Curriculum Unit: Thermodynamics

Topic: Heat Transfer and Specific Latency

Objectives:

Describe an experiment to determine the specific latent heat of vaporization of water.

Application of specific heat capacity and latent heat

Define conduction and describe an experiment to:

Compare thermal conductivities of different solids
Show water is a poor conductor of heat
Relate the fact that air is a very poor conductor of heat to the insulation properties of
certain materials

Define convection and describe an experiment to demonstrate convection in fluids.

Relate convection to common phenomena such as land and sea breezes and domestic
water heaters

Integration of Faith and Learning:

Materials:

Lesson Plan:

Content Outline:

Applications-Specific Latent Heat

1. Drinks can be cooled by adding in several cubes of ice. When the ice melts, a large
amount of heat is absorbed and this lowers the temperature of the drink

2. The freshness of fish and meat can be maintained by placing them in contact with ice.
With its larger latent heat, ice is able to absorb a large quantity of heat from the fish as it
melts. Thus, food can be kept at a low temperature for an extended period of time.

3. Water has a large latent heat of vaporization. This property enables steam to be used for
cooking by the method of steaming. When steam condenses on the food, the latent heat
is released directly onto the food enables the food to be cooked at a faster rate.
Applications- Specific Heat Capacity

1. Car radiator
Water is pumped through the channels in the engine block to absorb heat. Water is used as
the cooling agent due to its high specific heat capacity. The hot water flows to the radiator
and is cooled by the air flows through the fins of the radiator. The cool water flows back
to the engine again to capture more heat and this cycle is repeated continuously

2. Cooking Utensils
Handles of cooking utensils are made of substances with high specific heat capacities so
that its temperature wont become too high even if it absorbs large amount of heat.

3. Sea Breeze
Land has lower heat capacity than sea water. Therefore, in day time, the temperature of
the land increases faster than the sea.

Hot air (lower density) above the land rises. Cooler air from the sea flows towards land
and hence produces sea breeze.

Conduction

Conduction is the transfer of energy by the movement of particles that are in contact with each
other. The word "conduction" is often used to describe three different kinds of behavior, defined
by the type of energy being transferred:

1. Heat Conduction (or Thermal Conduction) - Heat conduction is heat transferred through
direct contact within or between solid objects, such as when you touch the handle of a hot
metal skillet.

2. Electrical Conduction - The conduction of electrical current, such as through the wires in
your house.

3. Sound Conduction (or Acoustic Conduction) - The conduction of sound waves, such as
feeling the vibrations of music through a wall.

A material which provides good conduction is called a conductor, while materials that provide
poor conduction are called insulators.

Experiment 1: Thermal Conductivity of different Solids

Materials Needed:

Metal spoon
Plastic/rubber spoon
Wooden spoon
Large pot
Water
Butter/chocolate

Procedure:

1. Start by putting a pot of water on the hot stove. Once the water is good and hot (boiling
or near boiling), carefully place 3 different spoons in the pot one metal, one plastic or
rubber, and one wooden spoon.

2. Make a prediction about what will happen if you place a little pat of butter/ chocolate on
each of the spoons.

Experiment 2: Prove that Water is a Poor Conductor of Heat

Materials Needed:

Test-tube
Water
Ice
Bunsen Burner
Thin Wire

Procedure:

1. Fill the test tube with water and put a small ice cube (wrapped in a wire) in it

2. Make sure that the ice cube is at the bottom of the test tube

3. Heat the test tube from the top using a Bunsen Burner.

The water will boil at the top of test-tube while the water at the bottom will be cold. This shows
that water is poor conductor of heat.
Experiment 3: Prove that Air is a bad Conductor of Heat
Materials needed:
Glass tube
Wax
Bunsen burner
Cork
Retort stand and clamps

Procedure:
1. Drop a small piece of wax in the glass tube and close its mouth with the cork
2. Clamp the glass tube on the stand as shown.
3. Heat the glass tube near its mouth.
4. Record your observations

After some time, the cork should blow away but the wax at the bottom of the tube does not melt.
The air near the mouth gets heated and its pressure increases. The high pressure of air pushes the
cork and it blows off, but heat is not conducted through the air to the bottom where wax is
present. This proves that air is a bad conductor of heat.

Convection
Convection is the transfer of heat from a warmer region to a cooler one by moving warm liquid
or gas from the heated area to the unheated area.

Experiment: Demonstrate Convection in Fluids

Materials needed:
4 glass bottles
Food colouring (Yellow and Blue)
Index cards
Masking tape
 Pen

Procedure:

1. Fill two of the bottles with warm water from the tap and the other two bottles with
cold water. Use masking tape and a pen to label the bottles with the words HOT
and COLD.
2. Use food coloring to color the warm water yellow and the cold water blue. Each
bottle must be filled to the brim with water.
3. Observe what will be what happens if the bottle with warm water rests on top of the
bottle filled with cold water. To accomplish this, place the index card or old playing
card over the mouth of one of the warm water bottles (remember, its the bottle with
the yellow water). Hold the card in place as you turn the bottle upside down and rest
it on top of one of the cold water bottles. The bottles should be positioned so that they
are mouth to mouth with the card separating the two liquids.
4. Carefully slip the card out from in between the two bottles, making sure that you are
holding onto the top bottle when you remove the card. Take a look at what happens to
the colored liquids in the two bottles.
5. For the second variation of the experiment, you need to have the warm water on the
bottom and the cold water on top. Repeat steps three and four, but this time place the
bottle of cold water on top of the warm water. Carefully remove the card and watch
what happens.

How does it work?

Hot air balloons rise because warm air is lighter and less dense than cold air is. Similarly, warm
water is lighter in weight or less dense than cold water is. When the bottle of warm water is
placed on top of the cold water, the more dense cold water stays in the bottom bottle and the less
dense warm water is confined to the top bottle. However, when the cold water bottle rests on top
of the warm water, the less dense warm water rises to the top bottle and the cold water sinks. The
movement of the water is clearly seen as the yellow and blue food coloring mix, creating a green
liquid.
The movement of the warm and cold water inside the bottles is referred to as a convection
current. In our daily life, warm currents can occur in oceans, like the warm Gulf Stream moving
up north along the American Eastern Seaboard. Convection currents in the atmosphere are
responsible for the formation of thunderstorms as the warm and cold air masses collide.
Although the bottles whose colored liquids mix are more interesting to watch, the other set of
warm and cold water bottles helps to illustrate another important phenomenon that occurs in the
atmosphere during the winter months. During daylight hours, the Sun heats the surface of the
Earth and the layer of air closest to the Earth. This warm air rises and mixes with other
atmospheric gases. When the Sun goes down, the less dense warm air high up in the atmosphere
often blankets the colder air that rests closer to the surface of the Earth. Because the colder air is
more dense than the warm air, the colder air is trapped close to the Earth and the atmospheric
gases do not mix. This is commonly referred to as temperature inversion.