Experiment 6:
Heat Effects
Pauline A. Uy, Gian L. Veloso, Bianca T. Villagomez, Jan Margaret P. Villarba
Department of Biological Sciences
College of Science, University of Santo Tomas
Espaa, Manila Philippines
Abstract
The Specific heat, Latent heat of fusion and
the value for the Coefficient of Thermal expansion
were computed. It resulted to values, 0.928 J/gC,
354.73 J/g and 2.52 x 10-5 /C, respectively.
Moreover, % errors for the following activities were
also computed resulting to 0.76%, 6.53% and 9.73%,
respectively.
1. Introduction
Thermodynamics is the study of heat and its
transformation to mechanical energy. Heat is defined
as the form of energy transferred between two
substances at different temperatures. The direction of
its flow is from higher temperature to lower
temperature. Temperature is then defined as the
measure of hotness or coldness of matter.
Thermal expansion occurs in solid liquid
and gas. It is a phenomena where substance expand
when their temperature increase unless they are
constrained. For example a solid metal rod expands
linearly and increases in length when heated.
Therefore, Thermal expansion occurs in response to
an increase in temperature and useful devices take
advantage in this useful concept.
Calorimetry is the study of heat flow from
one substance to another. A calorimeter is used to
efficiently study the flow of heat. It is an insulated
container that allows heat flow between substances
but doesnt allow heat to escape. This experiment
aims to determine the specific heat of a solid by
method of mixtures, latent heat of fusion and the
coefficient of linear thermal expansion of a solid.
2. Theory
Heat is a form of energy which causes
change in temperature, change in phase and linear or
volume or area expansion. The transfer can be by
contact between the source and the destination body,
as in conduction; or by radiation between remote
bodies; or by way of an intermediate fluid body, as
in convective circulation; or by a combination of
these. The quantification of heat via temperature
change is called calorimetry where a calorimeter is
used.
The specific heat, also called specific heat
capacity, is the amount of heat required to change a
unit mass (or unit quantity, such as mole) of a
substance by one Kelvin(K) or 1degree Celsius(C)
in temperature. It is defined by the expression =
, where is the change in energy (heat) in
the system, is the mass of the object or the
substance, is constant specific heat of the object
used and is the change in temperature. The unit of
specific heat is J/g C.
Specific heat of a solid substance can be
determined by the method of mixture using the
concept of the law of heat exchange which states the
heat lost by a hot body is equal to the heat gained by
a cold body in a system. This can be expressed as:
+ = 0.
Latent heat is energy released or absorbed,
by a body or a thermodynamic system, during a
constant-temperature process that is specified in
some way. An example is latent heat of fusion for a
phase change, melting, at a specified temperature and
pressure. In this case, latent heat of vaporization and
latent heat of fusion were used.
Latent heat of fusion at 0C is the change in
its enthalpy resulting from providing energy,
typically heat, to a specific quantity of the substance
to change its state from a solid to a liquid at constant
pressure. It can be described in the equation, Q
=Lf, where is the mass of the substance and Lf is
the latent heat of fusion.
Latent heat of vaporization at 100C is the
energy (enthalpy) that must be added to the
substance, typically a liquid, to transform a quantity
of that substance into a gas, defined by the equation
Q =Lv, where is the mass of the substance and
Lv is the latent heat of vaporization.
The law of conservation of energy states that the total
energy of an isolated system remains constantit is
said to be conserved over time.
With this law, an equation can be used with regards
to latent heat, in this case, ( )( )(3 2 ) + conservation and the percent error were then
( )( ) + ( )( )(3 1 ) + calculated.
( )( )(3 1 ) = 0.
The variables mice, miv, mwater is the mass of
ice, inner vessel of the calorimeter and mass of water
inside inner vessel of calorimeter, respectively. The
Cw and Cal are constants provided by the instructors.
Lastly, the temperatures T1, T2, T3 corresponds to the
initial temperature of water and inner vessel of
calorimeter, OC, which is the temperature of the ice
and the equilibrium temperature of the inner vessel of
calorimeter, water and melted ice, respectively.
Phase change or transitions between solid,
liquid, and gaseous phases via evaporation,
condensation, freezing, melting, sublimation or
deposition typically involve large amounts of energy
compared to the specific heat. If heat were added at a
constant rate to a mass of ice to take it through its
phase changes to liquid water and then to steam, the
energies required to accomplish the phase changes,
called the latent heat of fusion and latent heat of
vaporization, would lead to plateaus in the
temperature vs. time graph.
Thermal expansion is the tendency of matter
to change in shape, area, and volume in response to a
change in temperature through heat transfer.
Temperature is a monotonic function of the
average molecular kinetic energy of a substance.
When a substance is heated, the kinetic energy of its
molecules increases, thus, the molecules begin
moving more and usually maintain a greater average
separation. The degree of expansion divided by the
change in temperature is called the material's
coefficient of thermal expansion and generally varies
with temperature.
3. Methodology
For Activity 1, a metal object was weighed.
A piece of thread about 30cm long was attached to
the metal object and slipped into the metal jacket.
The metal jacket was placed in a beaker filled with
water. The water was heated until the temperature of
the object reached 80C. While the water was being
heated, the inner vessel of the calorimeter was
weighed. Water was placed into the vessel about 2/3
full. The vessel with water was then weighed. The
inner vessel was placed in its insulating jacket and its
temperature was measured. After heating the object
to 80C, it was transferred to the calorimeter and was
covered. Thermometer was inserted and used to stir
the water. The equilibrium temperature was
measured. Specific heat of the object using energy
For Activity 2, the inner vessels of the
calorimeter were weighed. The calorimeter was filled
half full with water and weighed. The inner vessels
was placed inside its insulating jacket and the
temperature inside was determined. Some ice were
dried and added to the water inside the calorimeter
and was covered. The mixture of water and ice were
stirred until all ice was melted and thermal
equilibrium was established. The equilibrium
temperature was recorded. The weight of the inner
vessel with water and melted ice was determined.
The heat of fusion of ice by conservation of heat
energy and the percent error were computed.
For Activity 3, using a meter stick the initial
length of the rod to be tested was measured. The rod
was then placed in a steam jacket with stoppers at
both ends. The steam jacket was mounted in the
metal frame with micrometer disc at one end. Rubber
tubing was used to connect the first outlet of the
steam jacket to the boiler. The initial temperature was
determined by placing a thermometer in the central
hole of the jacket. The metal frame was connected to
the galvanometer. For the initial reading of
micrometer disc to be determined, the micrometer
screw was adjusted until it touches the end of the rod.
The disc was winded back so the rod can freely
expand. The rod was heated for twenty minutes by
the means of the steam from the boiler. Ten minutes
was waited before the final temperature of the rod
was recorded. The disc was moved again to know the
final reading. The expansion of the rod and the
coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the rod
were computed. The percent error was also
computed.
Figure No. 1: Act. 1 and 2 Set-up Figure No. 2: Activity 3 Set-up
4. Results and Discussion
Table No.1 Specific Heat of metal
Mass of sample (g) 17.73
Mass of inner vessel of calorimeter (g) 45.57
Mass of inner vessel of calorimeter with 228.36
water (g)
Mass of water inside the inner vessel of 182.79
calorimeter (g)
Initial temperature of water and inner 30
vessel of calorimeter (C)
Temperature of sample (C) 80
Equilibrium temperature of sample, water 31
and inner vessel of calorimeter (C)
Calculated specific heat of sample (J/gC) 0.928
Accepted value of specific heat (J/gC) 0.921
% error 0.76
As discussed earlier, heat transfers from a
hot body to a cold body, and heat is conserved in an
isolated system. Such that, QLOST BY SUBSTANCE =
QGAINED BY LIQUID + QGAINED BY CALORIE METER, or
ms cs (Ts T) = ml cl (T Tl) + mc cc (T Tc) , where
mass of substance = ms , mass of liquid = ml , mass of
calorie meter = mc , initial temperature of the
substance = Ts , initial temperature of the liquid = T l ,
initial temperature of the calorie meter = T c , specific
heat of substance = Cs , specific heat of liquid = Cl,
specific heat of the material of the calorie meter = Cc
and the final temperature of the mixture = T .
The method used was the method of mixture
which involves the process of mixing a hot substance
with a cold substance, the hot body loses heat and the
cold body absorbs heat until thermal equilibrium is
attained. At equilibrium, final temperature of mixture
is measured (Fig. 1). The specific heat of the
substance is calculated with the help of the law of
heat exchange given the constant values of specific
heat of the aluminium sample, the water and the inner
vessel of the calorimeter.
Sources of error can be human mechanical
errors such as wrong temperature reading, holes and
loose rubber where heat can escape.
As seen in table no. 1, the percent error is
very little and that it can be concluded that the group
made a more or less accurate measurement of the
temperature and that there are no holes from which
heat can escape.
Table No. 2 Heat of Fusion of Water
Mass of Inner vessel of calorimeter (g) 45.57
Mass of inner vessel of calorimeter with 185.03
water (g)
Mass of water inside inner vessel of 139.46
calorimeter (g)
Mass of inner vessel of calorimeter, water 191.07
and melted ice (g)
Mass of melted ice (g) 6.04
Initial temperature of water and inner vessel 31
of calorimeter (C)
Equilibrium temperature of inner vessel of 26.5
calorimeter, water and melted ice (J/gC)
Calculated latent heat of fusion (J/g) 354.73
Accepted value of latent heat of fusion (J/g) 333
% error 6.53
In chemical reactions, solids can be heated
up to such a point where in the bonds holding its
molecules together breaks apart and it now becomes
liquid. Phase transition only occurs when a material
gains or losses heat without any change in
temperature until it is complete. The best example
would be turning solid ice into liquid.
The amount of energy needed to change a
gram substance of the ice from solid to liquid without
changing its temperature is called the latent heat of
fusion, which is also known as melting. Latent heat
of fusion has a unit of J/g.
In the experiment, the formula used for
computing for the Latent Heat of Fusion of water is:
=
[( )( )(3 2 )+ ( )( )(3 1 )+( )( )(3 1 )]
The variables mice, miv, mwater is the mass of
ice, inner vessel of the calorimeter and mass of water
inside inner vessel of calorimeter, respectively. The
Cw and Cal are constants provided by the instructors.
Lastly, the temperatures T1, T2, T3 corresponds to the
initial temperature of water and inner vessel of
calorimeter, OC, which is the temperature of the ice
and the equilibrium temperature of the inner vessel of
calorimeter, water and melted ice, respectively.
The computed experimental value for the
latent heat of fusion and other values can be seen in
Table No. 2. The % error is computed using:
||
% = 100, where in E is the
experimental value and A is the accepted value.
 The % error resulted to 6.53%, errors may
be due to error in readings of the temperature with
the thermometer or executions of the procedures were
not greatly executed.
Table No. 3 Thermal Expansion of Solids
Initial Length of Rod (cm) 55 cm
Initial Reading of Micrometer Disc (cm) -0.083 cm
Final Reading of Micrometer Disc (cm) 0.010 cm
Elongation of Rod (cm) 0.093 cm
Initial Temperature of Rod (C) 26 c
Final Temperature of Rod (C) 93c
Experimental Value of Coefficient of 2.52 x 10-5
Thermal Expansion (/C)
Accepted Value of Coefficient of 23 x 10 -6
Thermal Expansion (/C)
% error 9.73%
Solid, Liquid and Gas are all made up of
atoms. In solids, the atoms are vibrating in fixed
positions, in liquids its atoms will be relatively far
away from each other while moving and in gases its
atoms are moving by each other at a gradually very
far distance. Once a material is heated, linear
expansion happens. The kinetic energy within the
heated material increases which results to its atoms
moving and vibrating more. This movement causes
the atoms to take more space resulting to expansion
of the material. On the other hand, linear contraction
happens once a material is subjected to cold
temperature. Its kinetic energy decreases causing less
movement and vibration from the atoms, hence, less
space is acquired.
In the experiment, thermal expansion of
solids was calculated using the formula: =
( )
, with the given set of values presented in Table No.
3, the elongation of rod was known by subtracting the
initial and final micrometer reading. The initial
micrometer reading resulted to a negative value
because the light bulb, which indicates that the
galvanometer needle already touches the rod,
produced a faint light after the zero (0) mark.
Furthermore, the final micrometer reading resulted to
a positive value indicating that the rod expanded.
Moreover, the coefficient of Thermal
expansion, which is the fractional change in the
length per degree rise in temperature, was also
computed and it resulted to a value of 2.52 x 10-5 /C.
The % error was also computed using the
||
same formula: % = 100. The % error
resulted to 9.73%. The errors may be due to human
error in reading the micrometer or the procedure of
the experiment was not executed efficiently.
5. Conclusion
For the first activity, the specific heat of the
metal used was 0.928 J/gC. For the second activity,
the latent heat of fusion was 354.73 J/g. For the last
activity, the coefficient of linear thermal expansion of
the solid was 2.52x10-6/C.
6. Application
1. Is it possible to add heat to a body without
changing its temperature?
Yes, one can add a heat (as a form of
energy) to a body without raising or losing
temperature by initiating a phase change. Phase
changes are common and either release or require
energy. By adding or giving up heat as a form of
energy it would take the added energy and use it to
convert one phase (i.e. solid [ice] to liquid [water]
and vice versa) to another. This however would not
change the temperature of a body until it is fully
converted.
2. Explain why steam burns are more painful than
boiling water burns.
Generally speaking, boiling water and steam
are at the same temperature at atmospheric pressure.
However, steam is at a different phase which means
that it must first be converted to liquid phase once it
reaches the body before it can release the heat at
body temperature. Therefore, steam contains more
energy and requires more time before it can release
heat which leads to it being more painful than boiling
water burns.
3. Early in the morning when the sand in the
beach is already hot, the water is still cold. But at
night, the sand is cold while the water is still
warm. Why?
Sand has an ability wherein it can adjust
with environmental temperature fairly quickly as
compared to that of water which is why sand is warm
in the morning and cold at night.
4. Explain why alcohol rub is effective in reducing The density of aluminum at 100 C is 2685 kg/m or
fever. 2.69 g/cm3

Rubbing alcohol is effective in reducing
fever because it can cool the skin through convection.
Once rubbing alcohol applied to skin evaporates, it
absorbs heat and evaporates with it from the body.
5. Cite instances where the thermal expansion is
beneficial to man. Cite also examples where
thermal expansion is a nuisance.
Thermal expansion is advantageous to man
when using bimetallic strips which can be found in
the mechanical switch in thermostats. It is a nuisance
in road constructions. It is a nuisance because if the
slab expands during the heat of day, or contracts in
the cool breeze of night, it can cause fractures and
cracks at some point on the surface of the road which
would lead to surface defects and potholes.
8. How much heat is needed to change 1g of ice at
0oC to steam at 100oC?
First compute for the amount of heat needed to turn
ice into water by multiplying its mass by the latent
heat needed to melt ice into liquid (80 cal/g 0C).
1 80 = 80
Liquid water must be allowed to boil to reach
evaporation. The heat needed to raise the temperature
of liquid water from 0oC to its boiling point is given
by:
1 1.00 = 100

6. Why is water not used in liquid in glass After reaching its boiling point, water will begin to
thermometer? evaporate. The amount of heat needed to vaporize 1g
of water is given by:
Water will not rise or fall to changes in
temperature the same as mercury. It has a non-linear
thermal expansion meaning its thermal expansion 1 540 = 540

coefficient at 20C is different to its thermal
expansion coefficient at 90C. Also water is only The amount of heat needed to change 1g office at 0oC
liquidus over a narrow temperature range of up to to steam at 100oC is 720 cal.
100C at atmospheric pressure. Furthermore, it has
massive problems at phase transitions- for example 9. An aluminum calorimeter has a mass of 150g
once water is converted from liquid to gas it and contains 250g of water at 30. Find the
consumes a lot of energy (latent heat). resulting temperature when 60g of copper at
100 is placed inside the calorimeter.
7. The density of Aluminum is 2700kg/m3 at 200 C.
What is its density at 1000 C? Mass of Calorimeter 0.15 kg
Mass of water 0.25 kg
Linear thermal expansion coefficient of Aluminum : Mass of Calorimeter and 0.40 kg
24x10-6 /K Water
Mass of Copper 0.60 kg
Formula to be used: L/L = T, is linear thermal Mass of Calorimeter, water, 1 kg
expansion coefficient and copper
Initial Temperature of water 30
Take a cube 1 meter on a side, which at 20C weighs in Calorimeter
2700 kg 3 = 0.15 + 0.25 = 0.40
What does the length change to at 100C? 11 + 22
L/L = T 3 =
3
L = LT = (1)(24x10-6)(80) = 0.00192 meter
3
so the new cube is 1.00192 m on a side and the
(0.15 ) (900 ) + (0.25)(4186 )
volume is that cubed or 1.00577 m
=
0.40
Density is 2700 kg / 1.00577 m = 2685 kg/m

3 = 2953.75

 3 = 30

We can then use m3, c3 and T3 to combine copper

3

(0.40 ) (2953.75 ) (30) + (0.60)(386 )(100)

=

(0.40) (2953.75 ) + (0.60 )(386 )

3 = 31.3458

7. References

[1] Avison, John., The World of Physics, 2nd ed.,

Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd, United Kingdom, 1989.

[2] Bloomfield, Louise A., How Things Work: The

Physics of Everyday Life, 5th ed., John Wiley and Sons
Ltd, Incorporated, United States of America, 2013.

[3] Serway, Raymond A., & Vuille, Chris. College

Physics, 10th ed., Cengage Learning Asia Pte Ltd,
Philippines.

[4] Young, H., Adams, P., & Chastain, R. (2016).

College Physics, 10th ed., Pearson Education Limited:
China.