Final answer:
To calculate the required heat for heating water with an iron pan, the specific heat capacity of iron must be used in place of aluminum. Less heat is needed for the iron pan due to iron's lower specific heat capacity compared to aluminum, while the heat needed for the water remains unchanged.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student is asking about the calculation of the required heat when heating water using an iron pan instead of an aluminum pan, assuming all other parameters stay the same. This is a problem that invokes the concept of specific heat capacity in Physics, which is the amount of heat per unit mass required to raise the temperature by one degree Celsius.
In the given example, the heat needed for a 0.500 kg aluminum pan to heat 0.250 liters of water from 20.0°C to 80.0°C is determined. Using the specific heat capacities of aluminum for the pan and water for the liquid, the total heat can be calculated. However, if an iron pan is used, the specific heat capacity of iron should be used instead of aluminum. Iron typically has a lower specific heat capacity than aluminum, which means it will require less heat to achieve the same temperature change for the pan. Nonetheless, since the water's specific heat capacity does not change, the heat required for the water remains the same.