Magnesium powder, iron and salt react with water to produce more heat, which helps the solder quickly heat up the rations.
When fighting on the battlefield, the soldier does not have much time to prepare the meal, while the energy needs are very large after the maneuvering process, tired combat. To address this problem, many countries around the world provide soldiers with field-based food packages (MREs).
One of the important characteristics of MRE is its ability to heat itself without the stove. Soldiers need only to add water to trigger a heat-sensitive chemical chain, heating food on the spot, according to How Stuff Works.
Thermal response is a common phenomenon in nature, typically metal oxidation. The principle of heating MRE is based on oxidation of magnesium, which generates large amounts of heat in a short time.
Magnesium powder is mixed with salt and iron powder, this mixture is contained in a plastic bag that comes with MRE. When adding water, the reaction will take a few seconds and boil this amount of water. The soldier just needs to pack the mixture into the food bag, the heat generated from the reaction will heat the food for a few minutes.
If only magnesium and water, the reaction will occur too slowly, not generating enough heat as required. The presence of iron powder and salt is key to accelerating the reaction. Water dissolves salt, producing an electrolyte containing magnesium and iron. The contact between magnesium and iron generates a catalytic reaction, the source of the initial heat of the water
The 8g hot mix in each US Army MRE package usually contains 95% magnesia powder and 5% iron powder. After adding 30 ml of water, this mixture can produce 50 KJ of heat to heat 230 g of food package to 37 degrees Celsius within 10 minutes.
One of the important characteristics of MRE is its ability to heat itself without the stove. Soldiers need only to add water to trigger a heat-sensitive chemical chain, heating food on the spot, according to How Stuff Works.
Thermal response is a common phenomenon in nature, typically metal oxidation. The principle of heating MRE is based on oxidation of magnesium, which generates large amounts of heat in a short time.
Magnesium powder is mixed with salt and iron powder, this mixture is contained in a plastic bag that comes with MRE. When adding water, the reaction will take a few seconds and boil this amount of water. The soldier just needs to pack the mixture into the food bag, the heat generated from the reaction will heat the food for a few minutes.
If only magnesium and water, the reaction will occur too slowly, not generating enough heat as required. The presence of iron powder and salt is key to accelerating the reaction. Water dissolves salt, producing an electrolyte containing magnesium and iron. The contact between magnesium and iron generates a catalytic reaction, the source of the initial heat of the water
The 8g hot mix in each US Army MRE package usually contains 95% magnesia powder and 5% iron powder. After adding 30 ml of water, this mixture can produce 50 KJ of heat to heat 230 g of food package to 37 degrees Celsius within 10 minutes.
Tu Quynh - According to vnexpress.net