Physics - Heat

Today let’s see few little facts of Physics. Physics on the whole is quite a big subject, I will try to gather everything in detail and I am picking up “Heat”. I have taken due care to ensure that the information provided below are correct. However, in any case, if it is found incorrect, please refer your books. To make thing easy I am giving in small paragraph points.

I had a very hard time remembering Physics even though I was a science student. I wrote UGC - NET exam but fail to pass because of all the common terms not by the formulae. Formulae is much easier than the common terms which I am trying to get down from different books. This are common terms which may sound easy but forgets very easily.

Heat is the energy that spontaneously passes between a system and its surroundings in some way other than through work or the transfer of matter. Below are few points which is I thought worth reading. Give me feedback so I can improve the next time.

HEAT

Temperature is a relative measure, or indication of hotness or coldness.

Heat is the form of energy transferred between two (or more) systems or a system and its surroundings by virtue of temperature difference. The SI unit of heat energy transferred is expressed in joule (J) while SI unit of temperature is kelvin (K), and °C is a commonly used unit of temperature.

Thermometer is a device used for measuring temperatures. The two familiar temperature scales are the Fahrenheit temperature scale and the Celsius temperature scale. The Celsius temperature (°C) and the Fahrenheit temperature (°F) are related by: °F = (9/5) °C + 32

In principle, there is no upper limit to temperature but there is a definite lower limit- the absolute zero. This limiting temperature is 273.16° below zero on the Celsius scale of temperature.

Clinical thermometer is used to measure our body temperature. The range of this thermometer is from 35°C to 42°C. For other purposes, we use the laboratory thermometers. The range of these thermometers is usually from – 10°C to 110°C. The normal temperature of the human body is 37°C.

The heat flows from a body at a higher temperature to a body at a lower temperature. There are three ways in which heat can flow from one object to another. These are conduction, convection and radiation.

The process by which heat is transferred from the hotter end to the colder end of an object is known as conduction. In solids, generally, the heat is transferred by the process of conduction.

The materials which allow heat to pass through them easily are conductors of heat. For examples, aluminum, iron and copper. The materials which do not allow heat to pass through them easily are poor conductors of heat such as plastic and wood. Poor conductors are known as insulators.

In convention heat is carried from one place to another by the actual movement of liquid and gases. In liquids and gases the heat is transferred by convection

The people living in the coastal areas experience an interesting phenomenon. During the day, the land gets heated faster than the water. The air over the land becomes hotter and rises up. The cooler air from the sea rushes in towards the land to take its place. The warm air from the land moves towards the sea to complete the cycle. The air from the sea is called the sea breeze. At night it is exactly the reverse. The water cools down more slowly than the land. So, the cool air from the land moves towards the sea. This is called the land breeze.

The transfer of heat by radiation does not require any medium. It can take place whether a medium is present or not.

Dark-colored objects absorb radiation better than the light-colored objects. That is the reason we feel more comfortable in light-colored clothes in the summer. Woolen clothes keep us warm during winter. It is so because wool is a poor conductor of heat and it has air trapped in between the fibers.

A change in the temperature of a body causes change in its dimensions. The increase in the dimensions of a body due to the increase in its temperature is called thermal expansion. The expansion in length is called linear expansion. The expansion in area is called area expansion. The expansion in volume is called volume expansion.

The amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of 1g of a substance through 1° is called specific heat capacity of the substance. The S.I. Unit of specific heat capacity is( J/kg)K. Water has the highest specific heat capacity which is equal to 4200 (J/kg)K.

The specific heat capacity is the property of the substance which determines the change in the temperature of the substance (undergoing no phase change) when a given quantity of heat is absorbed (or rejected) by it. It is defined as the amount of heat per unit mass absorbed or rejected by the substance to change its temperature by one unit. It depends on the nature of the substance and its temperature.

The amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of a given mass of substance through 1° is called heat capacity or thermal capacity of the substance. Its S.I. Unit is (J/K).

Calorimetry means measurement of heat. When a body at higher temperature is brought in contact with another body at lower temperature, the heat lost by the hot body is equal to the heat gained by the colder body, provided no heat is allowed to escape to the surroundings. A device in which heat measurement can be made is called a calorimeter.

CHANGE OF STATE: Matter normally exists in three states: solid, liquid, and gas. A transition from one of these states to another is called a change of state. Two common changes of states are solid to liquid and liquid to gas (and vice versa). These changes can occur when the exchange of heat takes place between the substance and its surroundings.

The change of state from solid to liquid is called melting and from liquid to solid is called fusion. It is observed that the temperature remains constant until the entire amount of the solid substance melts. That is, both the solid and liquid states of the substance coexist in thermal equilibrium during the change of states from solid to liquid.

The temperature at which the solid and the liquid states of the substance in thermal equilibrium with each other is called its melting point. It is characteristic of the substance. It also depends on pressure. The melting point of a substance at standard atmospheric pressure is called its normal melting point.

The change of state from liquid to vapor (or gas) is called vaporization. It is observed that the temperature remains constant until the entire amount of the liquid is converted into vapor. That is, both the liquid and vapor states of the substance coexist in thermal equilibrium, during the change of state from liquid to vapor.

The temperature at which the liquid and the vapor states of the substance coexist is called its boiling point. At high altitudes, atmospheric pressure is lower, reducing the boiling point of water as compared to that at sea level. On the other hand, boiling point is increased inside a pressure cooker by increasing the pressure. Hence cooking is faster.

The boiling point of a substance at standard atmospheric pressure is called its normal boiling point.

However, all substances do not pass through the three states: solid-liquid-gas. There are certain substances which normally pass from the solid to the vapor state directly and vice versa. The change from solid state to vapor state without passing through the liquid state is called sublimation, and the substance is said to sublime. Dry ice (solid CO2) sublimes, so also iodine. During the sublimation process both the solid and vapor states of a substance coexist in thermal equilibrium.

Certain amount of heat energy is transferred between a substance and its surroundings when it undergoes a change of state. The amount of heat per unit mass transferred during change of state of the substance is called latent heat of the substance for the process.

The amount of heat energy supplied to a solid at its melting point, such that it changes into liquid state without any rise in temperature is called latent heat of fusion and that for a liquid-gas state change is called the latent heat of vaporization.

Newton’s Law of Cooling says that the rate of cooling of a body is proportional to the excess temperature of the body over the surroundings.