Final answer:
Hotel pans are typically made of stainless steel. The steel pan instrument from Trinidad and Tobago, while sharing the term 'pan', is crafted from 55-gallon oil drums and shaped to produce sounds. Stainless steel's properties make it suitable for hotel pans and perhaps for steel pans.
Step-by-step explanation:
The type of metal that hotel pans (also known as chafing dishes) are typically made of is stainless steel. However, the steel pan, which is the national instrument of Trinidad and Tobago, has a different origin and construction. It was originally made from 55-gallon oil drums. The process involves cutting off the bottom of the oil drum at various levels to create different sounds, and then shaping the top into a chromatically pitched percussion instrument played with a pair of straight sticks. An entire family of these pans can be formed into a steel pan orchestra, and the instrument has become popular worldwide.
When considering the best metal for making a steel pan, one must consider properties such as durability, sound quality, and resistance to corrosion. To determine the specific heats for different materials, you need to measure physical quantities such as mass, temperature change, and the amount of heat absorbed or released. Stainless steel is often a preferred choice for hotel pans due to its strength, resistance to rust, and its non-reactive nature with food, which are similar to qualities desirable in a steel pan instrument.