Specific Heat of Metals
2G Pharmacy (Group 1)
Adolfo, Angela Nicole G.
Aliman, Stephanie T.
Astor, Jashmin D.
AbstractThe purpose of the experiment was to
investigate the specific heat of metals. Heat is an energy
transferred between objects with different temperatures. Heat
always flows from high temperature to low temperature. The
specific heat of the metal sample, Aluminum, with a known mass
was determined by heating it up to 99C then immersing it into
the calorimeter with a known mass of water at a low initial
temperature. In the Law of Heat Exchange, two substances
interchange heat so that the heat lost by the hotter substance is
gained by the colder substance until the two reach thermal
equilibrium. The result has a % error of 11.63% compared to the
literature value of 0.215.
Keywordsspecific heat; heat; calorimeter; insulating
ring; metal; mass; thermal equilibrium
I. INTRODUCTION
Heat is a form of energy that is transferred between
objects with different temperatures. Heat always flows from
high temperature to low temperature.
In a calorimetry experiment, heat is transferred from
one object to another inside an insulated container called a
calorimeter. For example, when a hot piece of metal (the
system) is submerged in water (the surroundings), the metal
cools down while the water heats up. However, because the
calorimeter is insulated, the heat is transferred completely
from the system to the surroundings. Therefore,
Fig. 1. Formula for the transfer of heat
Qsys = -Qsurr
Qmetal = -QH2O
The negative sign in the equation is to indicate that
heat is being lost by the metal and gained by the water.
Specific heat is a great value of this experiment,
because the members are to solve, compute and look for the
specific heat of a metal (either aluminum, steel, etc.). Now to
define specific heat, it is the amount of heat energy per unit
mass required to raise the temperature by one degree Celsius.
In this experiment, determination of the specific heat
capacities of two different unknown metals by observing the
transfer of heat from a heated piece of metal to a sample of
water at a lower temperature is to be done. To calculate Q for
Bauzon, Franchesca D.
Cabral, Danica Rose G.
the metal and the water, you would use the equation given in
Figure 1 (first equation).
II. THEORY AND METHODOLOGY
A. Theory
Heat is essential to warm up an object, but since the
amount of heat is not the same for everything, it is necessary
to know the specific heat of a substance. Specific Heat is
defined as the amount of energy measured in joules, needed to
raise the temperature of one gram of a substance by one
Celsius degree.
Fig. 2. Formula or equations related tot specific heat
[1] Q =smT
[2] Qlost = Qgained
[3] Qmetal = (Tm)(mm)(sm)
=
Qwater = (Tw)(mw)(sw)
[4] T = Initial temperature Final temperature
Equation [1], where Q is the amount of heat, s is the
specific heat, m is the mass of the sample, and T is the
temperature change, can be used to calculate the amount of
heat that must be involved when the other three values are
known or measured.
When two objects that have different temperatures
are placed in contact with each other, energy always flows
from an object at a higher temperature to an object at a lower
temperature. The heat gained by the cooler substance equals
the heat lost by the warmer substance, assuming theres no
loss of heat to the surrounding environment means that heat
loss = heat gained (Equation [2]). This energy can be divided
into kinetic energy and the potential energy arising from the
intermolecular attractive forces in the object.
 Heat will flow until two different temperatures reach With the help of the tied string to the metal sample,
thermal equilibrium. In this experiment, the amount of heat transfer it from the beaker to the calorimeter filled with cold
that is lost by a sample of metal as it cools is equal to the water. Stir the water and use the thermometer to note the
amount of heat gained by the water in the calorimeter. This temperature. Record the necessary data obtained, and compute
assumes that no heat is lost from the calorimeter to its for the asked values.
surroundings, and that the amount of heat that is absorbed by
the calorimeter itself is so small.
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Temperature is also involved in the specific heat
experiment. Temperature is a measure of the average kinetic TABLE I. DATA OF MATERIALS
energy of the random molecular motion. As a body gains or
Mass of Metal 130.7 g
loses kinetic energy its temperature may increase or decrease.
The change in temperature is symbolized by T. Mass of Calorimeter 37.2 g
B. Methodology 237.5 g
Mass of Calorimeter and Water
The materials needed for this experiment are the
following: a piece of the metal sample (aluminum), strings, Mass of Water 200.3 g
beaker, calorimeter, triple beam balance and a thermometer. 0.215 cal/gC
Specific Heat of Calorimeter
First, find the mass of the metal sample and the empty
calorimeter using a triple beam balance. Find also the mass of Initial Temperature of the Metal 89.1 C
calorimeter filled with cold water, then using a thermometer
Initial Temperature of the Water 4.3 C
take note of the initial temperature of water and calorimeter.
and Calorimeter
Fig. 3. Weighing the Calorimeter
Final Temperature of the System 13.2 C

Temperature Change of the Metal -75.9 C

Temperature Change of the 8.9 C

Calorimeter and Water

Heat Gained by the Water 1782.67 cal

Heat Gained by the Calorimeter 71.18 cal

Heat Given up by the Metal -1853.85 cal

Fill the beaker with an adequate amount of water and
place it in the hot plate to boil. Tie a string to the metal sample
before placing it to the beaker with hot water. Let it be heated
for about 5-10 minutes, then note the initial temperature of the
metal.
Fig. 4. Heating the sample metal
First of all, the mass of the metal which is an aluminum,
was measured. In order to get the mass of the water, the value
for the mass of calorimeter was subtracted from the mass of
the calorimeter with water. The standard value for the specific
heat of the calorimeter is standard, which is 0.215cal/gC.
Then, the initial temperature of the metal and the initial
temperature of the calorimeter with water was measured as
well as the final temperature of the system. The temperature
values are significant as it helps to know the temperature
change between these materials. As mentioned, to get the
value of the temperature change in metal, the initial
temperature of the metal must be subtracted from the final
temperature of the system. On the other hand, to get the value
for the temperature change of the calorimeter with water, the
initial temperature of the calorimeter with water must be
subtracted from the final temp of the system as well. The
temperature change of the metal shows that it released heat
(negative value) as it was placed for 5 minutes in the
calorimeter. However, the temperature change of calorimeter
with water shows that it absorbed heat (positive value). As
mentioned, the water's gained heat is way more than the heat
gained by the calorimeter. The factor that contribute to this is
the fact that the metal which has the capacity to absorb more
heat is submerged into the water. But, the heat given up by the
metal is too low. It means that the heat is contained inside the
metal.
TABLE II. SPECIFIF HEAT OF METALS
Experimental Specific Heat of the 0.19 cal/gC
Metal
Standard Specific Heat of the Metal 0.215 cal/gC
The value for the experimental specific heat of the
metal is not that far from the standard value. This shows that
there are slight errors with regards to the measurements. The
specific heat is where the warmer metals release its heat for
the colder material to have the same or close temperature
value with each other.
TABLE III. COMPUTED ERROR OF THE EXPERIMENT
Absolute Error 0.025 cal/gC
Percentage Error 11.63 %
Also, these errors are reflected in the values of absolute
and percentage error. As seen, the absolute error for the
specific heat has the value of only 0.025 cal/gC. However, the
percentage error which has a larger value than 10% shows that
the value obtained for the experimental specific heat is not that
accurate. The members of the group have encountered some
errors like inaccuracy in measurement (human errors) that
contributed the value of specific heat obtained from the
experiment that is slightly inaccurate.
IV. CONCLUSION
The specific heat of aluminum was determined
experimentally, using the technique known as calorimetry.
The aluminum (which weighed 130.7 grams) was heated in a
hot water bath and was then poured into the calorimeter with
water. The amount of heat gained by the water was then
calculated. The heat gained by the water is equal to the heat
lost by the metal. This allowed for the calculation of the
specific heat of the aluminum, which resulted in 0.19 cal/g.
The standard specific heat of aluminum was 0.215 cal/g,
which gives us an 11.63% error. There were several errors
performed during the experiment, which includes: heat lost to
the room as well as human error in reading measurements and
transferring the aluminum to the container. In conclusion, the
specific heat capacity of metals can be determined
experimentally through the use of calorimetric methods.
Proper precaution should be observed with the handling of
each phase of the experiment, as it could have a large impact
on the experiment itself, resulting in large percentage errors.
Fill the beaker with an adequate amount of water and
place it in the hot plate to boil. Tie a string to the metal sample
before placing it to the beaker with hot water. Let it be heated
for about 5-10 minutes, then note the initial temperature of the
metal.
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