3/1/2017 WhatDoesHeatDo?

WhatDoesHeatDo?
WhatDoesHeatDo?
MeasuringtheQuantityofHeat
CalorimetersandCalorimetry

Lesson1ofthischapterfocusedonthemeaningoftemperatureandheat.Emphasiswasgiventothe
developmentofaparticlemodelofmatterthatiscapableofexplainingthemacroscopicobservations.
Effortshavebeenmadetodevelopsolidconceptualunderstandingsofthetopicintheabsenceof
mathematicalformulas.Welearnedthatheatflowsfromoneobjecttoanother(betweenthesystem
andthesurroundings)whenatemperaturedifferenceexistsbetweensystemandsurroundings.Nowin
thisunitwewillinvestigatethetopicofmeasuringthequantityofheatthatistransferredbetweenthe
systemandthesurroundings.Thislessonisdevotedtocalorimetrythescienceassociatedwith
determiningthechangesinenergyofasystembymeasuringtheheatexchangedwiththe
surroundings.Beforewecanunderstandthemathematicsofcalorimetry,weshouldansweracritical
questionthatwasatleastinpartaddressedinLesson1.Thequestionis:whatdoesheatdo?When
heatislostorgainedbyanobject,whatdoesitdo?
Forsomestudents,theveryquestion whatdoesheatdo?
isconfusing.Think
aboutthequestionamoment.Doesthequestion(notjusttheanswer)confuse
you?Confusionoverthequestionissometimescausedbymisconceptionsabout
what heat
is.ThereasonforthelengthydiscussionsinLesson1wastoprovide
asolidconceptualfoundationforunderstandingthemathematicsofLesson2.If
thequestionisconfusing,youmightwanttoreviewLesson1oratleastreview
thediscussionpertainingtoWhatisHeat?InLesson1,itwasemphasizedthat
heatisnotsomethingthatiscontainedinanobject.Objectsdonot containheat
.Objects,whichare
madeofatoms,moleculesandions,containenergy.Heatisthetransferofenergyfromanobjecttoits
surroundingsortoanobjectfromitssurroundings.Sothequestionbeingaskedonthispageiswhat
doesthisheatdototheobjectandtothesurroundingswhenitistransferred?Likemanyquestionsin
physics,itisasimpleanswerwithdeepmeaning.Simpleanswerswithdeepmeaningalwaysexercise
thebrain.Soputonyourthinkingcapandlet'sgettotheanswer.

HeatChangestheTemperatureofObjects
Whatdoesheatdo?First,itchangesthetemperatureofanobject.Ifheatistransferredfromanobject
tothesurroundings,thentheobjectcancooldownandthesurroundingscanwarmup.Whenheatis
transferredtoanobjectbyitssurroundings,thentheobjectcanwarmupandthesurroundingscancool
down.Heat,onceabsorbedasenergy,contributestotheoverallinternalenergyoftheobject.Oneform
ofthisinternalenergyiskineticenergytheparticlesbegintomovefaster,resultinginagreaterkinetic
energy.Thismorevigorousmotionofparticlesisreflectedbya
temperatureincrease.Thereverselogicappliesaswell.Energy,once
releasedasheat,resultsinadecreaseintheoverallinternalenergyof
theobject.Sincekineticenergyisoneoftheformsofinternalenergy,
thereleaseofheatfromanobjectcausesadecreaseintheaverage
kineticenergyofitsparticles.Thismeansthattheparticlesmove
moresluggishlyandthetemperatureoftheobjectdecreases.The
releaseorabsorptionofenergyintheformheatbyanobjectisoften
associatedwithatemperaturechangeofthatobject.Thiswasthe
focusoftheThermometersasSpeedometersinLesson1.Whatcanbesaidoftheobjectcanalsobe
saidofthesurroundings.Thereleaseorabsorptionofenergyintheformheatbythesurroundingsis
oftenassociatedwithatemperaturechangeofthesurroundings.Weoftenfindthatthetransferofheat
causesatemperaturechangeinbothsystemandsurroundings.Onewarmsupandtheothercools
down.

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HeatChangestheStateofMatter
Butdoestheabsorptionorreleaseofenergyintheformofheatalwayscauseatemperaturechange?
Surprisingly,theanswerisno.Toillustratewhy,considerthefollowingsituation,whichisoften
demonstratedorevenexperimentedwithinathermalphysicsunitinschool.Paradichlorobenzene,the
mainingredientinmanyformsofmothballs,hasameltingpointofabout54C.Supposethatasample
ofthechemicaliscollectedinatesttubeandheatedtoabout80C.Theparadichlorobenzenewillbein
theliquidstate(thoughmuchofitwillhavesublimedandbefillingtheroomwithamostnoticeable
aroma).Nowsupposethatathermometerisinsertedinthetesttubeandthatthetesttubeisplacedin
abeakerofroomtemperaturewater.Temperaturetimedatacanbecollectedevery10seconds.Quite
expectedly,onenoticesthatthetemperatureoftheparadichlorobenzenegraduallydecreases.Asheat
istransferredfromthehightemperaturetesttubetothelowtemperaturewater,thetemperatureofthe
liquidparadichlorbenzenedecreases.Butthenquiteunexpectedly,onewouldnoticethatthissteady
decreaseintemperatureceasesatabout54C.Oncethetemperatureofliquidparadichlorbenzene
decreasesto54C,thethermometerlevelsuddenly standsstill
.Basedonthethermometerreading,you
mightthinkthatnoheatwasbeingtransferred.Butalookinthetesttuberevealsdramaticchange
takingplace.Theliquidparadichlorbenzeneiscrystallizingtoformsolidparadichlorbenzene.Oncethe
lasttraceofliquidparadichlorbenzenevanishes(anditisinallsolidform),thetemperaturebeginsto
decreaseagainfrom54Ctothetemperatureofthewater.Howcantheseobservationshelpusto
understandthequestionofwhatdoesheatdo?
First,thedecreaseintemperaturefrom80Cto54Ciseasytoexplain.WehavelearnedinLesson
1thatheatistransferredbetweentwoadjacentobjectsthatareatdifferenttemperatures.Thetesttube
andtheparadichlorbenzeneareatahighertemperaturethanthesurroundingwaterofthebeaker.
Heatwillflowfromthetesttubeofparadichlorbenzenetothewater,causingtheparadichlorbenzene
tocooldownandthewatertowarmup.Andthedecreaseintemperaturefrom54Ctothetemperature
ofthewaterinthebeakerisalsoeasilyexplainable.Twoadjacentobjectsofdifferenttemperatureswill
transferheatbetweenthemuntilthermalequilibriumisreached.Thedifficultexplanationinvolves
explainingwhathappensat54C.Whydoesthetemperaturenolongerdecreasewhentheliquidpara
dichlorbenzenebeginstocrystallize?Istherestillatransferofheatbetweenthetesttubeofpara
dichlorbenzeneandthebeakerofwaterevenwhenthetemperatureisn'tchanging?
Theanswertothequestion Isheatbeingtransferred? isa
resoundingyes!Afterall,theprincipleisthatheatisalways
transferredbetweentwoadjacentobjectsthatareatdifferent
temperatures.Athermometerplacedinthewaterrevealsthatthe
waterisstillwarmingupeventhoughthereisnotemperature
changeintheparadichlorbenzene.Soheatisdefinitelybeing
transferredfromtheparadichlorbenzenetothewater.Butwhy
doesthetemperatureoftheparadichlorbenzeneremainconstant
duringthiscrystallizationperiod?Beforetheparadichlorbenzene
cancontinuetoloweritstemperature,itmustfirsttransitionfrom
theliquidstatetothesolidstate.Thecrystallizationofparadichlorbenzeneoccursat54Cthefreezing
pointofthesubstance.Atthistemperature,theenergythatislostbytheparadichlorbenzeneis
associatedwithachangeintheotherformofinternalenergypotentialenergy.Asubstancenotonly
possesseskineticenergyduetothemotionofitsparticles,italsopossessespotentialenergyduetothe
intermolecularattractionsbetweenparticles.Astheparadichlorbenzenecrystallizesat54C,theenergy
beinglostisreflectedbydecreasesinthepotentialenergyoftheparadichlorbenzeneasitchanges
state.Oncealltheparadichlorbenzenehaschangedtothesolidstate,thelossofenergyisoncemore
reflectedbyadecreaseinthekineticenergyofthesubstanceitstemperaturedecreases.

HeatingCurves
Sothesecondanswertothequestion Whatdoesheatdo? isthatitcontributestochangesinstateofa
substance.Moststudentsarefamiliarwithatleastthreestatesofmattersolid,liquidandgas.The
additionofheattoasampleofmattercancausesolidstoturntoliquidsandliquidstoturntogases.
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Similarly,theremovalofheatfromasampleofmattercancausegasestoturntoliquidsandliquidsto
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turntosolids.Eachofthesetransitionsbetweenstatesoccuratspecifictemperaturescommonly
referredtoasmeltingpointtemperature,freezingpointtemperature,boilingpointtemperatureand
condensationpointtemperature.
Tofurtherillustratethisrelationshipbetweenheattransfer,temperaturechangeandchangeofstate,
considerthefollowing thoughtexperiment .SupposethatasampleofwaterwasplacedinaStyrofoam
cupwithadigitalthermometer.Andsupposethatthewaterisplacedinthefreezer(temperature=
20C)andfrozen.Supposethatthethermometercanbeconnectedtoacomputerwithsoftwarethatis
capableofcollectingtemperaturetimedata.Afterthewaterhasfrozenandremainedinthefreezerfor
severalhours,itisremovedandplacedinabeakerona hotplate
.Thehotplateisturnedon,getshot,
andbeginstransferringenergyintheformofheattothebeakerandthewater.Whatchangeswouldbe
observedinthetemperatureandthestateofmatterofthewateroverthecourseoftime?
Thediagrambelowdepictsthesocalledheatingcurveforthewater.Theheatingcurverepresentsthe
changesintemperaturewithrespecttotimeforasampleofmatter(suchasthewater)towhichheatis
transferred.

Observethattherearethreeslopedsectionsandtwohorizontalsectionsonthetemperaturetimeplot.
Thefirstslopedsectioncorrespondstoachangeintemperatureoftheicefrom20Cto0C.Thewater
initssolidstateiswarminguptothemeltingpointthetemperatureatwhichwatertransitions
betweenthesolidandtheliquidstate.Theheattransferredtotheicecausesatemperaturechange.
Oncethetransitiontemperature(meltingpoint)of0Cisreached,theheataddedtothewatercauses
thewatertochangefromitssolidstatetoitsliquidstate.Thisisreferredtoasmelting.Themelting
occursataconstanttemperature.Duringthisstageofthe experiment,theenergyabsorbedbythe
waterisusedtoloosentheattractionsthatholdoneiceparticletoanother.Oncealltheseattractions
areloosened,theicewouldbeobservedtohaveentirelymelted.ThecontentsoftheStyrofoamcupare
completelyliquid.Thenextsectionofthe heatingcurve isaslopedsection.Theliquidwateris
increasingitstemperaturefrom0Cto100C.Theboilingpointof
wateris100Cthisisthetemperatureatwhichwatertransitionsfrom
theliquidstatetothegaseousstate.Oncethesampleofwaterreaches
thistemperature,boilingoccurs.Largebubblesofgaswouldbe
observedformingthroughoutthebulkoftheliquid.Theheataddedto
theliquidduringthisstageofthethoughtexperimentcausesa
looseningoftheattractionsthatholdthewaterparticlesintheliquidstate.Thetemperatureremains
constantwhilethestateofwaterchanges.Onceallthewatertransitionsfromtheliquidtothegaseous
state,thesampleofwater(nowinthegaseousstate)beginstoincreaseitstemperatureagain.
Insummary,thethreeslopedsectionsrepresentheatcausingatemperaturechangeinthesubstance
thatabsorbsit.Andthetwoplateausectionsrepresentheatcausingachangeofstateinthesubstance
thatabsorbsit.Aninquisitivestudentmightask,"Whatistheparticlelevelexplanationofthese
changes?"(Thanksforasking.)Thetemperaturechangesaretheresultoftheaddedenergycausingthe
particlesofwatertomovemorevigorously.Eithertheparticlesofsolidvibratemorevigorouslyabout
theirfixedpositionsortheparticlesofliquidandgasmoveabouttheircontainermorerapidly.Either
way,theadditionofheatiscausinganincreaseintheaveragekineticenergyoftheparticlesinthe
sampleofwater.Thechangesofstatearetheresultoftheaddedenergycausingchangesinthe
strengthoftheinterparticleattractions.Theattractionsthatholdwaterinthesolidorintheliquidstate
arebeingovercome.Theenergyisbeingusedtoloosentheseattractionsandchangetoastateof3/5
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greaterpotentialenergy.
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FlickrPhysicsPhoto

(a)Waterinaflaskisheatedtoisboilingpoint.Thegasexitingtheflaskcoolswhilepassingthrough
thecoppertubing.Condensedwaterdropletsareseenexitingtheendofthecoppertube.
(b)Thetemperatureofthiscondensedwaterismuchlessthan100C.Itisnothotenoughtocausea
burn.
(c)Abunsenburnerflameisusedtoheatthecondensercoilsofthecoppertube.Thisraisesthe
temperatureoftheexitingwaterabovetheboilingpoint.It'sgaseouswaterabove100Cthatisexiting
thecoppertubing.
(d)Thiswatervaporissohotthatitinstantlyignitesamatchthatisplacedatitsopening.
(e)Stillbeingheatedbythebunsenburnerflame,theexitingwatervaporishotenoughtoscorcha
sheetofpaper...
(f)...andthatspellsphunforthepeopledoingandwatchingthedemonstration!

HeatDoesWork
Sothetransferofenergyintheformofheatisassociatedwithchangesinthetemperatureorchanges
inthestateofasampleofmatter.Butisthatall?Canheatdoanythingelse?Oncemore,theansweris
Yes!Energytransferintheformofheatcanresultintheperformanceofworkuponthesystemorthe
surroundings.Devicesthatutilizeheattodoworkareoftenreferredtoasheatengines.Ingeneral,an
engineisadevicethatdoeswork.Aheatengineisadevicethatusesheattransferasthesourceof
energyfordoingwork.
Theinternalcombustionengineofanautomobileisanexampleofaheatengine.Mostinternal
combustionenginesuseafourcycleprocessthatisdepictedintheanimationattheright.Asthefuelis
burned(reactedwithoxygen)intheengine,energyisreleasedfromthesystemofchemicals.Thereisa
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heattransferfromthehotsystemtothesurroundingairofthecylinder.Thistransferofheattotheair
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inthecylinderdoesworkuponthepiston,drivingitdownward.Thepistonis
connectedtothecrankshaftofthecar.Thebackandforthmovementofthe
pistonwithinthecylinderresultsintherotationalmotionofthecrankshaftandthe
generationoftheenergyrequiredtosetthecarinmotion.Theinternal
combustionengineisanexampleofaheatengine.Inthiscase,theinternal
energystoredinthechemical(gasoline)isconvertedtothermalenergy(theflow
ofheat)thatresultsintheperformanceofwork.Heatengineswillbediscussedin
greaterdetailintheThermodynamicschapterofThePhysicsClassroomTutorial.
(SpecialthankstoUtzOnBikeandtheWikiMediaCommonsfortheanimationof
thefourcycleOttoengineasusedabove.)

Heatistheflowofenergyfromahightemperaturelocationtoalowtemperature
location.Thisflowofenergyisalwaysassociatedwithchangesinthesystemand
thesurroundings.Therecanbechangesinthetemperature,changesinthestate
ofmatterandchangesthatresultfromthedoingofwork.Inthenextsection,we
willlookatthescienceofcalorimetry.Wewillfindthatthereisaverypredictable
setofmathematicsassociatedwiththesechanges.Infact,theyaresopredictable
thatscientistscanusethemtomeasuretheamountofenergyflow.

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