Specific Heat Capacity

Question 1

Write a method.

Answer 1

1. Measure and record the mass of the copper block in kg.
2. Wrap the insulation around the block.
3. Place the heater in the larger hole in the block.
4. Connect the ammeter, power pack and heater in series.
5. Connect the voltmeter across the heater.
6. Use the pipette to put a small amount of water in the other hole.
7. Put the thermometer in this hole.
8. Set the power pack to 12 V. Switch on the power pack to turn on the heater.
9. Record the ammeter and voltmeter readings. These shouldn’t change during the experiment
10. Measure the temperature and start the stopclock
11. Record the temperature every minute for 10 minutes
12. Calculate the power of the heater in watts.
    Power in watts = potential difference in volts x current in amps
13. Calculate the energy transferred (work done) by the heater. To do this, multiply the time in seconds by the power of the heater
14. To find SHC do the energy divided by (massxtemperature change)

Question 2

What are all the equations needed?

Answer 2

Energy=voltagecurrenttime
Energy/(mass*change in temp)=SHC

(Time/tempchange)*(power/mass)=SHC