Lesson 3 of 8 · Thermodynamics

Experiment⭐ 30 XP

Specific Latent Heat

🧪Lab Brief #3

Thermodynamics.

🎯 Your mission

Run the experiment. Find out what really happens.

⚡ The twist

Nature loves to surprise the careful watcher.

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Mind = Blown

🔬 The more you look, the more nature shows you.

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Make a hypothesis first

Before you start: write down what you think will happen, and why.

What You'll Learn

Changing state takes energy without any temperature change, because the energy goes into breaking bonds rather than speeding particles up. Specific latent heat of fusion is the energy per kilogram to melt; of vaporisation, to boil. Water's latent heat of vaporisation is very large.

Key Words

Tap a word to see its definition.

Materials Needed

crushed ice
immersion heater
beaker
thermometer
stopwatch
balance

Safety First

Steam scalds worse than boiling water — keep face away from the beaker mouth.
Never run the heater in air.

Steps

Step 1 — Read

Read the explanation above and note the two key terms before you start.

Step 2 — Do

Heat crushed ice steadily with an immersion heater, recording temperature every 30 s from below zero through melting to boiling. Plot the heating curve and identify the two flat sections as the state changes.

Step 3 — Observe

Record what actually happened, including anything that did not match what you expected.

Step 4 — Record

Write a conclusion that answers the question this lesson opened with, and state your uncertainty.

Check Your Understanding

Question 1

1 of 2

During melting, the temperature of the mixture:

How sure are you going to be?😐 maybe

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Where you see this in real life

This shows up in your everyday life more than you'd think.

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Stretch Challenge

Try this in real life this week.

Try one experiment in real life this week — even a tiny one.

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For the dinner table

“What's the most surprising thing you learned today?”

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