl^-#

This reaction is SLIGHTLY endothermic, as we have to break the strong electrostatic forces between positive and negative ions. The ions in solution are the solvated or aquated species, i.e. #[Na(OH_2)_6]^+#, this is what we mean when we write #NaCl(aq)#.

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Answer 2

Cooper Adams

You can determine if the reaction is exothermic or endothermic by measuring the temperature change during the dissolution process. If the temperature of the solution increases, the reaction is exothermic. If the temperature decreases, the reaction is endothermic.

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Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.