Thread: Specific Heat and other things

The specific heat is the amount of heat per unit mass required to raise the temperature by one degree Celsius. The relationship between heat and temperature change is usually expressed in the form shown below where c is the specific heat. The relationship does not apply if a phase change is encountered, because the heat added or removed during a phase change does not change the temperature.

Sample Problem
How much heat is needed to raise the temperature of 5 grams of copper by 10° Celsius?

1. First we identify the information we are given in the problem:
* mass = 5 g
* change in temperature = 10°C
* specific heat of copper = 0.09
2. Next, we place this information into the formula:
* heat gained = mass x change in temperature x specific heat
* heat gained = 5 g x 10°C x 0.09 cal/g°C
3. Solving the equation gives a heat value of 4.5 cal

Sample Problem
A 50 g substance loses 23 calories of heat energy when the temperature falls from 35°C to 20°C. What is the specific heat of the substance?

1. We identify the information given in the problem:
* mass = 50 g
* heat lost = 23 cal
* change in temperature = 15°C
2. We now place the information into the formula:
* heat gained = mass x change in temperature x specific heat
* 23 cal = 50 g x 15°C x specific heat
* 23 cal/50 g x 15°C = 50 g x 15°C x specific heat/50 g x 15°C
3. Solving the equation gives a specific heat value of 0.03 cal/g°C

http://www.gmhsscience.com/problems/heat.htm

Conduction


Convection:


Simple radiation: