PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

Space for Working

1 A swimmer climbs out of a swimming pool on a warm, dry day. Almost immediately he begins to feel cold.
Why is this?

A The water allows a convection current to remove heat from his skin.
B The water takes latent heat from his body in order to evaporate.
C The water on his skin is a good conductor of heat.
D The water prevents infra-red radiation from reaching his body.

2 Ice at –10 °C is heated at a constant rate until it is water at +10 °C.

Which graph shows how the temperature changes with time?

3 A 2 kg mass of copper is heated for 40 s by a heater that produces 100 J / s.

The specific heat capacity of copper is 400 J / (kg K).

What is the rise in temperature?

A 5K B 10 K C 20 K D 50 K

4 Heat energy is supplied at the same rate to 100 g of paraffin and to 100 g of water in similar containers.
Why does the temperature of the paraffin rise more quickly?

A The paraffin has a larger specific heat capacity than water.

B The paraffin has a smaller specific heat capacity than water.
C The paraffin is less dense than water.
D The paraffin is more dense than water.

5 In an experiment to find the specific heat capacity of a metal, it is found that 5200 J is needed to
raise the temperature of a 2kg block by 20 °C.

What value for the specific heat capacity is given by these results?

A 130 J / (kg °C) B 520 J / (kg °C)

C 52 000 J / (kg °C) D 104 000 J / (kg °C)
PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

6 A hot liquid is carefully poured into a beaker. The graph shows how its temperature changes as itcools
towards roomtemperature.Which processes are taking place at region X? Space for Working

A boiling and evaporation B condensation only

C evaporation only D solidification and evaporation

7 Some ice cubes are taken from a deep-freeze and placed in a metal container. The container isheated at a
constant rate and readings of temperature and time are taken. The results arerecorded on a graph.

Which temperature corresponds to 0 °C?

8 The energy required to change liquid water into water vapour at the same temperature is calledlatent heat
of vaporisation.What does this energy do?

A increases the average separation of the water molecules

B increases the average speed of the water molecules
C raises the temperature of the air near the water
D splits the water molecules into their separate atoms

9 A 2 kW kettle containing boiling water is placed on a balance. It is left there and continues to boilfor 5
minutes. The balance reading changes by 0.2 kg.

What does this information give as a value for the specific latent heat of vaporization of water?

A 2000 J / kg B 3000 J / kg
C 50 000 J / kg D 3 000 000 J / kg
PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

10 What is the definition of heat capacity?

Space for Working
A the quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of an object through 1 °C
B the quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of 1kg of a substance through 1 °C
C the quantity of heat required to convert an object from solid to liquid without a change in
temperature
D the quantity of heat required to change 1 kg of a substance from solid to liquid without a
change in temperature
11 The graph shows the cooling curve of a hot substance.

In which part of the curve is latent heat released?

A PQ B QR C RS D ST

12 Ice is taken from a freezer and left in a room. The ice melts and eventually the water reaches room
Temperature.Which energy transfers take place?

energy transfer during

energy transfer after melting
melting
A from ice to room from water to room
B from ice to room from room to water
C from room to ice from room to water
D from room to ice from water to room

13 Using an electric kettle, 100 g of water at 100 °C is converted into steam at 100 °C in 300 seconds.
The specific latent heat of steam is 2250 J / g.

What is the average electrical power used?

14 A substance that is originally a solid is heated strongly for some time.

At one stage, the energy given to the substance is used as latent heat of vaporisation.

At this stage, what change does the energy cause?

A It breaks the bonds holding the molecules together. Molecules escape from the liquid.
B It breaks the bonds holding the molecules together. The solid becomes liquid.
C It makes the molecules move faster but there is still a strong attraction between them.
D It makes the molecules move faster and so the temperature rises.
PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

15 A block of metal has a mass of 2.0 kg. Its specific heat capacity is 800 J / (kg °C).
Space for Working
The block is supplied with 2400 J of energy.

What is the rise in temperature?

A 0.17 °C B 0.67 °C
C 1.5 °C D 6.0 °C
16 An ice-cube has of mass of 7.50 g. The ice-cube is at 0 °C.
Heat from the surroundings reaches the ice-cube at an average rate of 1.25 J / s.
How long does it take for all of the ice to melt?
(specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 333 J / g)

A 35.5 s B 55.5 s
C 2000 s D 3120 s

17 What is the correct unit for the quantity shown?

Quantity unit
A electromotive force (e.m.f.) N
B latent heat J
18 An
C icepressure
pack is used to cool 0.25 kg ofkgwater.
3
/ m The specific heat capacity of water is 4.2 kJ / (kg °C).
D weight kg
How much thermal energy (heat) must the ice pack
extract from the water to reduce the water
temperature by 15 °C?

A 0.070 kJ B 1.1kJ
C 16 kJ D 250kJ

19 To raise the temperature of a 2.0 kg block of metal by 20 °C, energy of 5.2 kJ is needed.
What is the value of the specific heat capacity of the metal?

A 0.13 J / (kg °C) B 52 J / (kg °C)

C 130 J / (kg °C) D 52 000 J / (kg °C)
PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

20 Substances can change from one state to another as shown. Space for Working

For substances to change from one state to another, there must be some energy transfer.
Which changes involve the substance taking in energy and which changes involve the substance
giving out energy?

energy taken in energy given out

A 1 and 2 3 and 4
B 1 and 3 2 and 4
C 2 and 4 1 and 3
D 3 and 4 1 and 2

21 A substance has a melting point of –17 °C and a boiling point of 117 °C.

In which state does the substance exist at –10 °C and at 110 °C?

at –10 °C at 110 °C
A solid Liquid
B solid gas
C liquid liquid
D liquid gas

22 An ice cube, at a temperature of 0° C, has a mass of 10 g. The specific latent heat of fusion of water is
3 × 105J / kg. How much heat energy is needed to convert the ice cube into 10 g of water at 0° C?

A 30 J B 3000 J
C 3 × 104J D 3 × 106J

23 A strip is made from two metals joined together. The diagrams show the strip at room temperature and after
it has been cooled.

The change in shape occurs because

A brass contracts more than invar.

B brass expands when it cools down.
C invar and brass contract by equal amounts.
D invar contracts more than brass.

24 Thermal energy of 12000J is supplied to a 2.0kg mass of copper.

PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

The specific heat capacity of copper is 400J / (kg oC).

What is the rise in temperature?

A 15oC B 30oC C 60oC D 100oC

25 What happens to the molecules of a gas when the gas changes into a liquid?

A They move closer and lose energy.

B They move closer and gain energy.
C They move apart and lose energy.
D They move apart and gain energy.

ANSWER KEY
1 B 6 D 11 B 16 C 21 C
2 B 7 C 12 C 17 B 22 B
3 A 8 A 13 B 18 C 23 A
4 B 9 D 14 A 19 C 24 A
5 A 10 A 15 C 20 A 25 A
PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

DETAILED ANSWERS
1 The water molecules absorb latent heat from the body of swimmer in order to evaporate causing the cooling effect.

2 From -10C° to 0C° temperature of ice rises.

At 0°C.temperature of ice stays same during melting.
From 0C° to 10°C, the temperature of water rises again.

3 Pt = mc
100 x 40 = 2x400 
 = 5K

4 The substance having less specific heat capacity is better conductor of heat, so temperature of paraffin rises more quickly than
water.

5 Q = mc
5200 = 2xC x20
C = 130 J/(Kg°C)

6 At X temperature remains constant so liquid is solidifying. During the solidification heat is also lost by the evaporation from the
surface of liquid.

7 During the melting of ice cubes temperature remains constant at 0°C.

8 The latent heat overcomes the intermolecular forces and hence the spaces between water molecules increase.

9 Pt = mL
(2x1000) (5x60) = 0.2L
L = 3000000 J/Kg

10 Statement A is the definition of heat capacity. The formula for heat capacity is Q = C.

11 During QR temperature of substance remains constant and latent heat is released out.

12  During melting the ice absorbs latent heat from room.

 After melting, the water at 0°C again absorbs heat energy from room to raise its temperature.

13 Pt = mL
P x 300 = 100 x 2250
100 x 2250
P= W
300
14 The intermolecular forces between liquid molecules are finished and hence the molecules escape out from the surface of liquid.

15 Q = mc
2400 = 2x800
= 1.5°C

16 Pt = mL
1.25 x t = 7.50 x 336
t = 2000 s approximately

17 Since latent heat is a form of energy so it is measured in J.

18 Q = mc
= 0.25 x (4.2x100) x 15
= 15750 J
= 16 KJ approximately.

19 Q = mc
(5.2x100) = 2 x C x 20
PHYSICS/GCE O LEVEL THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER Paper 1

C = 130 J/(Kg°C)

20  During melting and boiling heat energy is absorbed by the substance.

 During condensing and freezing heat energy is given out by the substance.
21  Since substance melts at – 17C°, and –10C° is higher temperature than –17C° so substance at thistemperature is liquid.
 At 110C° substance remains in liquid state, as it boils off at 117C°.

10
22 Q = ml = × 3 × 105 = 3000J
1000
23 The substance which contracts more, also bends more i.e brass contracts more-than invar.

24 Q = mc∆θ
12000 = 2×400×∆θ
∆θ = 15 oC

25 The molecules move closer because they lose energy in the form of latent heat. In liquids intermolecular spaces are less than in
gases.