SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENTOF
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY LABORATORY GROUP
REPORT
1st Semester AY 2021-2022
MODULE 1
UNIT 3: SPECIFIC HEAT OF METAL
SUBMITTED BY:
GROUP 2
BATARA, ALAIN JOHN O. BSMeCE 2 2205469
CAMANGIAN, RIA JEAN G. BSCE 2 2216682
CORNELIO, LYDIA RHOSE O. BSIE 1 2221994
CORPUZ, JESSICA KATE B. BSIE 1 2224408
COSME, KENNETH E. BSEE 1 2214686
CRISTAL, VINCENT ELRIC A. BSIE 1 2221396
DADURAL, NAJMA JORIN BSIE 1 2222881
ROSARIO, ANDREW P. BSCE 2 2216433
SUBMITTED TO:
ENGR. EDELYN PADSUYAN
ENGR. GOLDA MOSTRALES
DATE OF SUBMISSION:
08/31/2021
I. BRIEF INTRODUCTION
Ever wonder how scientists determine which type of metals are fit to be used for pots and pans? Scientists make use of
a concept called Specific heat to know which metals are best to be used to make cooking utensils effective this is by polishing
the bottom with copper or aluminum which has a low specific heat, another good example of specific heat is how our oceans
which have high specific heat helps regulate the climate. Chemists identify substances on the basis of their chemical and
physical properties. One physical property of a substance is the amount of energy it will absorb per unit of mass. This
property can be measured quite accurately and is called specific heat. It has the amount of energy, measured in either joules
or calories, needed to raise the temperature of one gram of the substance one degree Celsius. Often applied to metallic
elements, specific heat can be used asa basis for comparing energy absorption and transfer.
The specific heat is an intensive property that describes how much heat must be added to a particular substance to
raise its temperature. It has a variety of real-life applications like for an instrument such as a thermometer, the body may be
made of higher specific heat and the tip is made of material of low specific heat, car radiators, refrigeration technology, and
many more. To measure specific heat in the lab, some type of calorimeter must be used. A calorimeter is a well-insulated
container used in measuring energy changes. The calorimeter is insulated to reduce the loss or gain of energy from the
surroundings.
In this experiment, we were able to determine the specific heat of three different metal samples. The metals were
heated to a high temperature then placed into the calorimeter containing a known quantity of water at a lower
temperature. The heat flows from an object at a higher temperature to that of a lower temperature till the temperature of
the two are equal. We calculated the amount of heat in calories gained by the water by measuring the weight of the water in
grams and the change in temperature the water undergoes when the hot metal is placed in it.
II. DATA AND RESULTS/ REPORT SHEET
A. Determination of the specific heat of metal
Metal #1 Metal #2
MASS OF METAL 24.3 23.1 grams
ORIGINAL TEMPERATURE 23 23 ℃
OF WATER
ORIGINAL TEMPERATURE 97 95 ℃
OF METAL
FINAL TEMPERATURE OF 27; 27 (water) 29; 29 (water) ℃
METAL
TEMPERATURE LOSS OF -70 -66 ℃
METAL
MASS OF WATER 25 25 grams
SPECIFIC HEAT OF METAL 0.246090535 0.41184573 J/g· ℃
B. Determination of the Approximate Weight of a Metal
MASS OF UNKNOWN 23.2 grams
METAL
ORIGINAL TEMPERATURE 23 ℃
OF WATER
ORIGINAL TEMPERATURE 96 ℃
OF METAL
FINAL TEMPERATURE OF 28; 28 (water) ℃
METAL
TEMPERATURE LOSS OF -68 ℃
METAL
MASS OF WATER 25 Grams
SPECIFIC HEAT OF METAL 0.3316746957 J/g· ℃
APPROXIMATE ATOMIC 80.78852631 g/mol
WEIGHT OF METAL
III. DISCUSSION OF RESULTS
We found in the specific heat of the metal experiment that the specific heat drops at lower temperatures as
quantum processes become significant. Furthermore, the specific heat per gram for water is much higher than that for
metal, as exemplified in the water-metal example. And the specific heat can be defined and measured for solids, liquids,
and gases of fairly general composition and molecular structure. As temperature and pressure change, it can also be
defined for materials that change the composition or state as long as the change is reversible and gradual.
IV. CONCLUSION
Specific heat capacity of metals, in conclusion, is a calculation of the amount of heat energy needed to modify the
temperature. Specific heat capacity is important because it specifies how much energy is requiredfor an object of a given
mass to be heated or cooled by a given amount. This will include details about how long a given supply will take for the
heating and cooling process, as well as the cost implications.
This laboratory report gives us more information as engineering students about the essence of thermal energy,
temperature, and how thermal energy is processed by things or materials. We are going to address the variations between
thermal energy conduction, convection and radiation, and to be able to complete the activities in which we need to
analyze the temperature, thermal energy and heat capacity differences of different materials. Furthermore, to be able to
predict the output of any given material over its lifetime in a particular application, students must understand thermal
properties. In this lesson, the understanding we obtain will be extended to our chosen fields in the future and able to
design effective materials for heat transfer for better engines, spacecraft and electronic devices. To design more successful
buildings and houses, they also analyze the thermal properties of insulation.
Engineers should develop ways to reduce the transfer of heat from a motor to the atmosphere around it. They
also find ways to insulate the engine to reduce the ease of heat transfer from the engine and build a refrigerator to keep
heat from the inside and keep the contents of the refrigerator cold. And that is the relevance of studying specific heat
capacity.
V. COMPUTATIONS/ TABLES AND FIGURES (IF APPLICABLE)
1. Refer to approximate tables (from chemistry handbooks) for the actual values of specific heats. How do you
account for the large deviations from actual values?
- There are a few reasons as to why there are large deviations from the actual values.
a. Because of practical considerations, like how some values of heat tend to be transferred between the
contents of the calorimeter and the surrounding area, this is because the improvised calorimeter are imperfect
heat barriers.
b. Possible inaccurate temperature readings.
c. Lower atmospheric pressure compared to the standard atmospheric pressure.
2. What additional information is needed in order to calculate a more accurate atomic weight for the
unknown metal?
- In order to calculate a much more accurate atomic number of an unknown metal one should, accurately
measure the metal, to check loss of heat of surroundings one should get the water temperature every ten
minutes, determine the heat capacity of the calorimeter. The sum of the fractional abundance values must
equal to 1 and be sure to use the mass or weight of each isotope and not its mass number.
3. Indicate whether the following will increase, decrease, or have no effect on the calculated atomicweight
for the unknown metal:
a) 5.0 grams of hot water were transferred to the calorimeter together with the metal.
INCREASE
b) There was heat loss by radiation from the calorimeter to the surroundings.
INCREASE
c) There was considerate delay in transferring the metal to the water in the calorimeter.
DECREASE
d) The metal was transferred to the calorimeter before temperature of the metal and boilingwater
reached equilibrium
DECREASE
4. A 74.8 g sample of a metal at 143.2°C is added to an insulated vessel containing 208g of water at24.8°C.
The final temperature of the mixture is 31.1°C. What is the specific heat of the metal in J/g-°C?
- The specific heat of the metal is 0.654 J/g℃.
5. To raise the temperature of 75.0 g of a particular metal by 1.50°C requires 107 cal of [Link] is
the approximate atomic mass of the metal? What is the metal?
- The metal’s approximate atomic mass is 6.73 g/mol. Therefore, the metal t is Lithium.
VI. SET-UP/ DRAWING
VII. REFERENCES
Boundless. “Boundless Chemistry”. Lumen, Retrieved from [Link]
chemistry/chapter/atomic-mass/
Summary Conclusion. (n.d.). Course hero. Retrieved from [Link]
After-the-experiment-I-can-conclude-that-a-metal-has-a-property-
that/#:~:text=CONCLUSION%20After%20the%20experiment%2C%20I,like%20the%20Aluminum%20and%20Copp
er.&text=The%20greater%20the%20mass%20of,its%20latent%20heat%20of%20fusion.
Intermediate, CK12. “Chemistry for Non-Majors.” Lumen, Retrieved from
[Link]