why are ice packs at 0 degree better for cooling a sprained ankle than similar sized packs containing water at 0 degree?
thanks
Ice has much more thermal capacity to cool. Consider the heat that has to be removed at 0C to turn to ice, 80cal oer gram.
Ice packs at 0 degrees Celsius are better for cooling a sprained ankle than similar-sized packs containing water at 0 degrees Celsius because of a concept called latent heat of fusion.
When water reaches its freezing point and starts turning into ice, it releases a considerable amount of heat energy, which is known as the latent heat of fusion. This energy is required to break the intermolecular bonds within the water molecules and convert them from a liquid state to a solid state.
In the case of ice packs, this release of heat energy during the phase change from water to ice helps in absorbing more heat from the sprained ankle. It allows the ice pack to maintain a lower temperature for a longer period compared to packs containing just water at the same temperature.
On the other hand, packs containing only water at 0 degrees Celsius do not undergo a phase change and lack the additional heat-absorbing capacity provided by the latent heat of fusion. As a result, they are not as effective in cooling the sprained ankle.
In summary, ice packs at 0 degrees Celsius are better for cooling a sprained ankle because of the additional heat-absorbing capacity provided by the latent heat of fusion when water turns into ice.