Question

Carrie is trying to figure out the number of calories in a cube of cheese. To do this, she pours 107.9 mL of water into an aluminum can suspended from a ring stand. She takes the temperature of the water, and finds it to be 13.3 degrees Celsius. Then, she places the 5.23 gram cube of cheese under the can and lights it on fire! While the cheese is burning and for a few minutes after it is done, Carrie records the temperature of the water, finding that it levels out at 46.7 degrees Celsius. How many calories of heat were gained by the water? Please answer to the nearest 0.1 calorie.

Answer 1

To calculate the number of calories of heat gained by the water, we can use the formula:

Q = mcΔT

where Q is the heat gained, m is the mass of the water, c is the specific heat capacity of water, and ΔT is the change in temperature.

we need to calculate the mass of the water. We know that 107.9 mL of water was added, and since 1 mL of water has a mass of 1 gram, the mass of the water is:

m = 107.9 g

Next, we need to calculate the change in temperature of the water:

ΔT = 46.7°C - 13.3°C = 33.4°C

The specific heat capacity of water is 1 calorie/gram°C. Plugging in these values into the formula, we get:

Q = (107.9 g) x (1 calorie/gram°C) x (33.4°C)

Q = 3604.86 calories

Therefore, the heat gained by the water is approximately 3604.9 calories.