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THERMODYNAMICS OF HOMEMADE ICE CREAM

Introduction

Have you ever wondered what it is about throwing salt on ice that makes it melt? And just why does it
melt? Where does the heat come from to melt the water? Why does it freeze again on the road at
night? These questions and many more about freezing and thawing will be looked at in this lab.

To start you off though let’s talk about how energy flows in any system. When you studied the air and
weather or osmosis and diffusion, you found that things always flow from areas of higher concentration
to areas of lower concentration. This automatic transfer of energy and material will always work to
balance the amount of energy and material. This is a natural law. From this we can deduce that heat
energy will always flow from areas of higher temperature to areas of lower temperature. Knowing this
simple rule, let’s look at a very tasty application of it.

Materials
 ½ cup whole milk = 118.5 mL whole milk
 ½ cup whipping cream = 118.5 mL whipping cream
 ¼ cup sugar = 50 g sugar
 ¼ teaspoon vanilla = 1.25 mL vanilla
 ½ to ¾ cup sodium chloride (NaCl) = 100 g - 150 g NaCl
 2-3 cups ice = 402 – 603 g ice
 1 – quart Ziploc bag
 1 – gallon Ziploc bag
 Thermometer
 Beakers
 Graduated cylinders

Conversions
In science, we use the SI (International System of Units) to make measurements; therefore, all
measurements are metric.
The table below includes basic measuring equivalents between standard and metric units.
Dry Measuring Equivalents
1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons = 15 ml
1/8 cup = 2 tablespoons = 30 ml = 25 g
1/4 cup = 4 tablespoons = 50 ml = 50 g
1/3 cup = 5-1/3 tablespoons = 75 ml = 67 g
1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons = 125 ml = 100 g
2/3 cup = 10-2/3 tablespoons = 150 ml = 134 g
3/4 cup = 12 tablespoons = 175 ml = 150 g
1 cup = 16 tablespoons = 250 ml = 201 g
Liquid Measuring Equivalents
1 cup = 8 fluid ounces = 237 mL
1 teaspoon = 1/6 ounces = 5.0 mL
1 tablespoon = 0.5 ounces = 15 mL
1 quart = 32 ounces = 946 mL
1 gallon = 128 ounces = 3.78 L