Preliminary study on the selection of selfheating elements in self-heating pad / Muhammad Ammar Nasr Ahmad Nasir

• Main Author: Ahmad Nasir, Muhammad Ammar Nasr
• Format: Student Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: Food processing and manufacture; Packaging
• Online Access: https://ir.uitm.edu.my/id/eprint/78391/1/78391.pdf; https://ir.uitm.edu.my/id/eprint/78391/

Self-heating food packaging comprises of a heating pad and the food itself, which is heated by the food warmer provided. The meal warmer or heat pack is an active module that may generate heat without the need of external heat sources, a process known as an exothermic reaction. The Kembara meal pack is the most prominent implementation of this technology. This invention is excellent and practical for travel since it will help to re-heat the meals quickly and safely. Therefore, this study aimed to discover the best chemical composition of Citric acid with Sodium Hydroxide, Calcium Oxide with Sodium chloride and magnesium, Hydrochloric acid with sodium hydroxide and Sodium hydroxide with water to develop a self-heating pack for re-heating purposes of food. The most suitable characteristics of the heating pack is a reaction that can achieve higher final temperature with lower duration to rise and longest duration sustain at the highest temperature. The reaction of Citric Acid with Sodium Hydroxide was activated with 100ml and 200ml of water with each of temperature reaction occur was recorded. The result in this study indicated that the combination of 20g of Citric Acid with 60g NaOH in 100 ml of water exhibited the highest temperature 120℃ with the time sustained at highest temperature is 5 minute and took about 10 seconds to rise the highest temperature. Meanwhile, the lowest temperature was recorded is 41°C and it took around 13 minutes to reach the temperature when 40g of calcium oxide with 20g of magnesium and 10 g of sodium chloride were combined with 100 ml of water.