ABAN, QUILAN PATRICK L. MR.

VITANCOL
BSED-SCIENCE 2-1 THERMODYNAMICS LAB

EXPERIMENT#1 THERMAL EXPANSION

Overview
Thermal expansion is the tendency of matter to change in shape, volume, and area in
response to a change in temperature. Temperature is a monotonic function of the
average molecular kinetic energy of a substance.
Thermal expansion is the phenomenon observed in solids, liquids, and gases. In this
process, an object or body expands on the application of heat (temperature). Thermal
expansion defines the tendency of an object to change its dimension either in length,
density, area, or volume due to heat. When the substance is heated it increases its
kinetic energy. Thermal expansion is of three types:

 Linear expansion
 Area Expansion
 Volume expansion
The relative expansion of the material divided by the change in temperature is known as
the coefficient of linear thermal expansion. The coefficient of linear thermal expansion
generally varies with temperature.
Over small temperature ranges, the fractional thermal expansion of
uniform linear objects is proportional to the temperature change. This fact can be used
to construct thermometers based on the expansion of a thin tube of mercury or alcohol.
Several equivalent forms of the relationship find use. The calculation is set up in the
form
Length change = Original length x alpha x delta T

A power law is a relationship in which a relative change in one quantity gives rise
to a proportional relative change in the other quantity, independent of the initial
size of those quantities.
A power law can be turned into a linear relationship if we plot the variables on
logarithmic axes. Plotting two quantities against each other in this way is how we
generally determine if they have a power law relationship.
Percent error is the difference between the estimated value and the actual value in
comparison to the actual value and is expressed as a percentage. In other words, the
percent error is the relative error multiplied by 100.
ABAN, QUILAN PATRICK L. MR. VITANCOL
BSED-SCIENCE 2-1 THERMODYNAMICS LAB

Power Law Graph

Copper

Lead

Aluminum
ABAN, QUILAN PATRICK L. MR. VITANCOL
BSED-SCIENCE 2-1 THERMODYNAMICS LAB

Data Sheets
Metal Bars Used ALUMINUM LEAD COPPER

Initial Length 69.3 cm 69.3 cm 69.3 cm

Change in Length 1.20 mm 0.63 mm 0.89 mm

Initial Temperature 99.2 kΩ (26.87 °C) 98.5 kΩ (26.5 °C) 101.9 kΩ (25.3 °C)

Metal Bars Used Points used Temperature Resistance

COPPER 1. 0.5mm 1. 27C° 1. 90.0 kΩ

2. 0.55mm 2. 32C° 2. 72.9 kΩ
3. 0.57mm 3. 34C° 3. 66.3 kΩ
4. 0.59mm 4. 35C° 4. 62.3 kΩ
5. 0.61mm 5. 37C° 5. 58.7 kΩ
6. 0.63mm 6. 38C° 6. 55.3 kΩ
7. 0.64mm 7. 40C° 7. 52.3 kΩ
8. 0.65mm 8. 40.5C° 8. 50.8 kΩ
9. 0.67mm 9. 41C° 9. 49.5 kΩ
10. 0.69mm 10. 42C° 10. 46.9 kΩ

LEAD 1. 0.38mm 1. 27C° 1. 91.0 kΩ

2. 0.39mm 2. 28C° 2. 89.4 kΩ
3. 0.4mm 3. 30C° 3. 79.6 kΩ
ABAN, QUILAN PATRICK L. MR. VITANCOL
BSED-SCIENCE 2-1 THERMODYNAMICS LAB

4. 0.42mm 4. 32C° 4. 73.5 kΩ

5. 0.43mm 5. 33C° 5. 69.6 kΩ
6. 0.45mm 6. 36C° 6. 61.0 kΩ
7. 0.48mm 7. 39C° 7. 54.1 kΩ
8. 0.5mm 8. 40C° 8. 50.5 kΩ
9. 0.55mm 9. 43C° 9. 44.7 kΩ
10. 0.57mm 10. 45C° 10. 40.1 kΩ

ALUMINUM 1. 0.58mm 1. 24C° 1. 99.9 kΩ

2. 0.65mm 2. 25C° 2. 98.6 kΩ
3. 0.67mm 3. 26C° 3. 96.8 kΩ
4. 0.71mm 4. 26.5C° 4. 94.4 kΩ
5. 0.73mm 5. 27C° 5. 91.5 kΩ
6. 0.75mm 6. 28C° 6. 89.9 kΩ
7. 0.79mm 7. 28.5C° 7. 86.8 kΩ
8. 0.85mm 8. 29C° 8. 82.1 kΩ
9. 0.87mm 9. 30C° 9. 79.2 kΩ
10. 0.90mm 10. 31C° 10. 76.4 kΩ