Natural Science 4: Energy & Change

Tutorial Questions: Heat & its Effects

1. Determine the change in a 327 m length of steel railway track when the temperature changes from -
5.0°C to 30°C. The coefficient of linear expansion of steel is 12 x 10-6 (C°)-1.

2. An aluminium rod is 100 cm long when it is at a temperature of 27°C. What is the length of the rod at a
temperature of 8.5°C? The coefficient of linear expansion of aluminium is 24 x 10-6 (C°)-1.

3. A metal rod has a length of 62.55 cm when the temperature is 20.0°C. When the temperature is
increased to 114°C, its length is measured as 62.76 cm. What is the coefficient of linear expansion of
the metal?

4. Copper has a specific heat capacity of 390 joules per kilogram per °C. Explain what this means.

5. The graphs alongside show the changes in temperature over A

Temperature
time of two different quantities (volumes) of milk (A and B) B
when they are heated using the same heat source.
(a) Why do you think that the graphs start above the origin?
(b) Which of the graphs (A or B) represents the LARGER
volume of milk? Give a reason for your answer. Time

Temperature
6. The graphs alongside show the changes in temperature over C
time of identical masses of two different metals (C and D)
when they are heated using the same heat source. Which D
of the metals (C or D) has the lower specific heat capacity?
Give a reason for your answer. Time

7. Complete the table by performing suitable calculations.

Specific heat Temperature

Mass Energy gained
capacity (J/kg/°C) Initial (°C) Final (°C) ∆T (C°)
2.0 kg 400 23 2.0
10 kg 400 40 46
120 g 400 30 10
3500 g 4200 5.0
4.0 kg 4200 20 60
2.0 kg 4200 50 12 000 J
500 g 400 16 8 800 J
700 20 80 7000 J
4200 50 45 8.4 x 106 J
1.5 kg 20 24 55 kJ

8. A pot of soup is heated by burning gas. The gas supplies 1000 J of heat every second.
(a) How much energy does the gas provide in (i) 10 s; (ii) in 20 s?
(b) Suppose that the heat capacity of the soup is 5000 J/kg.C°. How long does it take to increase the
temperature of the soup by 1.0 C°?

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Natural Science 4: Energy & Change

(c) How long will it take to warm the soup from 20°C to 80°C? (Assume that all the heat supplied goes
into the soup)
(d) In a real kitchen, why would it take longer than this?

9. A 0.25 kg steel block (specific heat of 450 J.kg-1.(C°)-1) is heated in a flame to a temperature of 300°C.
It is then dropped into 0.40 kg of water (specific heat of 4200 J.kg-1.(C°)-1) at an initial temperature of
15°C. What is equilibrium temperature of the system?

10. Determine the amount of heat required to melt 550 g of aluminium that is initially at -10.0°C. The
specific heat of aluminium is 900 J.kg-1.(C°)-1, the heat of fusion of aluminium is 3.22 x 105 J.kg-1.

11. Determine the amount of heat required to take 250 g of water that is initially at 22°C, and turn it into
steam at 120°C. The specific heat of steam is 2010 J.kg-1.(C°)-1, the heat of vapourisation of water is
2.26 x 106 J.kg-1.

12. Heat is supplied at a constant rate of 200 J.s-1 to 150 g of ice that is initially at -6.0°C. Calculate the
time it takes to turns the ice into water at 90°C. The specific heat of ice is 2100 J.kg-1.(C°)-1, the heat of
fusion of water is 3.33 x 105 J.kg-1.

13. (a) Steam at 110°C comes into contact with a hand at 36°C. Assuming that 5.0 g of the steam
condenses and reaches thermal equilibrium with the hand, how much heat energy is transferred to
the hand? The specific heat of steam is 2010 J.kg-1.(C°)-1, the heat of vapourisation of water is
2.26 x 106 J.kg-1. The average specific heat of the human body is 3470 J.kg-1.(C°)-1. Assume that the
heat is absorbed by only 2.0 g of the surface of the hand.
(b) Now, calculate the amount of heat energy absorbed by the hand if 5.0 g of boiling water (100°C)
reaches thermal equilibrium with the hand, making the same assumptions as before.
(c) Comparing your answers above, which results in a more severe burn to the skin – boiling water or
steam?

14. A learner noticed that the tiled floor in her bathroom felt much colder than the bathroom mat. To
confirm her observation, she measured the temperatures of both using a thermometer. The
thermometer gave both temperatures as 22°C, contrary to her expectations. Explain this apparent
discrepancy.

OPTIONAL CHALLENGE PROBLEMS: (For Physical Science specialisation students)

15. An aluminium measuring tape indicates the length of a steel beam to be 31.472 m when the
temperature is 0°C. What length will the tape indicate when both the tape and the beam are at 36°C?
The coefficient of linear expansion of steel is 12 x 10-6 (C°)-1 while the coefficient of linear expansion of
aluminium is 24 x 10-6 (C°)-1.
(Answer: 31.458 m)

16. A 100 g metal sample is heated to 100°C and then immersed in a calorimeter that contains 220 g of
water held in a copper container (c = 390 J.kg-1.(C°)-1 whose mass is 150 g. The water and container are
initially at 25°C. If the equilibrium temperature is 32.2°C, what is the specific heat of the metal
sample?
(Answer: 1047 J.kg-1.(C°)-1)

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