9.2.9

Thermal Energy Transfer Experiments

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Heat Capacity Experiment

Two ways in which heat transfer changes materials are by changing the temperature of an object and by changing the state of an object.

Equipment

Equipment

  • This diagram shows the simple electrical heater method of finding the specific heat capacity, c, of a material.
Equipment 2

Equipment 2

  • Make sure that the heater is fully submerged into the material and that you check the mass of the block, m, with a balance.
  • There should be an ammeter and a voltmeter in the electrical circuit to make sure that the current and p.d. for the heater do not change.
  • The thermometer measures the initial temperature, T1, of the material and the temperature after every minute.
Method

Method

  • If you record the temperature at the start and after every minute, you can plot a temperature-time graph.
  • The graph will be shallow at first because it takes time for the block to heat the thermometer.
  • Once the graph has got to its steepest, you can draw the tangent to the curve.
Result

Result

  • The input power of the heater, IV, must equal mc × gradient.
  • So the specific heat capacity can be found by c = IV/mass × (temperature-time graph gradient).
  • This result ignores the effect of the apparatus heating the rest of the room. It also ignores the fact that the heating effect is not constant throughout the experiment.

Method of Continuous Flow

A much more accurate way of finding the specific heat capacity of a fluid is the method of continuous flow.

Apparatus

Apparatus

  • By using apparatus as shown in the diagram, you can measure the temperature at the left hand thermometer, Ta, and at the right hand thermometer, Tb.
  • When the electrical heater is switched on, Tb increases until thermal equilibrium is reached.
Equation

Equation

  • At this point, the heat energy supplied by the heater per unit time is equal to the sum of the internal energy gained by the water plus the heat energy lost by the water to the surroundings.
    • V1 I1 = m1 cwater (Tb - Ta) + H
    • Where m1 is the mass of water passing through the apparatus per unit time.
Second equation

Second equation

  • If the flow rate is changed and the electrical heater parameters changed so that the start and finish temperatures remain constant, then we get a second equation:
    • V2 I2 = m2 cwater (Tb - Ta) + H.
  • As the temperature profile of the apparatus is the same on both occasions, the heat energy supplied to the surroundings, H will be the same.
Combination

Combination

  • This means that equation 1 and equation 2 can be combined to give an expression for cwater
    • V2 I2 - V1 I1 = (m2 - m1) cwater (Tb - Ta)
  • So cwater = (V2 I2 - V1 I1)/(m2 - m1)(Tb - Ta)
  • The advantage of this method over the ‘heater in a beaker’ method is that the heat loss to the surroundings can be factored out. This means you can get a value closer to the true value.
Types of latent heat

Types of latent heat

  • Most materials have two specific latent heats.
    • Specific latent heat of melting (or fusion) for the solid to liquid phase transition.
    • Specific latent heat of vapourisation for the liquid to gas phase transition.
  • In either case, the amount of heat supplied, ΔE=l×Δm\Delta E = l \times \Delta m, where l is the specific latent heat and Δm is the mass of the material that changes phase.
Jump to other topics
1

Physical Quantities & Units

1.1

Physical Quantities & Units

1.1.1Use of SI Units1.1.2SI Prefixes, Standard Form & Converting Units1.1.3End of Topic Test - Units & Prefixes1.1.4Avogadro's Constant1.1.5Scalars & Vectors
1.2

Errors & Uncertainty

1.2.1Measuring Length, Time & Volume1.2.2Measuring Temperature1.2.3Circuit Measurements1.2.4Limitation of Physical Measurements1.2.5Uncertainty1.2.6Estimation1.2.7Displaying Data1.2.8End of Topic Test - Measurements & Errors
2

Kinematics

2.1

Equations of Motion

2.1.1Motion in a Straight Line2.1.2Graphs of Motion2.1.3Bouncing Ball Example2.1.4End of Topic Test - Motion in a Straight Line2.1.5Acceleration Due to Gravity
3

Dynamics

3.1

Momentum & Newton's Laws of Motion

3.1.1Mass & Inertia3.1.2Newton's Laws3.1.3Momentum3.1.4End of Topic Test - Newton's Laws & Momentum3.1.5A-A* (AO3/4) - Newton's Third Law
3.2

Non-Uniform Motion

3.2.1Projectile Motion
3.3

Linear Momentum & Conservation

3.3.1Conservation of Momentum
4

Force, Density & Pressure

4.1

Force, Density & Pressure

4.1.1Fields4.1.2Force in Uniform Fields4.1.3Friction4.1.4Buoyancy4.1.5Terminal Speed4.1.6End of Topic Test - Acceleration Due to Gravity4.1.7Centre of Mass4.1.8Forces & Equilibrium4.1.9End of Topic Test - Scalars & Vectors4.1.10Moments4.1.11End of Topic Test - Moments & Centre of Mass4.1.12Density4.1.13Pressure
5

Work, Energy & Power

5.1

Work, Energy & Power

5.1.1Work & Energy5.1.2Power & Efficiency5.1.3Conservation of Energy5.1.4End of Topic Test - Work, Energy & Power
5.2

Gravitational Fields

5.2.1Newton's Law5.2.2Gravitational Field Strength5.2.3Gravitational Potential
6

Deformation of Solids

6.1

Materials

6.1.1Bulk Properties of Solids6.1.2Energy in Materials6.1.3Young Modulus6.1.4End of Topic Test - Materials
7

Waves

7.1

Simple Harmonic Motion

7.1.1Simple Harmonic Motion7.1.2Simple Harmonic Systems7.1.3Energy in Simple Harmonic Motion7.1.4Resonance7.1.5End of Topic Test - Simple Harmonic Motion7.1.6A-A* (AO3/4) - Simple Harmonic Motion7.1.7End of Topic Test - Gravitational Fields
7.2

Waves

7.2.1Progressive Waves7.2.2Intensity of Waves7.2.3Wave Speed & Phase Difference7.2.4Longitudinal & Transverse Waves7.2.5End of Topic Test - Progressive Waves7.2.6Electromagnetic Waves7.2.7Doppler Effect7.2.8Sound Waves7.2.9Measuring Sound Waves7.2.10End of Topic Test - Waves7.2.11Ultrasound Imaging7.2.12Ultrasound Imaging 2
8

Superposition

8.1

Superposition

8.1.1Stationary Waves8.1.2Stationary Waves 28.1.3End of Topic Test - Stationary Waves8.1.4A-A* (AO3/4) - Stationary Waves8.1.5Interference8.1.6Interference 28.1.7End of Topic Test - Interference8.1.8Diffraction8.1.9Diffraction Gratings8.1.10End of Topic Test - Diffraction
9

Thermal Physics

9.1

Circular Motion

9.1.1Circular Motion9.1.2Circular Motion 29.1.3End of Topic Test - Circular Motion
9.2

Thermal Physics

9.2.1Temperature9.2.2Measuring Temperature9.2.3Ideal Gas Law9.2.4Ideal Gases9.2.5Boyle's Law & Charles' Law9.2.6Molecular Kinetic Theory Model9.2.7Molecular Kinetic Theory Model 29.2.8Thermal Energy Transfer9.2.9Thermal Energy Transfer Experiments9.2.10End of Topic Test - Thermal Energy & Ideal Gases9.2.11First Law of Thermodynamics
10

Communication

10.1

Communication Channels

10.1.1Communication Channels10.1.2Modulation10.1.3Attenuation
10.2

Digital Communication

10.2.1Digital & Analogue Signals10.2.2Representing Sound
11

Electric Fields

11.1

Electric Fields

11.1.1Coulomb's Law11.1.2Electric Field Strength11.1.3Electric Field Strength 211.1.4Electric Potential11.1.5End of Topic Test - Electric Fields11.1.6A-A* (AO3/4) - Electric and Gravitational Field
11.2

Capacitance

11.2.1Capacitance11.2.2Parallel Plate Capacitor11.2.3Energy Stored by a Capacitor11.2.4Capacitor Discharge11.2.5Capacitor Charge
12

Current Electricity

12.1

Current Electricity

12.1.1Basics of Electricity12.1.2Mean Drift Velocity12.1.3Current-Voltage Characteristics12.1.4End of Topic Test - Basics of Electricity12.1.5Resistivity12.1.6End of Topic Test - Resistivity & Superconductors12.1.7Power and Conservation12.1.8Microphones12.1.9Components12.1.10Relays12.1.11Strain Gauges
12.2

DC Circuits

12.2.1Circuits12.2.2Potential Divider12.2.3Emf & Internal Resistance12.2.4End of Topic Test - Power & Potential
13

Magnetic Fields

13.1

Magnetic Fields

13.1.1Magnetic Flux Density13.1.2End of Topic Test - Capacitance & Flux Density13.1.3Moving Charges in a Magnetic Field13.1.4Magnetic Flux & Flux Linkage13.1.5Electromagnetic Induction13.1.6Electromagnetic Induction 213.1.7Magnetic Flux Density13.1.8Magnetic Resonance Scanning
13.2

Alternating Currents

13.2.1Alternating Currents13.2.2Operation of a Transformer13.2.3End of Topic Test - Electromagnetic Induction & AC13.2.4Rectification
14

Modern Physics

14.1

Quantum Physics

14.1.1The Photoelectric Effect14.1.2The Photoelectric Effect Explanation14.1.3End of Topic Test - The Photoelectric Effect14.1.4Collisions of Electrons with Atoms14.1.5Energy Levels & Photon Emission14.1.6Wave-Particle Duality14.1.7End of Topic Test - Absorption & Emission14.1.8Band Theory14.1.9Diagnostic X-Rays14.1.10X-Ray Image Processing14.1.11Absorption of X-Rays14.1.12CT Scanners
14.2

Nuclear Physics

14.2.1Rutherford Scattering14.2.2Atomic Model14.2.3Isotopes14.2.4Stable & Unstable Nuclei14.2.5A-A* (AO3/4) - Stable & Unstable Nuclei14.2.6Alpha & Beta Radiation14.2.7Gamma Radiation14.2.8Particles, Antiparticles & Photons14.2.9Quarks & Antiquarks14.2.10Particle Interactions14.2.11Radioactive Decay14.2.12Half Life14.2.13End of Topic Test - Radioactivity14.2.14Nuclear Instability14.2.15Mass & Energy14.2.16Binding Energy14.2.17A-A* (AO3/4) - Nuclear Fusion

Practice questions on Thermal Energy Transfer Experiments

Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

  1. 1
    When should you draw a tangent to the temperature-time graph?Multiple choice
  2. 2
    What is the correct equation for specific heat capacity?Multiple choice
  3. 3
    Heat Capacity ExperimentPut in order
  4. 4
    Why is the method of continuous flow better than heating a beaker?Multiple choice
  5. 5
    Method of Continuous FlowPut in order
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Thermal Energy Transfer

End of Topic Test - Thermal Energy & Ideal Gases