Question

The final temperature of the steel gear and water depends on specific heat capacities and initial temperatures. To calculate it, one should use the principle of conservation of energy.

a) True
b) False

Answer 1

It's true that the final temperature of steel and water, or any other substances, depends on specific heat capacities and initial temperatures, and is calculated based on the principle of conservation of energy using the specific heat equation.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question asks whether the final temperature of steel and water after heat transfer should be calculated using the principle of conservation of energy, and the correct answer is true. When calculating the final temperature of a substance after a heat transfer, one must account for the substance's initial temperature and its specific heat capacity. This concept is a facet of the conservation of energy because the energy gained or lost by an object as heat must equal the energy lost or gained by its surroundings.

To find the final temperature when 1.00 kcal of heat transfers into 1.00 kg of water, concrete, steel, or mercury initially at 20.0°C, we use the specific heat equation Q = mcΔT, where Q is the heat transferred, m is the mass, c is the specific heat capacity, and ΔT is the change in temperature. Using the respective specific heat capacities of each substance, this equation allows us to calculate the temperature rise for each substance after heat transfer.