Question

A sample of an unknown substance has a mass of 0.158 kg. If 2,510.0 J of heat is required to heat the substance from 32.0°C to 61.0°C, what is the specific heat of the substance?

Answer 1

Specific heat is the amount of heat absorb or released by a substance to change the temperature to one degree Celsius. To determine the specific heat, we use the expression for the heat absorbed by the system. Heat gained or absorbed in a system can be calculated by multiplying the given mass to the specific heat capacity of the substance and the temperature difference. It is expressed as follows:
Heat = mC(T2-T1)
By substituting the given values, we can calculate for C which is the specific heat of the material.
2510 J = .158 kg ( 1000 g / 1 kg) (C) ( 61.0 - 32.0 °C)C = 0.5478 J / g °C

Answer 2

Given:

Mass of the unknown substance, m = 0.158 kg = 158 g

Heat absorbed Q = 2510.0 J

Initial temperature T1 = 32 C

Final temperature T2 = 61 C

To determine:

The specific heat of the substance

Explanation:

The heat absorbed to raise the temperature from T1 to T2 is-

Q = mcΔT

where c = specific heat

c = Q/mΔT = Q/m(T2-T1)

c = 2510 J/158 g * (61-32) C = 0.548 J/gC

Ans: Specific of the substance is 0.548 J/gC