Flexi Says: It is sometimes very difficult or even impossible to measure the enthalpy change for a reaction directly in the laboratory. Some reactions take place extremely slowly, making a direct measurement unfeasible. In other cases, a given reaction may be an intermediate step in a series of reactions. Some reactions may be difficult to isolate because multiple side reactions may occur at the same time. Fortunately, it is possible to measure the enthalpy change for a reaction by an indirect method. Hess’s law of heat summation states that if two or more thermochemical equations can be added together to give a final equation, then the heats of reaction can also be added to give a heat of reaction for the final equation.
