CHAPTER ELEVEN

THERMAL PROPERTIES

OF

MATTER

11.1 INTRODUCTION

11.1
11.2
11.3

Introduction
Temperature and heat
Measurement of
temperature
11.4 Ideal-gas equation and
absolute temperature
11.5 Thermal expansion
11.6 Specific heat capacity
11.7 Calorimetry
11.8 Change of state
11.9 Heat transfer
11.10 Newtons law of cooling
Summary
Points to ponder
Exercises

We all have common-sense notions of heat and temperature.

Temperature is a measure of hotness of a body. A kettle
with boiling water is hotter than a box containing ice. In
physics, we need to define the notion of heat, temperature,
etc., more carefully. In this chapter, you will learn what heat
is and how it is measured, and study the various proceses by
which heat flows from one body to another. Along the way,
you will find out why blacksmiths heat the iron ring before
fitting on the rim of a wooden wheel of a bullock cart and
why the wind at the beach often reverses direction after the
sun goes down. You will also learn what happens when water
boils or freezes, and its temperature does not change during
these processes even though a great deal of heat is flowing
into or out of it.
11.2 TEMPERATURE AND HEAT
We can begin studying thermal properties of matter with
definitions of temperature and heat. Temperature is a relative
measure, or indication of hotness or coldness. A hot utensil
is said to have a high temperature, and ice cube to have a
low temperature. An object that has a higher temperature
than another object is said to be hotter. Note that hot and
cold are relative terms, like tall and short. We can perceive
temperature by touch. However, this temperature sense is
somewhat unreliable and its range is too limited to be useful
for scientific purposes.
We know from experience that a glass of ice-cold water left
on a table on a hot summer day eventually warms up whereas
a cup of hot tea on the same table cools down. It means that
when the temperature of body, ice-cold water or hot tea in
this case, and its surrounding medium are different, heat
transfer takes place between the system and the surrounding
medium, until the body and the surrounding medium are at
the same temperature. We also know that in the case of glass
tumbler of ice cold water, heat flows from the environment to

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

275

the glass tumbler, whereas in the case of hot

tea, it flows from the cup of hot tea to the
environment. So, we can say that 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. When an
object is heated, many changes may take place.
Its temperature may rise, it may expand or
change state. We will study the effect of heat on
different bodies in later sections.
11.3 MEASUREMENT OF TEMPERATURE
A measure of temperature is obtained using a
thermometer. Many physical properties of
materials change sufficiently with temperature
to be used as the basis for constructing
thermometers. The commonly used property is
variation of the volume of a liquid with
temperature. For example, a common
thermometer (the liquid-in-glass type) with
which you are familiar. Mercury and alcohol are
the liquids used in most liquid-in-glass
thermometers.
Thermometers are calibrated so that a
numerical value may be assigned to a given
temperature. For the definition of any standard
scale, two fixed reference points are needed.
Since all substances change dimensions with
temperature, an absolute reference for
expansion is not available. However, the
necessary fixed points may be correlated to
physical phenomena that always occur at the
same temperature. The ice point and the steam
point of water are two convenient fixed points
and are known as the freezing and boiling points.
These two points are the temperatures at which
pure water freezes and boils under standard
pressure. The two familiar temperature scales
are the Fahrenheit temperature scale and the
Celsius temperature scale. The ice and
steam point have values 32 F and 212 F
respectively, on the Fahrenheit scale and 0 C
and 100 C on the Celsius scale. On the
Fahrenheit scale, there are 180 equal intervals
between two reference points, and on the celsius
scale, there are 100.

Fig. 11.1 A plot of Fahrenheit temperature (tF) versus

Celsius temperature (tc ).

A relationship for converting between the two

scales may be obtained from a graph of
Fahrenheit temperature (t F) versus celsius
temperature (tC) in a straight line (Fig. 11.1),
whose equation is

t F 32 t C
=
180
100

(11.1)

11.4 IDEAL-GAS EQUATION AND ABSOLUTE

TEMPERATURE
Liquid-in-glass thermometers show different
readings for temperatures other than the fixed
points because of differing expansion properties.
A thermometer that uses a gas, however, gives
the same readings regardless of which gas is
used. Experiments show that all gases at low
densities exhibit same expansion behaviour. The
variables that describe the behaviour of a given
quantity (mass) of gas are pressure, volume, and
temperature (P, V, and T )(where T = t + 273.15;
t is the temperature in C). When temperature
is held constant, the pressure and volume of a
quantity of gas are related as PV = constant.
This relationship is known as Boyles law, after
Robert Boyle (1627-1691) the English Chemist
who discovered it. When the pressure is held
constant, the volume of a quantity of the gas is
related to the temperature as V/T = constant.
This relationship is known as Charles law, after
the French scientist Jacques Charles (17471823). Low density gases obey these laws, which
may be combined into a single relationship.

276

Fig. 11.2 Pressure versus temperature of a low

density gas kept at constant volume.

Notice that since PV = constant and V/T =

constant for a given quantity of gas, then PV/T
should also be a constant. This relationship is
known as ideal gas law. It can be written in a
more general form that applies not just to a given
quantity of a single gas but to any quantity of
any dilute gas and is known as ideal-gas
equation:

PV
R
T
or PV = RT
(11.2)
where, is the number of moles in the sample
of gas and R is called universal gas constant:
R = 8.31 J mol1 K1
In Eq. 11.2, we have learnt that the pressure
and volume are directly proportional to
temperature : PV T. This relationship allows a
gas to be used to measure temperature in a
constant volume gas thermometer. Holding the
volume of a gas constant, it gives P T. Thus,
with a constant-volume gas thermometer,
temperature is read in terms of pressure. A plot
of pressure versus temperature gives a straight
line in this case, as shown in Fig. 11.2.
However, measurements on real gases deviate
from the values predicted by the ideal gas law
at low temperature. But the relationship is linear
over a large temperature range, and it looks as
though the pressure might reach zero with
decreasing temperature if the gas continued to
be a gas. The absolute minimum temperature
for an ideal gas, therefore, inferred by
extrapolating the straight line to the axis, as in
Fig. 11.3. This temperature is found to be
273.15 C and is designated as absolute zero.
Absolute zero is the foundation of the Kelvin
temperature scale or absolute scale temperature

PHYSICS

Fig. 11.3 A plot of pressure versus temperature and

extrapolation of lines for low density gases
indicates the same absolute zero
temperature.

named after the British scientist Lord Kelvin.

On this scale, 273.15 C is taken as the zero
point, that is 0 K (Fig. 11.4).

Fig. 11.4 Comparision of the Kelvin, Celsius and

Fahrenheit temperature scales.

The size of the unit for Kelvin temperature is

the same celsius degree, so temperature on these
scales are related by
T = tC + 273.15

(11.3)

11.5 THERMAL EXPANSION

You may have observed that sometimes sealed
bottles with metallic lids are so tightly screwed
that one has to put the lid in hot water for
sometime to open the lid. This would allow the
metallic cover to expand, thereby loosening it to
unscrew easily. In case of liquids, you may have
observed that mercury in a thermometer rises,
when the thermometer is put in a slightly warm
water. If we take out the thermometer from the

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

277

warm water the level of mercury falls again.

Similarly, in the case of gases, a balloon partially
inflated in a cool room may expand to full size
when placed in warm water. On the other hand,
a fully inflated balloon when immersed in cold
water would start shrinking due to contraction
of the air inside.
It is our common experience that most
substances expand on heating and contract on
cooling. 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 (Fig. 11.5).

Table 11.1 Values of coef ficient of linear

expansion for some materials

Materials

l (105 K1)

Aluminium
Brass
Iron
Copper
Silver
Gold
Glass (pyrex)
Lead

2.5
1.8
1.2
1.7
1.9
1.4
0.32
0.29

Similarly, we consider the fractional change

V
, of a substance for temperature
V
change T and define the coefficient of volume
in volume,

expansion,

l
l

a l T

(a) Linear expansion

A
A

2a l T

(b) Area expansion

V
V

3a l T

(c) Volume expansion

as

V 1
V =
(11.5)

V T
Here V is also a characteristic of the
substance but is not strictly a constant. It
depends in general on temperature (Fig 11.6). It
is seen that V becomes constant only at a high
temperature.

Fig. 11.5 Thermal Expansion.

If the substance is in the form of a long rod,

then for small change in temperature, T, the
fractional change in length, l/l, is directly
proportional to T.

l
= 1 T
l

(11.4)

where 1 is known as the coefficient of linear

expansion and is characteristic of the material
of the rod. In Table 11.1 are given typical average
values of the coefficient of linear expansion for
some materials in the temperature range 0 C
to 100 C. From this Table, compare the value
of l for glass and copper. We find that copper
expands about five times more than glass for
the same rise in temperature. Normally, metals
expand more and have relatively high values
of l.

Fig. 11.6 Coefficient of volume expansion of copper

as a function of temperature.

Table 11.2 gives the values of co-efficient of

volume expansion of some common substances
in the temperature range 0 100 C. You can
see that thermal expansion of these substances
(solids and liquids) is rather small, with

278

PHYSICS

materials like pyrex glass and invar (a special

iron-nickel alloy) having particularly low values
of V. From this Table we find that the value of
v for alcohol (ethyl) is more than mercury and
expands more than mercury for the same rise
in temperature.
Table 11.2

Values of coefficient of volume

expansion for some substances

Materials

v ( K1)

Aluminium
Brass
Iron
Paraffin
Glass (ordinary)
Glass (pyrex)
Hard rubber
Invar
Mercurry
Water
Alcohol (ethyl)

7 105
6 105
3.55 105
58.8 105
2.5 105
1 105
2.4 104
2 106
18.2 105
20.7 105
110 105

Water exhibits an anomalous behavour; it

contracts on heating between 0 C and 4 C.
The volume of a given amount of water decreases
as it is cooled from room temperature, until its
temperature reaches 4 C, [Fig. 11.7(a)]. Below
4 C, the volume increases, and therefore the
density decreases [Fig. 11.7(b)].
This means that water has a maximum
density at 4 C. This property has an important
environmental effect: Bodies of water, such as

lakes and ponds, freeze at the top first. As a

lake cools toward 4 C, water near the surface
loses energy to the atmosphere, becomes denser,
and sinks; the warmer, less dense water near
the bottom rises. However, once the colder water
on top reaches temperature below 4 C, it
becomes less dense and remains at the surface,
where it freezes. If water did not have this
property, lakes and ponds would freeze from the
bottom up, which would destroy much of their
animal and plant life.
Gases at ordinary temperature expand more
than solids and liquids. For liquids, the
coefficient of volume expansion is relatively
independent of the temperature. However, for
gases it is dependent on temperature. For an
ideal gas, the coefficient of volume expansion at
constant pressure can be found from the ideal
gas equation :
PV = RT
At constant pressure
PV = R T

V T
=
V
T
1
for ideal gas
(11.6)
T
At 0 C, v = 3.7 103 K1, which is much
larger than that for solids and liquids.
Equation (11.6) shows the temperature
dependence of v; it decreases with increasing
temperature. For a gas at room temperature and
constant pressure v is about 3300 106 K1, as
i.e. v =

Temperature (C)
Temperature (C)
(a)
(b)
Fig. 11.7 Thermal expansion of water.

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

279

much as order(s) of magnitude larger than the

coefficient of volume expansion of typical liquids.
There is a simple relation between the
coefficient of volume expansion ( v ) and
coefficient of linear expansion (l). Imagine a
cube of length, l, that expands equally in all
directions, when its temperature increases by
T. We have
l = l l T
so, V = (l+l)3 l3 3l2 l
(11.7)
In equation (11.7), terms in (l)2 and (l)3 have
been neglected since l is small compared to l.
So

v = 3l

A3 = (a) (b)
Al = a (b)
b
b
a

A2 = b (a)
Fig. 11.8

(11.8)

(11.9)

What happens by preventing the thermal

expansion of a rod by fixing its ends rigidly?
Clearly, the rod acquires a compressive strain
due to the external forces provided by the rigid
support at the ends. The corresponding stress
set up in the rod is called thermal stress. For
example, consider a steel rail of length 5 m and
area of cross section 40 cm2 that is prevented
from expanding while the temperature rises by
10 C. The coefficient of linear expansion of steel
is l(steel) = 1.2 105 K1. Thus, the compressive

l
strain is
= l(steel) T = 1.2 105 10=1.2 104.
l
Youngs modulus of steel is Y (steel) = 2 1011 N m2.
Therefore, the thermal stress developed is
F
l
= Ysteel = 2.4 10 7 N m 2 , which
A
l
corresponds to an external force of

l
= 2.4 107 40 104 105N.
l

F = AYsteel

If two such steel rails, fixed at their outer ends,

are in contact at their inner ends, a force of this
magnitude can easily bend the rails.
Example 11.1 Show that the coefficient
of area expansions, (A/A)/T, of a
rectangular sheet of the solid is twice its
linear expansivity, l.

Consider a rectangular sheet of the solid

material of length a and breadth b (Fig. 11.8 ).
When the temperature increases by T, a
increases by a = l aT and b increases by b
= lb T. From Fig. 11.8, the increase in area
A = A1 +A2 + A3
A = a b + b a + (a) (b)
= a lb T + b l a T + (l)2 ab (T)2
= l ab T (2 + l T) = l A T (2 + l T)
Since l 10 5 K1, from Table 11.1, the
product l T for fractional temperature is small
in comparision with 2 and may be neglected.
Hence,
A 1
2l

A T

3V l
= 3V l T
l
which gives
V =

Answer

Example 11.2 A blacksmith fixes iron ring

on the rim of the wooden wheel of a bullock
cart. The diameter of the rim and the iron
ring are 5.243 m and 5.231 m respectively
at 27 C. To what temperature should the
ring be heated so as to fit the rim of the
wheel?

Answer
Given,

T1 = 27 C
LT1 = 5.231 m
LT2 = 5.243 m

So,
LT2 =LT1 [1+l (T2T1)]
5.243 m = 5.231 m [1 + 1.20105 K1 (T227 C)]
or T2 = 218 C.

280

PHYSICS

11.6 SPECIFIC HEAT CAPACITY

Take some water in a vessel and start heating it
on a burner. Soon you will notice that bubbles
begin to move upward. As the temperature is
raised the motion of water particles increases
till it becomes turbulent as water starts boiling.
What are the factors on which the quantity of
heat required to raise the temperature of a
substance depend? In order to answer this
question in the first step, heat a given quantity
of water to raise its temperature by, say 20 C
and note the time taken. Again take the same
amount of water and raise its temperature by
40 C using the same source of heat. Note the
time taken by using a stopwatch. You will find
it takes about twice the time and therefore,
double the quantity of heat required raising twice
the temperature of same amount of water.
In the second step, now suppose you take
double the amount of water and heat it, using
the same heating arrangement, to raise the
temperature by 20 C, you will find the time
taken is again twice that required in the first
step.
In the third step, in place of water, now heat
the same quantity of some oil, say mustard oil,
and raise the temperature again by 20 C. Now
note the time by the same stopwatch. You will
find the time taken will be shorter and therefore,
the quantity of heat required would be less than
that required by the same amount of water for
the same rise in temperature.
The above observations show that the quantity
of heat required to warm a given substance
depends on its mass, m, the change in
temperature, T and the nature of substance.
The change in temperature of a substance, when
a given quantity of heat is absorbed or rejected
by it, is characterised by a quantity called the
heat capacity of that substance. We define heat
capacity, S of a substance as

Q
(11.10)
T
where Q is the amount of heat supplied to
the substance to change its temperature from T
to T + T.
You have observed that if equal amount of
heat is added to equal masses of different
substances, the resulting temperature changes
will not be the same. It implies that every
substance has a unique value for the amount of
S

heat absorbed or rejected to change the

temperature of unit mass of it by one unit. This
quantity is referred to as the specific heat
capacity of the substance.
If Q stands for the amount of heat absorbed
or rejected by a substance of mass m when it
undergoes a temperature change T, then the
specific heat capacity, of that substance is given
by

S 1 Q

(11.11)
m m T
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 SI unit of specific heat capacity is J kg1 K1.
If the amount of substance is specified in
terms of moles , instead of mass m in kg, we
can define heat capacity per mole of the
substance by
s

S 1 Q
=
(11.12)
T
where C is known as molar specific heat
capacity of the substance. Like S, C also
depends on the nature of the substance and its
temperature. The SI unit of molar specific heat
capacity is J mol1 K1.
However, in connection with specific heat
capacity of gases, additional conditions may be
needed to define C. In this case, heat transfer
can be achieved by keeping either pressure or
volume constant. If the gas is held under
constant pressure during the heat transfer, then
it is called the molar specific heat capacity at
constant pressure and is denoted by Cp. On
the other hand, if the volume of the gas is
maintained during the heat transfer, then the
corresponding molar specific heat capacity is
called molar specific heat capacity at constant
volume and is denoted by Cv. For details see
Chapter 12. Table 11.3 lists measured specific
heat capacity of some substances at atmospheric
pressure and ordinary temperature while Table
11.4 lists molar specific heat capacities of some
gases. From Table 11.3 you can note that water
C=

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

Specific heat capacity of some substances at room temperature and atmospheric

pressure

Substance

Specific heat capacity

(J kg1 K1)

Aluminium
Carbon
Copper
Lead
Silver
Tungesten
Water

900.0
506.5
386.4
127.7
236.1
134.4
4186.0

has the highest specific heat capacity compared

to other substances. For this reason water is
used as a coolant in automobile radiators as well
as a heater in hot water bags. Owing to its high
specific heat capacity, the water warms up much
more slowly than the land during summer and
consequently wind from the sea has a cooling
effect. Now, you can tell why in desert areas,
the earth surface warms up quickly during the
day and cools quickly at night.
Table 11.4 Molar specific heat capacities of
some gases

Gas

Cp (J mol1K1)

Cv(J mol1K1)

He

20.8

12.5

H2

28.8

20.4

N2

29.1

20.8

O2

29.4

21.1

CO2

37.0

28.5

11.7 CALORIMETRY
A system is said to be isolated if no exchange or
transfer of heat occurs between the system and
its surroundings. When different parts of an
isolated system are at different temperature, a
quantity of heat transfers from the part at higher
temperature to the part at lower temperature.
The heat lost by the part at higher temperature
is equal to the heat gained by the part at lower
temperature.
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

Substance

Specific heat capacity

(J kg1 K1)

Ice
Glass
Iron
Kerosene
Edible oil
Mercury

2060
840
450
2118
1965
140

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. It consists a metallic vessel and
stirrer of the same material like copper or
alumiunium. The vessel is kept inside a wooden
jacket which contains heat insulating materials
like glass wool etc. The outer jacket acts as a
heat shield and reduces the heat loss from the
inner vessel. There is an opening in the outer
jacket through which a mercury thermometer
can be inserted into the calorimeter. The
following example provides a method by which
the specific heat capacity of a given solid can be
determinated by using the principle, heat gained
is equal to the heat lost.

Table 11.3

281

Example 11.3 A sphere of aluminium of

0.047 kg placed for sufficient time in a
vessel containing boiling water, so that the
sphere is at 100 C. It is then immediately
transfered to 0.14 kg copper calorimeter
containing 0.25 kg of water at 20 C. The
temperature of water rises and attains a
steady state at 23 C. Calculate the specific
heat capacity of aluminium.

Answer In solving this example we shall use

the fact that at a steady state, heat given by an
aluminium sphere will be equal to the heat
absorbed by the water and calorimeter.
Mass of aluminium sphere (m1) = 0.047 kg
Initial temp. of aluminium sphere = 100 C
Final temp. = 23 C
Change in temp (T ) = (100 C - 23 C) = 77 C
Let specific heat capacity of aluminium be sAl.

282

The amount of heat lost by the aluminium

sphere = m1s Al T 0.047kg s Al 77 C
Mass of water (m2) = 0.25 kg
Mass of calorimeter (m3) = 0.14 kg
Initial temp. of water and calorimeter = 20 C
Final temp. of the mixture = 23 C
Change in temp. (T2) = 23 C 20 C = 3 C
Specific heat capacity of water (sw)
= 4.18 103 J kg1 K1
Specific heat capacity of copper calorimeter
= 0.386 103 J kg1 K1
The amount of heat gained by water and
calorimeter = m2 sw T2 + m3scuT2
= (m2sw + m3scu) (T2)
= 0.25 kg 4.18 103 J kg1 K1 + 0.14 kg
0.386 103 J kg1 K1) (23 C 20 C)
In the steady state heat lost by the aluminium
sphere = heat gained by water + heat gained by
calorimeter.
So, 0.047 kg sAl 77 C
= (0.25 kg 4.18 103 J kg1 K1+ 0.14 kg
0.386 103 J kg1 K1)(3 C)
sAl = 0.911 kJ kg 1 K1

11.8 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.
To study the change of state on heating or
cooling, let us perform the following activity.
Take some cubes of ice in a beaker. Note the
temperature of ice (0 C). Start heating it slowly
on a constant heat source. Note the temperature
after every minute. Continuously stir the
mixture of water and ice. Draw a graph between
temperature and time (Fig. 11.9). You will
observe no change in the temperature so long
as there is ice in the beaker. In the above process,
the temperature of the system does not change
even though heat is being continuously supplied.
The heat supplied is being utilised in changing
the state from solid (ice) to liquid (water).

PHYSICS

Fig. 11.9 A plot of temperature versus time showing

the changes in the state of ice on heating
(not to scale).

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 atomspheric pressure is called its
normal melting point. Let us do the following
activity to understand the process of melting
of ice.
Take a slab of ice. Take a metallic wire and
fix two blocks, say 5 kg each, at its ends. Put
the wire over the slab as shown in Fig. 11.10.
You will observe that the wire passes through
the ice slab. This happens due to the fact that
just below the wire, ice melts at lower
temperature due to increase in pressure. When
the wire has passed, water above the wire freezes
again. Thus the wire passes through the slab
and the slab does not split. This phenomenon
of refreezing is called regelation. Skating is
possible on snow due to the formation of water
below the skates. Water is formed due to the
increase of pressure and it acts as a
lubricant.

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

283

100 C when it again becomes steady. The heat

supplied is now being utilised to change water
from liquid state to vapour or gaseous state.

Fig. 11.10

After the whole of ice gets converted into water

and as we continue further heating, we shall
see that temperature begins to rise. The
temperature keeps on rising till it reaches nearly

The change of state from liquid to vapour (or

gas) is called vaporisation. It is observed that
the temperature remains constant until the
entire amount of the liquid is converted into
vapour. That is, both the liquid and vapour states
of the substance coexist in thermal equilibrium,
during the change of state from liquid to vapour.
The temperature at which the liquid and the
vapour states of the substance coexist is called
its boiling point. Let us do the following activity
to understand the process of boiling of water.
Take a round-bottom flask, more than half
filled with water. Keep it over a burner and fix a

Triple Point
The temperature of a substance remains constant during its change of state (phase change).
A graph between the temperature T and the Pressure P of the substance is called a phase
diagram or P T diagram. The following figure shows the phase diagram of water and CO2.
Such a phase diagram divides the P T plane into a solid-region, the vapour-region and the
liquid-region. The regions are separated by the curves such as sublimation curve (BO), fusion
curve (AO) and vaporisation curve (CO). The points on sublimation curve represent states
in which solid and vapour phases coexist. The point on the sublimation curve BO represent
states in which the solid and vapour phases co-exist. Points on the fusion curve AO represent
states in which solid and liquid phase coexist. Points on the vapourisation curve CO represent
states in which the liquid and vapour phases coexist. The temperature and pressure at which
the fusion curve, the vaporisation curve and the sublimation curve meet and all the three
phases of a substance coexist is called the triple point of the substance. For example the
triple point of water is represented by the temperature 273.16 K and pressure 6.11103 Pa.

(a)

(b)

Pressure-temperature phase diagrams for (a) water and (b) CO2 (not to the scale).

284

PHYSICS

thermometer and steam outlet through the cork

of the flask (Fig. 11.11). As water gets heated in
the flask, note first that the air, which was
dissolved in the water, will come out as small
bubbles. Later, bubbles of steam will form at
the bottom but as they rise to the cooler water
near the top, they condense and disappear.
Finally, as the temperature of the entire mass
of the water reaches 100 C, bubbles of steam
reach the surface and boiling is said to occur.
The steam in the flask may not be visible but as
it comes out of the flask, it condenses as tiny
droplets of water, giving a foggy appearance.

cork. Keep the f lask turned upside down on the

stand. Pour ice-cold water on the flask. Water
vapours in the flask condense reducing the
pressure on the water surface inside the flask.
Water begins to boil again, now at a lower
temperature. Thus boiling point decreases with
decrease in pressure.
This explains why cooking is difficult on hills.
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 vapour state directly and vice
versa. The change from solid state to vapour
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 vapour states of a substance coexist
in thermal equilibrium.
11.8.1 Latent Heat

Fig. 11.11 Boiling process.

If now the steam outlet is closed for a few

seconds to increase the pressure in the flask,
you will notice that boiling stops. More heat
would be required to raise the temperature
(depending on the increase in pressure) before
boiling begins again. Thus boiling point increases
with increase in pressure.
Let us now remove the burner. Allow water to
cool to about 80 C. Remove the thermometer
and steam outlet. Close the flask with the airtight

In Section 11.8, we have learnt that 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. For example, if heat
is added to a given quantity of ice at 10 C, the
temperature of ice increases until it reaches its
melting point (0 C). At this temperature, the
addition of more heat does not increase the
temperature but causes the ice to melt, or
changes its state. Once the entire ice melts,
adding more heat will cause the temperature of
the water to rise. A similar situation
occurs during liquid gas change of state at the
boiling point. Adding more heat to boiling water
causes vaporisation, without increase in
temperature.

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

Temperatures of the change of state and latent heats for various substances at
1 atm pressure

Substance
Ethyl alcohol
Gold
Lead
Mercury
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Water

Melting
Point (C)

Lf
(105J kg1)

114
1063
328
39
210
219
0

The heat required during a change of state

depends upon the heat of transformation and
the mass of the substance undergoing a change
of state. Thus, if mass m of a substance
undergoes a change from one state to the other,
then the quantity of heat required is given by
Q=mL
or L = Q/m
(11.13)
where L is known as latent heat and is a
characteristic of the substance. Its SI unit is
J kg1. The value of L also depends on the
pressure. Its value is usually quoted at standard
atmospheric pressure. The latent heat for a solidliquid state change is called the latent heat of
fusion (Lf), and that for a liquid-gas state change
is called the latent heat of vaporisation (Lv).
These are often referred to as the heat of fusion
and the heat of vaporisation. A plot of
temperature versus heat energy for a quantity
of water is shown in Fig. 11.12. The latent heats
of some substances, their freezing and boiling
points, are given in Table 11.5.

Fig. 11.12 Temperature versus heat for water at

1 atm pressure (not to scale).

Boiling
Point (C)

1.0
0.645
0.25
0.12
0.26
0.14
3.33

78
2660
1744
357
196
183
100

Lv
(105J kg1)
8.5
15.8
8.67
2.7
2.0
2.1
22.6

Note that when heat is added (or removed)

during a change of state, the temperature
remains constant. Note in Fig. 11.12 that the
slopes of the phase lines are not all the same,
which indicates that specific heats of the various
states are not equal. For water, the latent heat of
fusion and vaporisation are Lf = 3.33 105 J kg1
and Lv = 22.6 105 J kg1 respectively. That is
3.33 105 J of heat are needed to melt 1 kg of
ice at 0 C, and 22.6 105 J of heat are needed
to convert 1 kg of water to steam at 100 C. So,
steam at 100 C carries 22.6 105 J kg1 more
heat than water at 100 C. This is why burns
from steam are usually more serious than those
from boiling water.

Table 11.5

285

Example 11.4 When 0.15 kg of ice of 0 C

mixed with 0.30 kg of water at 50 C in a
container, the resulting temperature is
6.7 C. Calculate the heat of fusion of ice.
(swater = 4186 J kg1 K1)

Answer
Heat lost by water = msw (fi)w
= (0.30 kg ) (4186 J kg1 K1) (50.0 C 6.7 C)
= 54376.14 J
Heat required to melt ice = m2Lf = (0.15 kg) Lf
Heat required to raise temperature of ice
water to final temperature = mIsw (fi)I
= (0.15 kg) (4186 J kg1 K 1) (6.7 C 0 C)
= 4206.93 J
Heat lost = heat gained
54376.14 J = (0.15 kg ) Lf + 4206.93 J
Lf = 3.34105 J kg1.

286

PHYSICS

Example 11.5 Calculate the heat required

to convert 3 kg of ice at 12 C kept in a
calorimeter to steam at 100 C at
atmospheric pressure. Given specific heat
capacity of ice = 2100 J kg1 K1, specific
heat capacity of water = 4186 J kg 1 K1,
latent heat of fusion of ice = 3.35 105
J kg1 and latent heat of steam = 2.256 106
J kg1.

Answer We have
Mass of the ice, m = 3 kg
specific heat capacity of ice, sice
= 2100 J kg1 K1
specific heat capacity of water, swater
= 4186 J kg1 K1
latent heat of fusion of ice, Lf ice
= 3.35 105 J kg1
latent heat of steam, Lsteam
= 2.256 106 J kg1
Now,

Q
Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

So,

= heat required to convert 3 kg of

ice at 12 C to steam at 100 C,
= heat required to convert ice at
12 C to ice at 0 C.
= m sice T1 = (3 kg) (2100 J kg1.
K1) [0(12)]C = 75600 J
= heat required to melt ice at
0 C to water at 0 C
= m Lf ice = (3 kg) (3.35 105 J kg1)
= 1005000 J
= heat required to convert water
at 0 C to water at 100 C.
= msw T2 = (3kg) (4186J kg1 K1)
(100 C)
= 1255800 J
= heat required to convert water
at 100 C to steam at 100 C.
= m Lsteam = (3 kg) (2.256106 J
kg1)
=
6768000 J
= Q 1 + Q2 + Q3 + Q 4
= 75600J + 1005000 J
+ 1255800 J + 6768000 J
= 9.1106 J

11.9 HEAT TRANSFER

We have seen that heat is energy transfer from
one system to another or from one part of a
system to another part, arising due to

temperature difference. What are the different

ways by which this energy transfer takes place?
There are three distinct modes of heat transfer :
conduction, convection and radiation
(Fig. 11.13).

Fig. 11.13

Heating by conduction, convection and

radiation.

11.9.1 Conduction
Conduction is the mechanism of transfer of heat
between two adjacent parts of a body because
of their temperature difference. Suppose one end
of a metallic rod is put in a flame, the other end
of the rod will soon be so hot that you cannot
hold it by your bare hands. Here heat transfer
takes place by conduction from the hot end of
the rod through its different parts to the other
end. Gases are poor thermal conductors while
liquids have conductivities intermediate between
solids and gases.
Heat conduction may be described
quantitatively as the time rate of heat flow in a
material for a given temperature difference.
Consider a metallic bar of length L and uniform
cross section A with its two ends maintained at
different temperatures. This can be done, for
example, by putting the ends in thermal contact
with large reservoirs at temperatures, say, TC and
TD respectively (Fig. 11.14). Let us assume the
ideal condition that the sides of the bar are fully
insulated so that no heat is exchanged between
the sides and the surroundings.
After sometime, a steady state is reached; the
temperature of the bar decreases uniformly with
distance from TC to TD; (TC>TD). The reservoir at
C supplies heat at a constant rate, which
transfers through the bar and is given out at
the same rate to the reservoir at D. It is found

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

287

prohibited and keeps the room cooler. In some

situations, heat transfer is critical. In a nuclear
reactor, for example, elaborate heat transfer
systems need to be installed so that the
enormous energy produced by nuclear fission
in the core transits out sufficiently fast, thus
preventing the core from overheating.
Table 11.6 Thermal conductivities of some
materials
Fig. 11.14 Steady state heat flow by conduction in
a bar with its two ends maintained at
temperatures TC and TD; (TC > TD).

Materials
Metals

experimentally that in this steady state, the rate

of flow of heat (or heat current) H is proportional
to the temperature difference (TC TD) and the
area of cross section A and is inversely
proportional to the length L :

TC TD
(11.14)
L
The constant of proportionality K is called the
thermal conductivity of the material. The
greater the value of K for a material, the more
rapidly will it conduct heat. The SI unit of K is
J S 1 m 1 K 1 or W m 1 K 1 . The thermal
conductivities of various substances are listed
in Table 11.5. These values vary slightly with
temperature, but can be considered to be
constant over a normal temperature range.
Compare the relatively large thermal
conductivities of the good thermal conductors,
the metals, with the relatively small thermal
conductivities of some good thermal insulators,
such as wood and glass wool. You may have
noticed that some cooking pots have copper
coating on the bottom. Being a good conductor
of heat, copper promotes the distribution of heat
over the bottom of a pot for uniform cooking.
Plastic foams, on the other hand, are good
insulators, mainly because they contain pockets
of air. Recall that gases are poor conductors,
and note the low thermal conductivity of air in
the Table 11.5. Heat retention and transfer are
important in many other applications. Houses
made of concrete roofs get very hot during
summer days, because thermal conductivity of
concrete (though much smaller than that of a
metal) is still not small enough. Therefore, people
usually prefer to give a layer of earth or foam
insulation on the ceiling so that heat transfer is

Thermal conductivity
(J s1 m1 K1 )

Silver
Copper
Aluminium
Brass
Steel
Lead
Mercury

H = KA

406
385
205
109
50.2
34.7
8.3

Non-metals
Insulating brick
Concrete
Body fat
Felt
Glass
Ice
Glass wool
Wood
Water

0.15
0.8
0.20
0.04
0.8
1.6
0.04
0.12
0.8

Gases
Air
Argon
Hydrogen

0.024
0.016
0.14

Example 11.6 What is the temperature of

the steel-copper junction in the steady
state of the system shown in Fig. 11.15.
Length of the steel rod = 15.0 cm, length
of the copper rod = 10.0 cm, temperature
of the furnace = 300 C, temperature of
the other end = 0 C. The area of cross
section of the steel rod is twice that of the
copper rod. (Thermal conductivity of steel
= 50.2 J s 1 m 1 K 1; and of copper
= 385 J s1m1K1).

288

PHYSICS

Fig. 11.15

Answer The insulating material around the

rods reduces heat loss from the sides of the rods.
Therefore, heat flows only along the length of
the rods. Consider any cross section of the rod.
In the steady state, heat flowing into the element
must equal the heat flowing out of it; otherwise
there would be a net gain or loss of heat by the
element and its temperature would not be
steady. Thus in the steady state, rate of heat
flowing across a cross section of the rod is the
same at every point along the length of the
combined steel-copper rod. Let T be the
temperature of the steel-copper junction in the
steady state. Then,
K1 A1 300 T
L1

K 2 A2 T 0
L2

15

385 T
10

which gives T = 44.4 C

Example 11.7 An iron bar (L1 = 0.1 m, A1
= 0.02 m 2 , K 1 = 79 W m 1 K 1) and a
brass bar (L 2 = 0.1 m, A 2 = 0.02 m 2 ,
K2 = 109 W m1K1) are soldered end to end
as shown in Fig. 11.16. The free ends of
the iron bar and brass bar are maintained
at 373 K and 273 K respectively. Obtain
expressions for and hence compute (i) the
temperature of the junction of the two bars,
(ii) the equivalent thermal conductivity of
the compound bar, and (iii) the heat
current through the compound bar.

Answer

K 1 A1 T1 T0

L1

K 2 A 2 ( T 0 T2 )
L2

For A1 = A2 = A and L1 = L2 = L, this equation

leads to
K1 (T1 T0) = K2 (T0 T2)
Thus the junction temperature T0 of the two
bars is

K1T1 K 2T2
K1 K 2

T0 =

Using this equation, the heat current H through

either bar is
H=

where 1 and 2 refer to the steel and copper rod

respectively. For A1 = 2 A2, L1 = 15.0 cm,
L2 = 10.0 cm, K1 = 50.2 J s1 m1 K 1, K2 = 385 J
s1 m1 K 1, we have
50.2 2 300 T

Given, L1 = L2= L = 0.1 m, A1 = A2= A= 0.02 m2

K 1 = 79 W m 1 K 1 , K 2 = 109 W m 1 K 1 ,
T1 = 373 K, and T2 = 273 K.
Under steady state condition, the heat
current (H1) through iron bar is equal to the
heat current (H2) through brass bar.
So, H = H1 = H2

K1 A T1 T0
L

K 2 A(T0 T2 )
L

K1 K 2 A T1 T0

L
K1 K 2

A T1 T2
1
1
L

K1 K 2

Using these equations, the heat current H

through the compound bar of length L1 + L2 = 2L
and the equivalent thermal conductivity K, of
the compound bar are given by

H
K

K A T1 T2
2L

2 K1 K 2
K1 K 2

(i) T0

K1T1 K 2T2
K1 K 2

79 W m

K 1 373 K 109 W m 1 K 1 273 K

79 W m 1K 1 109 W m 1K 1

= 315 K
2K 1 K 2
(ii) K = K K
1
2

=
Fig 11.16

2 (79 W m 1 K 1 ) (109 W m 1 K 1 )
79 W m 1 K 1 +109 W m 1 K 1

= 91.6 W m1 K1

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

(iii) H H

91.6 W m

289

K A T1 T2
2L
1

K 1 0.02 m 2 373 K273 K

2 0.1 m

= 916.1 W
11.9.2 Convection

Convection is a mode of heat transfer by actual

motion of matter. It is possible only in fluids.
Convection can be natural or forced. In natural
convection, gravity plays an important part.
When a fluid is heated from below, the hot part
expands and, therefore, becomes less dense.
Because of buoyancy, it rises and the upper
colder part replaces it. This again gets heated,
rises up and is replaced by the colder part of
the fluid. The process goes on. This mode of
heat transfer is evidently different from
conduction. Convection involves bulk transport
of different parts of the fluid. In forced
convection, material is forced to move by a pump
or by some other physical means. The common
examples of forced convection systems are
forced-air heating systems in home, the human
circulatory system, and the cooling system of
an automobile engine. In the human body, the
heart acts as the pump that circulates blood
through different parts of the body, transferring
heat by forced convection and maintaining it at
a uniform temperature.
Natural convection is responsible for many
familiar phenomena. During the day, the ground
heats up more quickly than large bodies of water

Fig. 11.17

do. This occurs both because the water has a

greater specific heat and because mixing
currents disperse the absorbed heat throughout
the great volume of water. The air in contact
with the warm ground is heated by conduction.
It expands, becoming less dense than the
surrounding cooler air. As a result, the warm
air rises (air currents) and other air moves
(winds) to fill the space-creating a sea breeze
near a large body of water. Cooler air descends,
and a thermal convection cycle is set up, which
transfers heat away from the land. At night,
the ground loses its heat more quickly, and the
water surface is warmer than the land. As a
result, the cycle is reveresed (Fig. 11.17).
The other example of natural convection is
the steady surface wind on the earth blowing
in from north-east towards the equator, the so
called trade wind. A resonable explanation is
as follows : the equatorial and polar regions of
the earth receive unequal solar heat. Air at the
earths surface near the equator is hot while
the air in the upper atmosphere of the poles is
cool. In the absence of any other factor, a
convection current would be set up, with the
air at the equatorial surface rising and moving
out towards the poles, descending and
streaming in towards the equator. The rotation
of the earth, however, modifies this convection
current. Because of this, air close to the equator
has an eastward speed of 1600 km/h, while it
is zero close to the poles. As a result, the air
descends not at the poles but at 30 N (North)
latitude and returns to the equator. This is
called trade wind.

Convection cycles.

290

11.9.3 Radiation
Conduction and convection require some
material as a transport medium. These modes
of heat transfer cannot operate between bodies
separated by a distance in vacuum. But the
earth does receive heat from the sun across a
huge distance and we quickly feel the warmth
of the fire nearby even though air conducts
poorly and before convection can set in. The
third mechanism for heat transfer needs no
medium; it is called radiation and the energy
so radiated by electromagnetic waves is called
radiant energy. In an electromagnetic wave
electric and magnetic fields oscillate in space
and time. Like any wave, electromagnetic waves
can have different wavelengths and can travel
in vacuum with the same speed, namely the
speed of light i.e., 3 108 m s1 . You will learn
these matters in more details later, but you now
know why heat transfer by radiation does not
need any medium and why it is so fast. This is
how heat is transfered to the earth from the
sun through empty space. All bodies emit
radiant energy, whether they are solid, liquid
or gases. The electromagnetic radiation emitted
by a body by virtue of its temperature like the
radiation by a red hot iron or light from a
filament lamp is called thermal radiation.
When this thermal radiation falls on other
bodies, it is partly reflected and partly absorbed.
The amount of heat that a body can absorb by
radiation depends on the colour of the body.
We find that black bodies absorb and emit
radiant energy better than bodies of lighter
colours. This fact finds many applications in
our daily life. We wear white or light coloured
clothes in summer so that they absorb the least
heat from the sun. However, during winter, we
use dark coloured clothes which absorb heat
from the sun and keep our body warm. The
bottoms of the utensils for cooking food are
blackened so that they absorb maximum heat
from the fire and give it to the vegetables to be
cooked.
Similarly, a Dewar flask or thermos bottle is
a device to minimise heat transfer between the
contents of the bottle and outside. It consists
of a double-walled glass vessel with the inner
and outer walls coated with silver. Radiation
from the inner wall is reflected back into the

PHYSICS

contents of the bottle. The outer wall similarly

reflects back any incoming radiation. The space
between the walls is evacuted to reduce
conduction and convection losses and the flask
is supported on an insulator like cork. The
device is, therefore, useful for preventing hot
contents (like milk) from getting cold, or
alternatively to store cold contents (like ice).
11.10 NEWTONS LAW OF COOLING
We all know that hot water or milk when left on
a table begins to cool gradually. Ultimately it
attains the temperature of the surroundings.
To study how a given body can cool on
exchanging heat with its surroundings, let us
perform the following activity.
T a k e s o m e w a t e r, s a y 3 0 0 m l , i n a
calorimeter with a stirrer and cover it with
two holed lid. Fix a thermometer through a
hole in the lid and make sure that the bulb of
thermometer is immersed in the water. Note
the reading of the thermometer. This reading
T1 is the temperature of the surroundings.
Heat the water kept in the calorimeter till it
attains a temperature, say, 40 C above room
t e m p e r a t u re ( i . e . , t e m p e r a t u r e o f t h e
surroundings). Then stop heating the water
by removing the heat source. Start the stopw a t c h a n d n o t e t h e re a d i n g o f t h e
thermometer after fixed interval of time, say
after every one minute of stirring gently with
the stirrer. Continue to note the temperature
(T2) of water till it attains a temperature about
5 C above that of the surroundings. Then plot
a graph by taking each value of temperature
T = T2 T1 along y axis and the coresponding
value of t along x-axis (Fig. 11.18).

Fig. 11.18 Curve showing cooling of hot water

with time.

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

291

From the graph you will infer how the cooling

of hot water depends on the difference of its
temperature from that of the surroundings. You
will also notice that initially the rate of cooling
is higher and decreases as the temperature of
the body falls.
The above activity shows that a hot body loses
heat to its surroundings in the form of heat
radiation. The rate of loss of heat depends on
the difference in temperature between the body
and its surroundings. Newton was the first to
study, in a systematic manner, the relation
between the heat lost by a body in a given
enclosure and its temperature.
According to Newtons law of cooling, the rate
of loss of heat, dQ/dt of the body is directly
proportional to the difference of temperature
T = (T2T1) of the body and the surroundings.
The law holds good only for small difference of
temperature. Also, the loss of heat by radiation
depends upon the nature of the surface of the
body and the area of the exposed surface. We
can write
dQ
= k (T2 T1 )

(11.15)
dt
where k is a positive constant depending upon
the area and nature of the surface of the body.
Suppose a body of mass m and specific heat
capacity s is at temperature T2. Let T1 be the
temperature of the surroundings. If the
temperature falls by a small amount dT2 in time
dt, then the amount of heat lost is
dQ = ms dT2
Rate of loss of heat is given by

dQ
dT
= ms 2
(11.16)
dt
dt
From Eqs. (11.15) and (11.16) we have

dT2
= k (T2 T1 )
dt
dT2
k
=
dt = K dt
T2 T1
ms
where K = k/m s
On integrating,
log e (T2 T1) = K t + c
or T2 = T1 + C e Kt; where C = e c
m s

For small temperature differences, the rate

of cooling, due to conduction, convection, and
radiation combined, is proportional to the
dif ference in temperature. It is a valid
approximation in the transfer of heat from a
radiator to a room, the loss of heat through the
wall of a room, or the cooling of a cup of tea on
the table.

Fig. 11.19 Verification of Newtons Law of cooling.

Newtons law of cooling can be verified with

the help of the experimental set-up shown in
Fig. 11.19(a). The set-up consists of a double
walled vessel (V) containing water in between
the two walls. A copper calorimeter (C)
containing hot water is placed inside the double
walled vessel. Two thermometers through the
corks are used to note the temperatures T2 of
water in calorimeter and T1 of hot water in
between the double walls respectively.
Temperature of hot water in the calorimeter is
noted after equal intervals of time. A graph is
plotted between log e (T2T1) and time (t). The
nature of the graph is observed to be a straight
line having a negative slope as shown in Fig.
11.19(b). This is in support of Eq. (11.18).

(11.17)

(11.18)
(11.19)

Equation (11.19) enables you to calculate the

time of cooling of a body through a particular
range of temperature.

Example 11.8 A pan filled with hot food

cools from 94 C to 86 C in 2 minutes when
the room temperature is at 20 C. How long
will it take to cool from 71 C to 69 C?

Answer The average temperature of 94 C and

86 C is 90 C, which is 70 C above the room
temperature. Under these conditions the pan
cools 8 C in 2 minutes.
Using Eq. (11.17), we have
Change in temperature
K T
Time

292

PHYSICS

When we divide above two equations, we

have

8 C
= K 70 C
2 min

8 C/2 min K (70 C)

=
2 C/time K (50 C)

The average of 69 C and 71 C is 70 C, which

is 50 C above room temperature. K is the same
for this situation as for the original.

Time = 0.7 min

2 C
= K (50 C)
Time

= 42 s

SUMMARY
1.

Heat is a form of energy that flows between a body and its surrounding medium by
virtue of temperature difference between them. The degree of hotness of the body is
quantitatively represented by temperature.

2.

A temperature-measuring device (thermometer) makes use of some measurable property

(called thermometric property) that changes with temperature. Different thermometers
lead to different temperature scales. To construct a temperature scale, two fixed points
are chosen and assigned some arbitrary values of temperature. The two numbers fix
the origin of the scale and the size of its unit.

3.

The Celsius temperature (tC) and the Farenheit temperare (tF)are related by
tF = (9/5) tC + 32

4.

The ideal gas equation connecting pressure (P), volume (V) and absolute temperature
(T) is :
PV = RT
where is the number of moles and R is the universal gas constant.

5.

In the absolute temperature scale, the zero of the scale is the absolute zero of temperature
the temperature where every substance in nature has the least possible molecular
activity. The Kelvin absolute temperature scale (T ) has the same unit size as the Celsius
scale (Tc ), but differs in the origin :
TC = T 273.15

6.

The coefficient of linear expansion (l ) and volume expansion (v ) are defined by the
relations :

l
l T
l
V
V T
V
where l and V denote the change in length l and volume V for a change of temperature
T. The relation between them is :

v = 3 l
7.

The specific heat capacity of a substance is defined by

1 Q
m T

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

293

where m is the mass of the substance and Q is the heat required to change its
temperature by T. The molar specific heat capacity of a substance is defined by

1 Q
T

where is the number of moles of the substance.

8.

The latent heat of fusion (Lf) is the heat per unit mass required to change a substance
from solid into liquid at the same temperature and pressure. The latent heat of
vaporisation (Lv) is the heat per unit mass required to change a substance from liquid
to the vapour state without change in the temperature and pressure.

9.

The three modes of heat transfer are conduction, convection and radiation.

10. In conduction, heat is transferred between neighbouring parts of a body through

molecular collisions, without any flow of matter. For a bar of length L and uniform
cross section A with its ends maintained at temperatures TC and TD, the rate of flow of
heat H is :

T T
H=K A

where K is the thermal conductivity of the material of the bar.

11. Newtons Law of Cooling says that the rate of cooling of a body is proportional to the
excess temperature of the body over the surroundings :

dQ
= k (T2 T1 )
dt
Where T1 is the temperature of the surrounding medium and T2 is the temperature of
the body.

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PHYSICS

POINTS TO PONDER
1. The relation connecting Kelvin temperature (T ) and the Celsius temperature tc
T = tc + 273.15
and the assignment T = 273.16 K for the triple point of water are exact relations (by
choice). With this choice, the Celsius temperature of the melting point of water and
boiling point of water (both at 1 atm pressure) are very close to, but not exactly equal
to 0 C and 100 C respectively. In the original Celsius scale, these latter fixed points
were exactly at 0 C and 100 C (by choice), but now the triple point of water is the
preferred choice for the fixed point, because it has a unique temperature.
2.

A liquid in equilibrium with vapour has the same pressure and temperature throughout
the system; the two phases in equilibrium differ in their molar volume (i.e. density).
This is true for a system with any number of phases in equilibrium.

3.

Heat transfer always involves temperature difference between two systems or two parts
of the same system. Any energy transfer that does not involve temperature difference
in some way is not heat.

4.

Convection involves flow of matter within a fluid due to unequal temperatures of its
parts. A hot bar placed under a running tap loses heat by conduction between the
surface of the bar and water and not by convection within water.

EXERCISES
11.1 The triple points of neon and carbon dioxide are 24.57 K and 216.55 K respectively.
Express these temperatures on the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales.
11.2 Two absolute scales A and B have triple points of water defined to be 200 A and
350 B. What is the relation between TA and TB ?
11.3 The electrical resistance in ohms of a certain thermometer varies with temperature
according to the approximate law :
R = Ro [1 + (T To )]
The resistance is 101.6 at the triple-point of water 273.16 K, and 165.5 at the
normal melting point of lead (600.5 K). What is the temperature when the resistance
is 123.4 ?
11.4 Answer the following :
(a)

The triple-point of water is a standard fixed point in modern thermometry.

Why ? What is wrong in taking the melting point of ice and the boiling point
of water as standard fixed points (as was originally done in the Celsius scale) ?

(b)

There were two fixed points in the original Celsius scale as mentioned above
which were assigned the number 0 C and 100 C respectively. On the absolute
scale, one of the fixed points is the triple-point of water, which on the Kelvin
absolute scale is assigned the number 273.16 K. What is the other fixed point
on this (Kelvin) scale ?

(c)

The absolute temperature (Kelvin scale) T is related to the temperature tc on

the Celsius scale by
tc = T 273.15
Why do we have 273.15 in this relation, and not 273.16 ?

(d)

What is the temperature of the triple-point of water on an absolute scale

whose unit interval size is equal to that of the Fahrenheit scale ?

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

295

11.5 Two ideal gas thermometers A and B use oxygen and hydrogen respectively. The
following observations are made :
Temperature

Pressure
thermometer A

Pressure
thermometer B

Triple-point of water

1.250 105 Pa

0.200 105 Pa

Normal melting point

of sulphur

1.797 105 Pa

0.287 105 Pa

(a)

What is the absolute temperature of normal melting point of sulphur as read

by thermometers A and B ?

(b)

What do you think is the reason behind the slight difference in answers of
thermometers A and B ? (The thermometers are not faulty). What further
procedure is needed in the experiment to reduce the discrepancy between the
two readings ?

11.6

A steel tape 1m long is correctly calibrated for a temperature of 27.0 C. The

length of a steel rod measured by this tape is found to be 63.0 cm on a hot day
when the temperature is 45.0 C. What is the actual length of the steel rod on that
day ? What is the length of the same steel rod on a day when the temperature is
27.0 C ? Coefficient of linear expansion of steel = 1.20 105 K1 .

11.7

A large steel wheel is to be fitted on to a shaft of the same material. At 27 C, the

outer diameter of the shaft is 8.70 cm and the diameter of the central hole in the
wheel is 8.69 cm. The shaft is cooled using dry ice. At what temperature of the
shaft does the wheel slip on the shaft? Assume coefficient of linear expansion of
the steel to be constant over the required temperature range :
steel = 1.20 105 K1.

11.8

A hole is drilled in a copper sheet. The diameter of the hole is 4.24 cm at 27.0 C.
What is the change in the diameter of the hole when the sheet is heated to 227 C?
Coefficient of linear expansion of copper = 1.70 105 K1.

11.9

A brass wire 1.8

supports. If the
developed in the
of brass = 2.0

11.10

A brass rod of length 50 cm and diameter 3.0 mm is joined to a steel rod of the
same length and diameter. What is the change in length of the combined rod at
250 C, if the original lengths are at 40.0 C? Is there a thermal stress developed
at the junction ? The ends of the rod are free to expand (Co-efficient of linear
expansion of brass = 2.0 105 K1, steel = 1.2 105 K1 ).

11.11

The coefficient of volume expansion of glycerin is 49 105 K1. What is the fractional
change in its density for a 30 C rise in temperature ?

11.12

A 10 kW drilling machine is used to drill a bore in a small aluminium block of mass

8.0 kg. How much is the rise in temperature of the block in 2.5 minutes, assuming
50% of power is used up in heating the machine itself or lost to the surroundings.
Specific heat of aluminium = 0.91 J g1 K1.

11.13

A copper block of mass 2.5 kg is heated in a furnace to a temperature of 500 C

and then placed on a large ice block. What is the maximum amount of ice that
can melt? (Specific heat of copper = 0.39 J g 1 K1; heat of fusion of water
= 335 J g1 ).

11.14

In an experiment on the specific heat of a metal, a 0.20 kg block of the metal at

150 C is dropped in a copper calorimeter (of water equivalent 0.025 kg) containing
150 cm3 of water at 27 C. The final temperature is 40 C. Compute the specific

m long at 27 C is held taut with little tension between two rigid

wire is cooled to a temperature of 39 C, what is the tension
wire, if its diameter is 2.0 mm ? Co-efficient of linear expansion
105 K1; Youngs modulus of brass = 0.91 1011 Pa.

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PHYSICS

heat of the metal. If heat losses to the surroundings are not negligible, is your
answer greater or smaller than the actual value for specific heat of the metal ?
11.15

Given below are observations on molar specific heats at room temperature of some
common gases.
Gas
Hydrogen
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Nitric oxide
Carbon monoxide
Chlorine

Molar specific heat (Cv )

(cal mo11 K1)
4.87
4.97
5.02
4.99
5.01
6.17

The measured molar specific heats of these gases are markedly different from
those for monatomic gases. Typically, molar specific heat of a monatomic gas is
2.92 cal/mol K. Explain this difference. What can you infer from the somewhat
larger (than the rest) value for chlorine ?
11.16

11.17

Answer the following questions based on the P-T phase diagram of carbon dioxide:
(a)

At what temperature and pressure can the solid, liquid and vapour phases of
CO2 co-exist in equilibrium ?

(b)

What is the effect of decrease of pressure on the fusion and boiling point of
CO2 ?

(c)

What are the critical temperature and pressure for CO2 ? What is their
significance ?

(d)

Is CO2 solid, liquid or gas at (a) 70 C under 1 atm, (b) 60 C under 10 atm,
(c) 15 C under 56 atm ?

Answer the following questions based on the P T phase diagram of CO2:

(a) CO2 at 1 atm pressure and temperature 60 C is compressed isothermally.
Does it go through a liquid phase ?
(b)

What happens when CO2 at 4 atm pressure is cooled from room temperature
at constant pressure ?

(c)

Describe qualitatively the changes in a given mass of solid CO2 at 10 atm

pressure and temperature 65 C as it is heated up to room temperature at
constant pressure.

(d)

CO2 is heated to a temperature 70 C and compressed isothermally. What

changes in its properties do you expect to observe ?

11.18

A child running a temperature of 101F is given an antipyrin (i.e. a medicine that

lowers fever) which causes an increase in the rate of evaporation of sweat from his
body. If the fever is brought down to 98 F in 20 min, what is the average rate of
extra evaporation caused, by the drug. Assume the evaporation mechanism to be
the only way by which heat is lost. The mass of the child is 30 kg. The specific
heat of human body is approximately the same as that of water, and latent heat of
evaporation of water at that temperature is about 580 cal g1.

11.19

A thermacole icebox is a cheap and efficient method for storing small quantities
of cooked food in summer in particular. A cubical icebox of side 30 cm has a
thickness of 5.0 cm. If 4.0 kg of ice is put in the box, estimate the amount of ice
remaining after 6 h. The outside temperature is 45 C, and co-efficient of thermal
conductivity of thermacole is 0.01 J s1 m1 K1. [Heat of fusion of water = 335 103
J kg1]

11.20

A brass boiler has a base area of 0.15 m2 and thickness 1.0 cm. It boils water at the
rate of 6.0 kg/min when placed on a gas stove. Estimate the temperature of the part

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER

of the flame in contact with the boiler. Thermal conductivity of brass = 109 J s1 m1
K1 ; Heat of vaporisation of water = 2256 103 J kg1.
11.21

Explain why :
(a) a body with large reflectivity is a poor emitter
(b) a brass tumbler feels much colder than a wooden tray on a chilly day
(c) an optical pyrometer (for measuring high temperatures) calibrated for an ideal
black body radiation gives too low a value for the temperature of a red hot
iron piece in the open, but gives a correct value for the temperature when the
same piece is in the furnace
(d) the earth without its atmosphere would be inhospitably cold
(e) heating systems based on circulation of steam are more efficient in warming
a building than those based on circulation of hot water

11.22

A body cools from 80 C to 50 C in 5 minutes. Calculate the time it takes to cool

from 60 C to 30 C. The temperature of the surroundings is 20 C.

297