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Endothermic - IGCSE Chemistry Definition

Reviewed by: Alexandra Brennan

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What are endothermic reactions?

In IGCSE chemistry, an endothermic reaction is a chemical reaction that absorbs heat energy from its surroundings, causing a drop in temperature. This occurs because the energy required to break bonds in the reactants is greater than the energy released when new bonds form in the products.

Common examples include thermal decomposition, photosynthesis, and the reaction between citric acid and sodium hydrogen carbonate.

In IGCSE Chemistry, endothermic reactions are studied in energy changes and are often represented using energy level diagrams, where the products have more energy than the reactants.

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Alexandra Brennan

Reviewer: Alexandra Brennan

Expertise: Chemistry

Alex studied Biochemistry at Newcastle University before embarking upon a career in teaching. With nearly 10 years of teaching experience, Alex has had several roles including Chemistry/Science Teacher, Head of Science and Examiner for AQA and Edexcel. Alex’s passion for creating engaging content that enables students to succeed in exams drove her to pursue a career outside of the classroom at SME.

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