Question

Which of the following substances (with specific heat capacity provided) would show the greatest temperature change upon absorbing 100.0 J of heat?

10.0 g ethanol, Cethanol = 2.42 J/g°C

10.0 g Cu, CCu = 0.385 J/g°C

10.0 g Al, CAl = 0.903 J/g°C

10.0 g Pb, CPb= 0.128 J/g°C

10.0 g H2O, CH2O = 4.18 J/g°C

Answer 1

The substance that would show the greatest temperature change upon absorbing 100.0J of heat is lead (Pb), with a specific heat capacity of 0.128 J/g°C.

The temperature change of a substance when it absorbs a certain amount of heat depends inversely on its specific heat capacity. A lower specific heat capacity means a greater temperature change for the same amount of heat absorbed.

Among the given options, lead has the lowest specific heat capacity of 0.128 J/g°C. So upon absorbing 100.0J of heat, the 10.0g of lead would experience the greatest temperature change compared to the other substances.

The specific heat capacity represents the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1.0g of a substance by 1.0°C. The lower the specific heat capacity, the less amount of heat is required to produce the same temperature change. This means a greater temperature change occurs for the same amount of heat absorbed.