Question

Determine the temperature rise that would

occur when 2 kg of the following materials
are exposed to a heating element putting out
500 J. Discuss your assumptions.
a. The material is copper.
b. The material is aluminum.
c. The material is concrete.

Answer 1

The temperature rise for 2 kg of copper would be 0.648 °C, for aluminum it would be 0.278 °C, and for concrete it would be 0.298 °C.

Step-by-step explanation:

a. The material is copper:

First, we need to calculate the specific heat capacity of copper, which is the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 kg of copper by 1 degree Celsius. The specific heat capacity of copper is approximately 386 J/kg°C. Using the formula Q = mcΔT, where Q is the energy, m is the mass, c is the specific heat capacity, and ΔT is the temperature change, we can rearrange the formula to solve for ΔT. For 2 kg of copper exposed to 500 J of energy, we have:

500 J = (2 kg)(386 J/kg°C)(ΔT)

ΔT = 0.648 °C

b. The material is aluminum:

Similarly, for aluminum, the specific heat capacity is around 900 J/kg°C. Plugging in the values:

500 J = (2 kg)(900 J/kg°C)(ΔT)

ΔT = 0.278 °C

c. The material is concrete:

Concrete has a lower specific heat capacity compared to metals, typically around 0.84 J/g°C. However, we need to convert the mass from kg to grams since the specific heat capacity is given in grams, not kilograms. So, 2 kg is equal to 2000 grams. Plugging in the values:

500 J = (2000 g)(0.84 J/g°C)(ΔT)

ΔT = 0.298 °C

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