THERMAL EQUILIBRIUM

Example 1
The lengths of the mercury column in a thermometer at the ice
point and the steam point are 12 cm and 20 cm respectively.
When the thermometer is placed in a liquid, the length of the
mercury column is 15 cm. What is the temperature of the
liquid?
Initially there is more heat transferred from hot to cold
object compare from cold to hot
There is net flow of heat from hot object to cold object
Temperature of the hot object decrease and temperature of
the cold object increase
After sometime the amount of heat transferred from A to B
and B to A is the same
Net flow of heat become zero
Both objects has the same temperature
Thermal equilibrium is achieved
Basic principle to construct a thermometer.
Two important principles to construct a thermometer are.
1
Specific thermometric property i.e. a physical quantity
which varies with temperature.
Thermometer
Thermometric property
Mercury thermometer
Volume of mercury varies with
temperature
2
Calibration of thermometer i.e the process of marking-up
a scale on a thermometer.
To produce a scale for a thermometer, two fixed points of
thermometer must first be selected.
a) Lower fixed point (0oC) is the melting temperature
of pure ice at standard atmospheric pressure.
b) Upper fixed point (100 o C) is the temperature of
steam a standard atmospheric pressure.
The formula is used to calibrate a thermometer

Example 2
The lengths of the mercury thread in a thermometer are 4.0 cm
and 24.0 cm respectively at 0oC and 100oC. What is the
length of the thread when the thermometer is placed in a
substance at 65 oC.

Mercury Thermometer

The specific thermometric property in used in this

thermometer the changes of the volumes of mercury with the
temperature i.e when the temperature increases ,the volume of
the mercury increases.
The sensitivity of the thermometer can be increased by
1
using a thinner-walled glass bulb
2
reducing the diameter of the capillary tube
3
smaller bulb
Mercury is used in the thermometer because
1
has a higher boiling point
2
does not stick to the glass
3
is opaque and therefore it is easier to read.
4
expands and contracts uniformly
SPECIFIC HEAT CAPACITY, c
The specific heat capacity of a material is defined as the
amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 kg of
the substance through a temperature of 1oC.
The S.I. unit for c is J kg-1 oC-1

A substance with a small specific heat capacity become hot

and cold easily.
A substance with a high specific heat capacity difficult to
become hot and cold.
= temperature of a substance
o= ice point
100= steam point
xo = the length of the mercury column at ice point
x100 = the length of the mercury column at steam point
x = the length of the mercury column when the thermometer is
placed in a substance

The relationship between m,c, and Q

Q = mc
Where,
Q = the heat energy transferred to the substance
m = the mass of the substance
c = the specific heat capacity of the substance
1

 = the temperature change

1) A metal of mass 2 kg. Calculate the amount of heat that
must be transferred to the metal to raise the temperature
from 30oC to 70oC. (specific capacity of the metal = 500 J
kg -1 o C-1 )
2) 8.4 x 10 5 J of heat energy raises the temperature of 4 kg of
water from 40oC to 90oC. What is the specific heat capacity
of the water?

(ii)Why is the final temperature of the water in beaker X

higher than that in beaker Y?
...
(b) (i) Calculate the rise in temperature of water in beaker Y
if block Q release 8 400 J of heat energy.

(ii)State one assumption which you have made in b(i).

3) 0.2 kg of water at 100oC is mixed 0.25 kg of water at 10oC.
What is the maximum temperature reached by the mixture?

......
6. Diagram 8.1 shows a 500W electric heater being used

4) A 2 kW, 240 V electric heater is used to raise the

temperature of 3 kg of water. If power is supplied for 8
minutes, what is the increase in temperature of the water?
(The specific heat capacity of water is 4200 J kg -1 o C-1)

5) The blocks P and Q in Figure 1 have the same mass. They

are immersed in boiling water for a long time. P and Q are
then transferred into beakers X and Y respectively as
shown in Figure 2. The mass of water in both beakers X
and Y is 0.25 kg and the initial temperature of the water in
each beaker is the same.
Figure 1
Figure 2

to heat a beaker of water on a compression balance.

(a) State the energy change involved when using the
heater to heat the water.
..............................................................[ 1 mark ]
(b) The mass of water is 0.5 kg and the specific heat
capacity of water is 4200 J kg- C-. The initial
temperature of the water is 30 C. Calculate the
energy absorbed by the water to reach its boiling
point.
[ 2 marks ]
(c) When the water is boiling, the reading of the
compression balance decreases by 0.0125 kg in
60 s. Calculate the specific latent heat of
vaporization of the water.

Specific heat capacity of P is 900 J kg-1 o C-1

Specific heat capacity of Q is 390 J kg-1 o C-1
Specific heat capacity of water is 4 200 J kg-1 o C-1
(a) (i)State the initial temperature of the blocks.

[ 2 marks ]
(d) Q, R and S are three different hot plates. These hot
plates are used to heat roti canai. Table 8 shows the
characteristics of each plate.

...
2

Hot
Plates

Specific Heat
Capacity,c
J kg-C-

Mass,
m
kg

Power,
P
W

390

3.0

600

900

2.5

1200

400

4.0

900

The initial temperature of each plate is 30 C. The plates

are ready to use when their temperature reaches 200C.
Calculate the time taken to reach 200C for each plate.
(i) Plate Q

Table 8
(a) What is the meaning of specific heat capacity?

...[1 mark]
(b) Based on Table 8, state suitable characteristics of
the pot if it is to be used for cooking something
rapidly. Give reason for the suitability of the
characteristics.
(i) Material for making the pot.
.
Reason
.... [2 marks]
(ii) Material for making the handle of the pot
..
Reason

(ii)Plate R

.. [2 marks]
(iii) Mass of the pot

(iii) Plate S

..
Reason
[5 marks]

(e) (i) Based on the answer in 8(d), Which plate is the

most suitable for heating roti canai ?
...................................................................[ 1 mark ]

. [2 marks]

(c) The pots are heated by using an electric hot plate

of power 800 W. Based on the information in the
Table 8, calculate the time taken to achieve a
temperature rise of 90oC for:
(i) The clay pot

(ii) State one reason for the answer in 8(e)(i)

...................................................................[ 1 mark ]

[2 marks]
(ii) The copper pot

7. Table 8 shows two types of pot and their

characteristics.
[2 marks]
(d) Determine the most suitable pot that is safest to
handle and can be heated in the shortest period of time.
. [1 mark]

8. Diagram 8 shows 2 models of frying pan.

8. Diagram 3.1 shows a metal block P of mass 300 g at initial

temperature 100 is immersed into the water at room
temperature.

P
water
Diagram 3.2 shows the graph of temperature against time
of block P until it achieve thermal equilibrium.

(a) What is meant by specific heat capacity?

...[1 mark]
(b) Based on the information in Diagram 8, state the suitable
characteristics of the frying pan that is used to cook food
faster.
(i) Type of surface
...[1 mark]
Reason
..,,...[1 mark]
(ii) Specific heat capacity
,,..[1 mark]
Reason
..,,....[1 mark]
(c) Based on the answer in 8(b), determine which model in
Diagram 8 will absorb heat effectively. Give reason for your
choice.

Temperature / oC

100
90
80
70
60
50
(a) What is meant by thermal equilibrium?
time / s
40
0 20 40
60 80 100 120
.............................................................
(b) What is the temperature of block P when it is in thermal
equilibrium?
.................................................................................[1 mark]
(c) Explain how block P achieve thermal equilibrium.

..,,...

...............................................................................................

...[2 marks]

.................................................................................[2 mark]

(d) A kettle contained 0.5 kg of water. The average heat absorb

by the water is 16 Js-1 in 25 minutes. Calculate:
(i) The amount of heat absorbed by the water.

[1 mark]
(ii) The increase in temperature of water. [Specific heat
capacity = 42 000 J kg-10C-1]

(d) Calculate the amount of heat lost by block P when its

achieved thermal equilibrium. [Specific heat capacity of
block P = 900 J kg-1 oC-1 ]
[2 mark]
9. Diagram 7.1 shows a cooling pad used to lower the
temperature of a person having fever. The pad consists of
a gel and is cooled in a refrigerator before it is placed on
the forehead of the person to remove the heat.

[2 marks]
(a) (i) What is meant by heat?
4

......................................................................[1 mark]
(ii) Explain how the heat is removed from the forehead of
the person

11. Diagram 11.2 shows a thermos flask used to maintain the

temperature of hot drink for a long time.

......................................................................................
.......................................................................[2 marks]
(b) The mass of the gel in the pad is 0.03 kg and its specific
heat capacity is 4300 J kg-1 C-1. The initial temperature of
the pad is 15 C and the final temperature is 36 C.
Calculate the amount of heat removed by the pad.

[2 marks]
(c) It is suggested that the cooling pad should be modified so
that it can remove more heat. Give two suggestion and the
reasons for doing so.
Suggestion 1:
.................................................................................[1 mark]
Reason:
.................................................................................[1 mark]
Suggestion 2:
.................................................................................[1 mark]
Reason:
................................................................................[1 mark]
10) The following table shows the characteristics of materials
which could be used to make the food container to keep
the food warm. You are asked to investigate the
characteristics of the materials in the table which could be
used to make the food container as in the figure above.
Explain the suitability of each characteristic in the table and
hence, determine which material is most suitable to be
used to make the food container. Justify your choice.
Charateristic

Density/
kg m-3

Melting
point / C

Specific heat
capacity/J kg-1 oC-1

Thermal
conductivity

2 710

660

910

High

910

27

1 600

Low

1 050

240

1 300

Low

2 600

1 200

670

Low

3 800

2 020

800

High

Table 11.1 shows the characteristics of four different thermos

flasks.
Thermos Stopper
Space P Double Walled tube
Flask
Made of
Coated
by
W
Hollow plastic Vacuum
Glass
Shiny
paint
X
Hollow plastic vacuum
Copper
Black
Paint
Y
Solid plastic
Air
Glass
Black
paint
Z
Solid plastic
Air
Copper
Shiny
paint
Explain the suitability of each characteristics of the thermos
flask and determine the most suitable thermos flask. Give your
reason.
12) Diagram 11.2 shows an ice cream container used by an ice
cream seller using his motorcycle. Table 11.3 shows the
specification of four types of ice cream containers P, Q, R and
S, that can be used by an ice cream seller to carry ice cream.
You are required to determine the most suitable ice cream
container to carry ice cream.

Material

LATENT HEAT
The specific latent heat of fusion :
Is the quantity heat of energy required to change 1 kg of a
substance from the solid state to the liquid state, without a
change in temperature.
The specific latent heat of Vaporisation :
Is the quantity heat of energy required to change 1 kg of a
substance from the liquid state to the gaseous state, without a
change in temperature. The S.I. unit of is J kg-1

Q = ml
Study the specification of the four types of ice cream container
based on the following aspects:
- Specific heat capacity of ice cream box
- Size of ice cream box
- Material of outer box
- Colour of outer box
Explain the suitability of the aspects
[10 marks]
13) The figure below shows a cooling system of car.

You are asked to modify the the cooling system so that it can
cool the car better. Your modification should include the
following aspects:
i) specific heat capacity of the coolant
ii) boiling point of the coolant
iii) density of the coolant
iv) size of the radiator fan
v) number of fin blade
14. Diagram below shows a simple solar waterheating
system. Energy from the Sun falls on the solar panel.
Water is pumped around the system so that a store of hot
water is made available in the tank.

Using suitable physics concepts, explain the required

modification needed in designing an efficient solar
water-heating system. The modification should include the
following aspects:
(i) pipes design
(ii) material used for the pipe
(iii) heat absorption
(iv)position of the tank

Q = the heat energy to change state of matter

m = the mass of the substance
l = the specific latent heat of the substance
1) What is the quantity of heat required to melt 2.0 kg ice at 0 o
C.(The specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 3.34 x 105 J
kg-1)
2) How much energy needed to melt 4.0 kg of ice to water at
20 o C. (The specific heat capacity of water = 4.2 x 103 J
kg-1 o C-1.The specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 3.34 x
105 J kg-1)

3) A 800 W electric heater is used to boil water. What is the

time required to reduce the mass of water by 4 kg after the
water has reached its boiling point?[ Specific latent heat of
vaporization of water = 2.26 x 106 J kg -1 ]
4) 0.5 kg of a solid is heated by a 100 W heater. The graph
shows how the temperature substance varies with time.

Based on the graph above calculate the specific latent heat of

fusion of the solid and specific heat capacity of solid .

5 A solid substance of mass 0.1 kg is heated using 200 W

heater. A graph showing in variation of temperature with time
is shown in Figure below.

(a) What is the function of set A?

..............................................................................[1 mark]

(a)

Based on the graph , what are the states of matter

between point
(i) WX
(ii)

XY.

(iii) YZ.
(b) Using kinetic theory of matter, explain why
(i) at section XY , the temperature is remains
constant?
(ii)

..
at section YZ the temperature increases

(c) Using the graph, determine

(i) the melting point of the substance?

(ii) the specific latent heat of fusion of the substance.
.
6. The below shows two set of apparatus to determine the
specific latent heat of fusion of ice. Set A is not connected
while set B is connected to the power supply.

(b) Compare the thermometer readings for set A and set B

after 5 minutes. What can you say about the readings?
..............................................................................[1 mark]
(c) Name the heat involved in the processes.
..............................................................................[1 mark]
(d) (i) What is the amount of water collected in the beaker
in set A after 5 minutes.
.....................................................................[1 mark]
(ii) What is the amount of water collected in the beaker
in set B after 5 minutes.
......................................................................[1 mark]
(iii) Determine the amount of water collected due to the
heat from the heater only.
.....................................................................[1 mark]
(iv) If the power of the heater used is 200 W, calculate
the specific latent heat of fusion of ice.
[2 mark]
7. Fig. 3.1 shows apparatus to measure the specific latent
heat of fusion of water. In this question, you may ignore
heat transfer to the ice from the room. The heater is
switched on and water drips into the beaker at a constant
rate. In 2.0 minutes, 31 g of water drips into the beaker.
The power of the heater is 85 W.

Set A

(a) Calculate the amount of electrical energy supplied to

the heater in 2.0 minutes.
[2]
7

(b) Use your answer to (a) to calculate the specific latent

heat of fusion of water.

(ii) Explain your answer in (b)(i).

.....................

[2]
(c) In another experiment using the same heater, ice colder
than 0 C is used. State why less water drips into the
beaker in 2.0 minutes.

[2 marks]
(c) Calculate the heat released when the coffee is cooled
down to 25 oC.[Specific heat capacity of coffee = 4500 J
kg1 oC1]

................................................................................... [1]
7. Diagram 3.1 shows the change of phase when 1 kg of ice is
converted into steam. Q1, Q2and Q3 are the heat energies
absorbed during the heating process.
I kg ice
at 0C

I kg water
at 0C

I kg water
at 100C

[2 marks]
(d) (i)Calculate the mass of ice needed to cool the coffee in
cup A to 25 oC.[Specific heat capacity of water = 4200 J
kg1oC1, specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 3.36 x 105
J kg1]

I kg steam
at 100C

(a) Name the heat energy, Q1, which is absorbed from R

to S.
.......................................................................[1 mark]
(b) State one reason why the temperature at R and S is
the same even though heat is supplied.

[3 marks]

.....................................................................[1 mark]

(ii) State one assumption which you made in your

calculation in (d)(i).

(c) Calculate the heat energy Q2 which is absorbed from

S to T. [Specific heat capacity of water is 4200 Jkg-1C-

.... [1 mark]

Boyles Law
Boyles law states that For a fixed mass at constant
temperature, the pressure of gas is inversely proportional to
its volume

[ 2 marks]

Diagram 7.1 shows two cups of coffee of equal mass

being cooled by adding a few pieces of ice cubes.
Ice / Ais

P1 V1 = P2 V2

Ice / Ais

Cup A

Cup B
DIAGRAM 7.1
Initially, each cup contains 0.2 kg of coffee at 75.5 oC. It is
observed that both cups of coffee reach a final
temperature of 25 oC at the same time.

1) A 5 cm3 balloon is filled by a gas at a pressure of 1 x 105

Pa When the balloon is filled by 20 cm3 of the gas, what is the
new pressure of the gas?

(a) The melting of ice involves the absorption of latent heat of

fusion. What is meant by specific latent heat of fusion?
... [1 mark]
(b) (i) Which cup of coffee requires more ice?
... [1 mark]

2) An air bubble has a volume 2.0 cm3 at a depth 40m in the

sea. What is the volume of the air bubble when it reaches
8

the surface of the sea water. [Assume the atmospheric

pressure is equivalent to 10 m of water ]

3. A rod of tube with one end closed has a strip of mercury 3

cm long. When the tube is held vertically, the length of air
trapped is 8 cm as in figure (a) above. Atmospheric pressure
is taken as 76 cm Hg.

(a) Calculate the length, x of air which is trapped when the

tube is placed horizontally as in figure (b) above.
(b) Calculate the length, y of air which is trapped when the
tube is inverted as shown in figure (c) above.

(iii) State the assumption made while performing the

experiment.
.. [1 mark]
(c) Using your answers in (b)(i) and (b)(ii), sketch the graph of
pressure against volume of the gas

(d) Name the physics law which is involved in the above

observation.
.... [1 mark]
(e) Using the kinetic theory of matter, explain why pressure
changes when the gas volume changes.
..............................................................................................
................................................................................[2 marks]

4. Diagram 5.1 and 5.2 show instrument K being used to

measure pressure for a fixed mass of gas in an air
container.

The Pressure Law

The pressure law states that For a fixed mass at constant
volume, the pressure of gas is directly proportional to its
absolute temperature
P1 = P2
T1
T2

5) A cylinder of oxygen at 27o C has a gas pressure at 3 x 106

Pa. What is the temperature of the oxygen if the cylinder is
cooled and the new pressure of the gas is 2.73 x 106 Pa.

(a) Name the instrument K.

6. Diagram 7 shows a tyre of a car that is going to be used to

travel from Kuala Lumpur to Kuala Terengganu.

.. [1 mark]
(b) Based on the observation of Diagram 5.1 and 5.2,
(i) Compare the volume of the gas
.. [1 mark]
(ii) Compare the pressure of the gas
.. [1 mark]

(a) After the long journey,

(i) what happen to the temperature of the air in the tyre
......................................................................[1 mark]
(ii) state one other physical quantity that will also change.
9

.........................................................................[1 mark]
(b) Based on the answers in (a) (i) and (a) (ii), name the
gas law involve.

8 Figure 1 shows a balloon is tightly fastened to the open end

of a test tube mouth of a balloon before and after the test
tube is heated. Figure 2 shows air is trapped inside a
capillary tube by a bead of sulfuric acid before and after the
capillary tube is heated.

............................................................................[1mark]
(c) Before a long journey, the driver checked the air pressure
of his car tyres. The air pressure of the tyres was 200 kPa
at a temperature 27C. After the journey, the air pressure
of the tyres increase to 230 k Pa. What is the temperature
of the air in the tyre after the journey? [Assume the volume
of the tyre is constant]

(a)

(b)
Figure 1

[3 marks]
(d) The tyre in Diagram 7 is not suitable to be used on a
muddy road. Suggest modifications to be done based on
the characteristics given.
(i) Surface area of the tyre

(a)
(a)

(ii) Reason

(b)
Figure 2

..............................................................................[1 mark]

..............................................................................[1 mark]

(i) Observe Figure 1 and Figure 2 and state one

similarity between the volume of air in the balloon and
the capillary tube
...

(iii) The track of the tyre

(ii)Compare the mass of air in Figure 1(a) and

Figure 1(b).

..............................................................................[1 mark]

....................................

(iv) Reason
..............................................................................[1 mark]
Charles Law
Charless law states that For a fixed mass at constant
pressure, the volume of gas is directly proportional to its
absolute temperature
V1 = V2
T1
T2

(b)

(i)Based on the observation in (a)(i)and the comparison

in (a)(ii), give a relationship between the physical
quantities involved.
...
(ii)Name the law involved in b(i)
...
(iii) Based on the the kinetic theory of gases explain
how the law in b(i) is occurred.

7) A sample of gas has a volume 100 cm at 20 C. To what

temperature would you have to heat if you wanted to double
the volume to 200 cm3.

10