Construction and Operation of a Benchtop Four-Element Instrument for Analytical Microcalorimetry

A benchtop microcalorimeter has been designed, constructed, and applied to analytic determinations which include both inorganic and enzymic reactions. The exceptional stability and short equilibration time of the calorimeter have made possible its use for multiple analyses with facility. Ease of operation, nearly universal applicability, and readout in thermodynamic values, as well as the simultaneous availability of "kinetic" data make this instrument useful in analytic chemistry. The measurement of reaction ΔH provided directly by the instrument is widely applicable in analysis because enthalpy changes during the course of chemical reaction are universal with only most occasional exception.