Need Chemistry help! (Specific heat)

[MournSanity]

I need some help determining the specific heat of a metal. I am doing a lab using a computer program for school(Damn lazy ass ***** teacher) and am trying to figure out how to get the specific heat of a few metals from the results we got in the lab. The metals are Fe, Al, and Cu.

Initial Temperature of water from the calorimeter: 20 for all the metals
Final Temperature of Water from the Calorimeter:
Fe Metal - 28 C
Al Metal - 34 C
Cu Metal - 27 C

Estimate the atomic weight of metal:
Fe Metal - 55.847 amu
Al Metal - 26.981 amu
Cu Metal - 63.546 amu


How the hell do I get the specific heat from this data?

 

[MournSanity]

Any help would be EXTREMELY appreciated.

 

[Kev]

i have nothing useful to say, just wanted to point out that chemistry sucks the fat one

 

[NewSc2]

use the equation q = mc (delta) T

the q (heat) is equal to the mass of the substance multiplied by the specific heat multiplied by the temperature change

 

[MournSanity]

How can you find the specific heat if you need to multiply it to find it? *Truly confused now*

Is there a formula that goes s = m/c or something?

 

[MournSanity]

Bump...






I HATE THIS CLAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *cries*

 

[illusion88]

Originally posted by: hypersonic5
How can you find the specific heat if you need to multiply it to find it? *Truly confused now*

Is there a formula that goes s = m/c or something?

You never passed Algerbra did you?
isolate the C by dividing by M (delta) T. If you cant do that...

 

[rgwalt]

Well, you need to know the mass or volume of the water in the calorimeter along with the mass of the metal samples in order to determine specific heat. You also need to know the initial temperature of the metal samples.

Ryan

 

[illusion88]

Originally posted by: rgwalt
Well, you need to know the mass or volume of the water in the calorimeter along with the mass of the metal samples in order to determine specific heat. You also need to know the initial temperature of the metal samples.

Ryan

You can do it the other way. I got that equation in Physics... but it would work.

 

[MournSanity]

Originally posted by: illusion88

Originally posted by: hypersonic5
How can you find the specific heat if you need to multiply it to find it? *Truly confused now*

Is there a formula that goes s = m/c or something?

You never passed Algerbra did you?
isolate the C by dividing by M (delta) T. If you cant do that...

You mean move it to the other side and chance its sign right? I am actually really good at Math(I'm in Alg. 2) but this Chemistry is hell. If my teacher tought it like math, it would be a dream for me.

 

[MournSanity]

Wait, if that was right, wouldn't you need the heat also to solve the problem?

 

[ddjkdg]

Originally posted by: hypersonic5
Wait, if that was right, wouldn't you need the heat also to solve the problem?

No, the heat gained by the water equals the heat lost by the metal. You take mc delta t of the water and mc delta t of the metal and set them equal to each other. Then you plug in all of the data you have and you should get c for the metal. This is why you need to know the masses of the water and metal, and the initial temperatures of the metals (say you had them in a beaker full of boiling water, then their temp would be 100 degrees).

 

[NewSc2]

so in other words:

C = M x dT/ Q

specific heat = mass multiplied by the change in temperature divided by heat


i don't see how it could get any more simpler than that.

 

[Gibson486]

You mean move it to the other side and chance its sign right? I am actually really good at Math(I'm in Alg. 2) but this Chemistry is hell. If my teacher tought it like math, it would be a dream for me.

Shhhh.....in this forum, anything below calc is just not worth mentioning😉 Alg 2, i remember those days...*sigh*, well, back to partial integrals for me. ANyways, yeah, what NewsSc2 said and don't forget this stuff, if you take engineering in college, this stuff will show up again. I am doing this stuff now. I miss high school chem🙁