Gizmo Calorimetry Lab

What is the Difference between a calorie and kilocalorie?

A calorie is the amount of energy needed to increase the temperature of one gram of water by 1C, and one calorie= 4.184 joules

Kilocalorie is equal to 1000 Calories, and are used to express the amount of energy in food

What is a calorimeter?

A device used to measure the amount of heat that transfers from one substance to the second substance, are used to find a substance’s specific heat capacity, and are typically well-insulated chambers that contain water.

What is specific heat capacity, and which has a greater specific heat capacity?

Specific heat capacity is the substance’s resistance to temperature changes. A greater specific capacity= greater resistance, therefore water has a greater specific heat capacity as it loss less heat.

What happened when the water’s mass increased and why?

When the water’s mass increased, the temperature decreased, as the same heat is being spread out over more particles, therefore, each particle has less kinetic energy, and as temperature is the measure of the average kinetic energy of the particles within the object. However, it still has more thermal energy as thermal energy is the total random kinetic energy of particles in an object. More mass= more thermal energy.

How does changing the initial temperature of the copper affect how much thermal energy it has?

Changing the initial temperature resulted in a higher end temperature, as more energy was available to be transferred. As there is a higher temperature (temperature is the average kinetic energy of all particles in a substance), there is also a larger amount of kinetic energy. As there is more kinetic energy, and thermal energy is the total random kinetic energy in a substance, thermal energy increased as well.

How can hot rocks be used to make steam, and why is only a small ladle-full of water is poured on the rocks at one time?

When hot rocks are in contact with water, thermal energy (heat is the flow of thermal energy) flows from the hotter rocks to the cooler water, as heat always flows from a higher temperature to a lower temperature. As the water particles absorb this energy, the average kinetic energy increases, leading to an increase in temperature. When the water reaches its boiling point, steam is produced. However, a small ladle-full of water is poured on the rocks at one time as if too much water touches the rocks at once, a huge amount of thermal energy will be transferred instantly, which could create violent splashes or burst of steam.