THE thermochemistry is the branch that studies energy exchanges, in the form of heat, involved in chemical reactions and changes in physical state.
When a reaction or change of state releases heat, we say it is a process exothermic. On the other hand, if there is heat absorption, it is a process endothermic.
These processes are continually in our daily lives, such as in plant photosynthesis, fuel burning, pollution of the environment, changes in the physical state of water, reactions that occur in our bodies and so on. against.
The study of these energy exchanges is important for our lives and our society, as it explains because reactions occur and allows us to predict how much heat they release and how much work they can accomplish. For example, the amount of heat released by burning fuels allows us to compare them and determine which is better; also the calorific content of food, which is shown on the labels, helps us to establish what is best to include in our daily diet or not.
The texts in this section will cover several examples of these types of processes, the related concepts, such as energy, heat, temperature, work and enthalpy; as well as the importance of the studies carried out by Chemistry in this specific field.
By Jennifer Fogaça
Graduated in Chemistry