Final answer:
To determine specific heat, measure the temperature changes of a metal when placed in water. Examples 5.4 and 9.4 demonstrate how to calculate specific heat in different scenarios.
Step-by-step explanation:
In this experiment, the goal is to measure the temperature changes of a metal when it is put in water. The initial temperature of both the metal and the water are recorded. By observing the final temperature, we can determine how much heat is transferred between the metal and the water.
In Example 5.4, a piece of metal weighing 59.7 g is submerged in boiling water and then transferred into 60.0 mL of water initially at 22.0 °C. The final temperature is measured as 28.5 °C. By using these data, the specific heat of the metal is determined.
By following a similar procedure in Example 9.4, a 248-g piece of copper initially at 314 °C is dropped into 390 mL of water initially at 22.6 °C. The final temperature can be calculated assuming that all heat transfer occurs between the copper and the water.