Department of

PHYSICS
Experiment 106
Specific Heat
Name:
Course/Year: ME/1
Subject/Section: PHYS101L/A23
Date of Performance:
Date of Submission:
Criteria Score
Data Sheet with sample computation (40 points)
Guide Questions (GQ) (10 points)
Interpretation of Results (Analysis) (15 points)
Error Analysis (5 points)
Conclusion (15 points)
Application (10 points)
Graph/figure (5 points)

Instructor
Guide Questions

1. When is a system considered to be in thermal equilibrium? When does heat transfer from
one body to another stop?

It is observed that a higher temperature object which is in contact with a lower

temperature object will transfer heat to the lower temperature object. The objects will
approach the same temperature, and in the absence of loss to other objects, they will
maintain a constant temperature in a prolong amount of time. They are then said to be in
thermal equilibrium. Thermal equilibrium is the subject of the Zeroth Law of
Thermodynamics.

2. List down 2 sources of error in this experiment and your suggested solutions for these.

Source of Error: One variable of the experiment was temperature. The room was air
conditioned. The ambient temperature can affect the heat exchange in the system. It can
affect the initial and final temperatures.
Solution: The ideal ambient temperature should be 25 oC. It can be achieved if the air-
conditioned system is turned off. Furthermore, other devices than the system must be
distanced since heat can flow via convection, conduction, or radiation.
Source of Error: Calibration of apparatus and how it is used. The amount of materials used.
Solution: The calibration such as the different scales present in thermometer and how it is
read. The two thermometers must be checked before use; if different scales or precision is
present. The water to be use must be free from foreign bodies. A swift transition of the
metal from the boiling water to the calorimeter must happen and the metal must be dry
upon transition.

Analysis

Energy in transit between substances or systems due to the temperature difference between
them is defined as heat. The law of heat exchange stated when substances or systems in contact
heat flows from a higher temperature to a lower temperature substance or system. If two systems
or substances in contact reach a constant similar temperature in an amount of time, thus exhibiting
thermal equilibrium. The transfer of heat can cause a substance to undergo a change in temperature
and or change in phase. The quantity of heat involved if there was a change in temperature is
directly proportional to the product of the its mass, amount of change in temperature, and specific
heat capacity of that substance, as shown in equation1. Specific heat capacity is the amount of
energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 g of the substance by 1°C. The main principle used in
this experiment.

𝑄 = 𝑚𝐶∆𝑇 (eqn. 1)
 where 𝑄 is the amount of heat (cal); m is the mass (g) of the substance; C is the specific
heat (cal/g-Co ) of the substance; ∆𝑇 is the difference between the final and initial temperature (o
C) of the substance.
The experiment aims to determine the specific heat capacity of the metal by calorimetry
and law of heat exchange. Calorimetry is a method of determining an unknown heat quantity using
a calorimeter which utilized the law of heat exchange (mathematically expressed in equation 2).
The experiment used an insulated calorimeter wherein the dissipation of energy from the
calorimeter was minimized. The mass of metal, calorimeter, and water were 33.2 g, 46.7 g, and
129.4g, respectively. A boiling water bath was prepared to heat the metal. The temperature of the
boiling water was the initial temperature of the metal which was 97 oC. The recorded initial
temperature of calorimeter and water were 30 oC and 31 oC, respectively. The initial temperature
of water and calorimeter must be equal, an in-depth error analysis will be explained in the next
section. The heated metal was transferred into the calorimeter. The final temperature was 34.1 oC
for the metal, calorimeter, and water. A decreased temperature for the metal and increased
temperature of the water and calorimeter verified the law of heat exchange where heat flows from
a higher to lower temperature. The computed experimental specific heat was 0.2119 cal/g-Co. It
was compared to the accepted value i.e. 0.2174 cal/g-Co acquiring a 2.53 % percent error.

−𝑄𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑎𝑙 + 𝑄𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 + 𝑄𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟 = 0 (eqn. 2)

Error Analysis

The recorded data, misread temperature, computational error, misinterpreted instructions,

air-conditioned room, apparatus used, and transition of metal from water bath into calorimeter
were the errors in the experiment. A misread temperature and misinterpreted instructions caused
the errors for the recorded initial temperature of the calorimeter. The initial temperature of water
should also be the initial temperature of the calorimeter since heat from water flow into the
calorimeter via conduction. The correct initial temperature of calorimeter was 31 oC. Recomputing
the experimental specific heat of metal yielded 0.2071 cal/g-Co. The recorded accepted specific
heat of metal was 0.2174 cal/g-Co. It was rechecked and it should be 0.2171 cal/g-Co. Thus, the
percent error was 4.606 % not 2.53 %. A misread, and misrecord data can significantly affect the
results and findings of the experiment. Temperatures must be read when exhibited thermal
equilibrium wherein the substance or system being measured does not fluctuate. The air-
conditioned room also affect the heat transfer of the metal into calorimeter. The time of transition
may cause a loss heat. Although, practically there is no 100% transfer of heat.

Conclusion

The experiment demonstrated calorimetry in acquiring an unknown heat quantity that

utilized the law of heat exchange where the heated metal losses energy whilst the water and
calorimeter gained energy. The objectives of the experiment were using the principles of
calorimetry and law of heat exchange in combining objects with different temperatures; and using
law of heat exchange in determining the specific heat of solid metal. The experiment clearly
demonstrated the mechanism of heat flow. A higher temperature substance transfer heat to a lower
temperature substance in contact with each other. Unfortunately, due to the error in the recorded
data the computed experimental specific heat was inaccurate. However, recomputing and verifying
the data a more accurate experimental specific heat was computed. The experiment also
demonstrated thermal equilibrium wherein two objects in contact reach a similar temperature in
an amount of time–temperatures between objects or its surroundings must be measured in their
thermal equilibrium for accuracy. The experiment demonstrated the zeroth law and 1st law of
thermodynamics. The zeroth law for the thermal equilibrium and 1st law which stated the amount
of energy present in the universe is constant–it can only be transformed or converted into other
forms of energy. The summation heat of water, calorimeter, and metal does not equate to zero.
Practically, energy is not transformed or transmitted 100% but infinitesimal amount of energy is
being loss.

Application

Specific heat is the amount of heat that must be added to, or removed from, a unit of mass
for a given substance to change its temperature by 1°C. Water has a high specific heat capacity
and is low on cost, and is very effective when acting as a cooling agent in engines. A water pump
circulates the water around the engine, and the heat produced by the engine is absorbed by the
water. That hot water that circulates around the engine walls is then forced into the car’s radiator
where the heat from the water is released through the cooling fan. Engine parts constantly expand
and contract due to the fluctuation in heat within the engine. That is why it is imperative that metals
with similar specific heat capacities are put together, because if one metal heats up faster than
the other and they’re connected, and one expands faster than the other, then cracking and splitting
may occur.
The experiment utilized calorimetry, as mechanical engineering student the advancement
of heat engines via its thermal efficiency uses calorimetry. The bomb calorimeter that Berthelot
designed in 1880 measured the caloric value of fuels and was applied to determining the thermal
efficiency of a heat engine. A heat engine is a machine that absorbs heat at a high temperature,
performs mechanical work, and as a result, gives off heat at a lower temperature.