Ever wondered what exactly a bomb calorimeter is? Well, this is a bomb calorimeter.
It is basically a really, really, really well insulated container full of water that contains another container inside it that can burn any chemical to completion without losing any heat (well, very, very, very little heat).
Not impressed? Thought it would be a bit more James Bond? 'Fraid it is more Borne-Haber than Bourne Identity (Google it)
What is the point of it?
By using a Bomb Calorimeter, you can very accurately measure the enthalpy of combustion because no heat is lost to the environment, it is all used to raise the temperature of the water.
What do you need to know about it for CH1?
Very little, only that it is an improvement over using a polystyrene coffee cup and a plastic lid with a thermometer pushed through it
Hold on, just had a thought, if you used a bomb calorimeter to keep your coffee in, it would stay hot forever! Why hasn't somebody else thought of this? Infinity Coffee! It could be a big seller, you heard it here first.
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