Thermochemistry-You have the power!

Energy Transfer Device:

The driving question for this project was 'How can we convert Chemical Energy into another form of useful energy and how can we measure the amount of energy transferred between their systems?' At the macroscopic scale, energy can be seen in many ways, such as in electrical, mechanical, elastic, nuclear, thermal, sound, light, and electromagnetic energy. We explored these forms of energy by creating a device that could transfer one type of energy to another type of energy. A proof of efficacy document was required for this project in order to show the basis and blueprints behind our energy device. The name and function of the device, a description including steps of energy transfers and types of energy formed, photos, molecular blueprints, modifications made, and measurements of energy output were all essential to this document.

For my energy device I decided to use sound energy to illuminate an LED at the end. I used a microphone, speaker, sound sensor, and an arduino board to transfer three different types of energy through it. These included sound energy, electrical energy, and light energy. I created this sound machine to let a class know when they are being too loud. The LED lights up when the sound sensor picks up sound, so whispering is the key to making it not light up! Sound energy goes through the microphone as waves, then the diaphragm and coil vibrate and produce electrical energy through the cord, which is put out as sound energy through the speaker that the microphone is connected to. These new sound waves are then picked up by the sound sensor on the arduino board and are sent through it creating electrical energy. This electrical energy is then used to light up an LED at the end of the arduino board, producing light energy as the final energy output.

Content:

• First Law of Thermodynamics: this law states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, which means the total energy of the system remains constant, even if it’s converted from one form to another.

• Second Law of Thermodynamics: this law states that in all energy exchanges, if no energy enters or leaves the system, the potential energy of the state will always be less than that of the initial state.

• thermochemistry: the study of energy and heat regarding chemical reactions and physical transformations (a state of matter changing to another state). it is part of the branch of thermodynamics that focuses on changes occurring during chemical reactions.

• electrical energy: a type of kinetic energy caused by moving electric charges. the amount of energy depends on the speed of the charges. Ex: lightning, batteries, and electric eels.

• chemical energy: the energy of chemical substances that is released when they undergo a chemical reaction and transform into other substances. Ex: coal- combustion reaction converts chemical energy into light and heat.

• mechanical energy: the sum of the kinetic energy and the potential energy of an object or a system. Ex: wrecking ball.

• gravitational energy: the energy stored in an object due to its height above the Earth. Ex: river water at the top of a waterfall.

• elastic energy: the energy stored in an object when there is a temporary strain or pull on it, like a bow string. Ex: balloons, rubber bands, bungees and trampolines.

• nuclear energy: nuclear energy is the energy produced by nuclear fission, fusion, and decay reactions. Ex: a fission reaction at a nuclear power plant provides enough energy to give electricity to large cities.

• thermal energy: the movement of molecules and heat within an object or substance. The sun has the greatest thermal energy source. Ex: boiling water on a stove.

• sound energy: comes from vibrations moving through something. solids, liquids, and gasses all transmit sound as energy waves. Ex: musical instruments.

• light energy: a kind of kinetic energy with the ability to make types of light visible to human eyes. light contains photons which are minute packets of energy. Ex: light from stars, the sun, and flashlights.

• electromagnetic energy: a form of energy that is reflected or emitted from objects in the form of electrical and magnetic waves that can travel through space. Ex: radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, etc.

• exothermic reaction: when heat is produced in a reaction and is written on the product side- A+B -> C+D+heat.

• endothermic reaction: when heat goes into a reaction and is written on the reactant side- A+B+heat -> C+D.

• potential energy: the stored energy in any object or system based on its position or arrangement of parts. forms of potential energy include chemical, nuclear, gravitational, and elastic energy.

• kinetic energy: the energy that an object possesses due to its motion. forms of kinetic energy include light, electromagnetic, thermal, mechanical, sound, and electrical energy.

Reflection:

Throughout this project I learned a ton about perseverance, determination, and energy, of course. I had to overcome many obstacles regarding my energy device, but that allowed me to learn from my mistakes and modify/perfect my device. Not only did this project teach me about energy transfers, but the Energy Forms & Changes PhET simulation taught me even more about the specific types of energy that occur during different processes. Kinetic and potential energy are the two main categories of energy, but these can be seen in many forms, such as electrical, mechanical, elastic, nuclear, thermal, sound, light, and electromagnetic energy. In my device I used a microphone, speaker, sound sensor, and arduino board to convert sound energy to electrical energy, with the final energy outcome being light energy since an LED illuminates.

Regarding the 6 C's of the Graduate Profile, I would say I excelled most in critical thinking and communication. I had to deal with so many difficulties while constructing my device, such as not having necessary parts or realizing the device was not going to work, so I had to critically think about a lot of things in order to persevere through the obstacles that came my way. I did this by modifying my device and asking not only myself or the internet for help, but also my teacher for help regarding the construction and basis behind my energy device. I was able to improve my critical thinking skills during this project, so it was very successful for me! I also did well in communication, especially when I was in the group of 4. We communicated our ideas, thoughts, plans, and problems with one another, and were able to talk about what we liked best or wanted to pursue as our final idea, which is very important to a group's work. We decided to separate and focus on two different ideas towards the end, but we communicated the whole way through and it helped us a ton.

Although I did well in those two categories, two others that I could have been a bit better in were conscientious learning and collaboration. During the beginning of the project, my group and I collaborated and communicated very well with each other, but towards the end of it we decided to split up because we wanted to do different types of devices, but using the same energy transfers. Therefore, our collaboration lacked, especially for me, since I was by myself for the rest of it. I still got everything done, however, and really enjoyed my time with both my group and self. My conscientious learning could also have improved because I didn't manage my time very well at all for this project. I spent too much time planning and trying to find parts to put the device together, only to find out that we didn't have the correct parts and the device would never work. I still did everything that was required for the project, and turned them in on time, but if I would have managed my time better, then I would have known sooner that my planned energy device wasn't going to work.