Question

If a liter of water is heated from 20c to 50c what happens to its volume

Answer 1

The volume increases to 1.009 L.

V= V_0 +βΔT

The thermal expansion coefficient (β) of water changes with temperature, so we must calculate the volume change over small (10 °C) intervals.

20 °C to 30 °C: V = 1 L + 0.000 207 L·°C^(-1) × 10 °C = 1.002 07 L

30 °C to 40 °C: V = 1.002 07 L + 0.000 303 L·°C^(-1)] × 10 °C = 1.005 10 L

40 °C to 50 °C: V = 1.005 10 L + 0.000 385 L·°C^(-1)] × 10 °C = 1.008 95 L

The volume increases by about 9 mL when the temperature increases from 20 °C to 50 °C.