OCR A – A Level Physics

Thermal Physics
14.1 – 14.5
(Textbook ref. p268-285)
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14.1-14.5 Thermal Physics

When two objects at the same temperature so no
What is thermal equilibrium? heat flows between them.
The temperature at which the internal energy of a
What is absolute zero temperature? system is at its lowest possible value
What is 0⁰C in Kelvin? 273 K
What is the relationship between absolute
temperature and the average KE of particles in a Absolute temperature is proportional to average
substance? kinetic energy of the particles in a substance.
The temperature and pressure at which a substance
What is the triple point of a substance? can exist in all three phases in thermal equilibrium.
A regular arrangement of particles that are strongly
attracted to each other. Particles vibrate but can't
Describe the kinetic model of a solid. change positions in the structure.
Particles are attracted to each other but are free to
Describe the kinetic model of a liquid. move around.
Particles are far apart and there are no forces of
Describe the kinetic model of a gas. attraction between them.
The sum of the randomly distributed kinetic and
What is the internal energy of a substance? potential energy of the particles in an object
Why doesn't the temperature of a substance The electrostatic potential of the particles is
change whilst it is changing state? changing rather than the kinetic energy.
Why is the electrostatic potential energy of liquids Energy must be supplied to the substance to break
and solids negative? the bonds between particles.
What effect does increasing the temperature have
on the particles in a substance? It increases their average kinetic energy.
The energy needed to raise the temperature of 1kg
of the material by 1 degree Celsius/Kelvin without
What is the specific heat capacity (c) of a material? any change of state.
What are the units of specific heat capacity (c) J kg⁻¹ K⁻¹
Thermal energy gained (or lost if negative) by an
What is ∆Q in ∆Q = mc∆θ object (provided no change in state).
How do you calculate the total energy supplied to
an electrical heater. W = IVt
What is the specific heat capacity of water 4200 J kg⁻¹ K⁻¹
What is the specific latent heat of vaporisation (L) The energy required to change 1kg of a liquid to a

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 of a substance? gaseous state with no change in temperature
What is the specific latent heat of fusion (L) of a The energy required to change 1 kg of solid to liquid
substance? with no change in temperature.
What are the units of latent heat (L)? J kg⁻¹
m in ∆Q = mL The mass of substance which has changed state
When would you use the equation ∆Q = mc∆T + If an object changes temperature and changes state
mL? during heating.

Topic summary notes

Key words and definitions:

Laws, principles, key ideas:

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Key ideas:
A – Draw labelled diagrams and describe the kinetic model of a solid, liquid and gas.

B – Non-physicists might assume that heating an object will always increase its temperature but
actually….

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C – The temperature-time graph shows water being heated from ice to steam. For each section of
the graph state what is happening occurring and describe what is happening to the energy of the
molecules in the water (see 14.3 if unsure).

A-B:

B-C:

C-D:

D-E:

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E-F:

C – Draw labelled diagrams and give a brief overview of experiments you could carry out to find the
specific heat capacity of a solid and a liquid and the latent heat of fusion of ice using an electric
heater. You should include:

 The quantities you would measure,

 How you would measure them,
 How you would calculate the heat capacity from these measurements,
 How you would ensure you obtain an accurate value.

1. Specific Heat Capacity of a Solid:

2. Specific Heat capacity of a liquid.

3. Latent heat of fusion of ice.

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Further independent study checklist for this unit
Isaac Boards
14.1-14.5 Absolute Temperature and GCSE Heat Capacity 
14.4 Specific Heat Capacity 
14.5 Specific Latent Heat 

Textbook Exercises
You may want to complete these exercises as we go through the topic, however if you do not have
time then keep these as useful revision either for topic tests or as a review activity later in the year.
The answers to all the summary questions are in the back of the textbook and the practice
questions are online – just search on “OCR Physics A textbook answers”.
Summary questions page: completed/checked?
14.1 – p270 
14.2 – p273 
14.3 – p275 
14.4 – p279 
14.5 – p283 
Practice questions pages: completed/checked?
Chapter 14 p284-285 

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Exercises
14.1-14.3 Temperature, internal energy and states of matter
1. Fig. 6.1 shows the apparatus used to observe Brownian motion using pollen grains
suspended in a liquid.

(i) State two conclusions that may be deduced about the molecules of the liquid
from the motion of the pollen grains observed with the microscope.

[2]

(ii) Suggest how the motion of these pollen grains could be increased.

[1]

2. Define the internal energy of a substance. [1]

3. A block of paraffin wax is melting at a constant temperature of 52 °C. Use the

behaviour of paraffin molecules to describe and explain the changes to the internal
energy of the molecules of the paraffin wax as it melts. [4]

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14.4 Specific Heat Capacity
Substance Specific heat capacity (Jkg-1K-1)
Water 4200
Copper 385
Iron 440
Soapstone 1000

1. Kettles typically can hold 1.70 litres of water. Calculate the energy required to heat 1.70 litres
of water from 22.0°C to 100.0°C.

……………………………….J
2. Ice has a very different heat capacity to water. A loss of 735 J is required to cool 50.0g of ice
from -3.00°C to -10.0°C. Calculate the specific heat capacity of ice.

……………………….Jkg-1K-1
3. A unknown mass of copper experiences a temperature rise from 2.50°C to 21.0°C. The
copper gained 2671J of thermal energy during this rise. Calculate the mass of the copper.

..…………………………..kg
4. A 1.45kg iron rod at 293K is heated in a furnace during which it gains 240.0 kJ of thermal
energy. Calculate the rod’s final temperature.

………………………………K

5. An electric kettle has a power rating of 2.1 kW. It is filled with 1.5 kg of water at
a temperature of 20 °C.
a How long after it is switched on will it start to boil? [1]

b What is happening to the energy of the particles as they are heated? [1]

6. 0.38 kg of a liquid at 12 °C is heated in a copper can weighing 0.9 kg by an electrical

heater of power 20 W for 3 minutes. It reaches a temperature of 17 °C. Assuming no
heat losses to the surroundings, calculate a value for the specific heat capacity of the
liquid. (3 marks

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7. This question is about the operation of an electrically powered shower designed by
an electrical firm.

The water enters the heater at a temperature of 14 °C. At the maximum flow rate of 0.070 kg s −1,
the water leaves the shower head at a temperature of 30 °C.

(i) Calculate the rate at which energy is transferred to the water. Give a suitable unit for your
answer.

rate of energy transfer = ............................. unit .............. [3]

(ii) Explain why water is used in hot water systems and car radiators.

(2 marks

8. A metal block of mass 200g is placed into a container with boiling water until thermal equilibrium
is reached. It is then removed and placed quickly into another container with 100g of water at
20⁰C. The maximum temperature recorded is 34⁰C. Calculate the specific heat capacity of the
metal block.

Specific heat capacity of metal block = ………………………………….J kg-1 K-1 [3]

9. An electric water heater has a flow rate of 25.0 kg per minute. The water enters the heater at
18.0°C and leaves at 30.0°C. Calculate the power rating of the heater.

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 ………………………………..kW

10. A 0.8 kg block of copper at a temperature of 76 °C is placed in 2.0 kg of water at 15

°C. Assuming no loss of heat to the surroundings, calculate the final temperature of
both the copper and the water.

(3 marks

11. An experiment was conducted to determine the specific heat capacity of a metal solid
using the method of mixture technique. The initial temperature of the water and
calorimeter was 20 °C. The mass of the calorimeter used was 400 g and the specific heat
capacity of the calorimeter was 450 J kg-1 K-1. 600 g of the metal solid was placed into 0.2
kg of water with a specific heat capacity of 4200 J kg-1 K-1. The metal solid was originally
placed in water at 90 °C. Calculate its specific heat capacity from this method, assuming
no other heat losses and a final equilibrium temperature of 40 °C. (3 marks

12. You are provided with a small bottle of cooking oil and standard physics laboratory
equipment. With the help of a labelled diagram, describe an electrical experiment to
determine the specific heat capacity c of the oil.
State two sources of uncertainty in your measurements and discuss how these could be
reduced.

In your answer, you should use appropriate technical terms spelled correctly.

[6]

12. This question is about the determination of the specific heat capacity of aluminium.

An electrical heater is used to raise the temperature of a 1.0 kg aluminium block in the
circuit shown in Fig. 1.1.

The switch is closed, switching the heater on for ten minutes before the switch is opened,
which turns the heater off.

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The temperature of the block is recorded at one minute intervals for fifteen minutes.

Fig. 1.1

Readings are taken of potential difference across the heater and current through the heater every
two minutes. The results are shown in the table.

Time t / minutes Potential difference V / V Current I /A Power P / W

0 2.30 19.8
2 8.67 2.35 20.4
4 8.74 20.3
6 8.75 2.42 21.0
8 8.69 2.39 20.8
10 8.70 2.41

i. Complete the missing values in the table. [3]

ii. Calculate the mean power. Include the uncertainty in the value.

mean power = ............................. ± ............................. W [2]

Fig. 1.2 shows a graph of temperature against time.

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 Fig. 1.2

(b). i. Use data from the first ten minutes of the graph and your answer to (a)(ii) to show that
the specific thermal capacity of aluminium is about 1000 J kg−1K−1.

[3]

ii. Use Fig. 1.2 to estimate the maximum rate of cooling when the switch is opened.

maximum rate of cooling = .......................K min−1[2]

(c) The total percentage uncertainty in the investigation is found to be 5 %. The

accepted value of the specific thermal capacity of aluminium is 897 J kg–1 K−1.

Calculate the percentage difference between your calculated value from (b)(i) and
the accepted value and use this to comment on the accuracy of the investigation.
Suggest reasons for the difference between the investigation value and the accepted
value.

[4]

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14.5 Specific Latent Heat
Specific heat
Change of state Specific latent
Material capacity (J kg−1
of water heat (J kg−1)
K−1)
Aluminium 900 Fusion 334 000
Water (Liquid) 4200 Vaporisation 2 260 000
Copper 400

1. How much thermal energy must be removed from 5 kg of water at 0 °C to turn it into
ice? What happens to the energy of the particles as the water changes state?

[2]

2. Calculate the energy released when 5.70 litres of water at 0.00°C freezes.

……………………………….J

3. How much copper can be melted using 620.0 MJ of thermal energy. Assume the
copper is already at its melting point.

……………..……………….kg

4. 12500 kg of molten rock solidifies by releasing 5.25 GJ of thermal energy. Calculate

the latent heat of fusion of this rock.

………………………………….. Jkg-1

5. An unknown mass Ice starts at -5.00°C and is heated until it forms vapour at
100.0°C. The total energy absorbed by the water during this process is 509 kJ.
Calculate the mass of the ice.

………………..………………Kg

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 6. 100.0g of ice at -5.00°C is added to 500.0ml of water at 19.0°C. The ice eventually
melts leaving water in thermal equilibrium.

Write an equation for the total energy gained by the melted ice, using T as the final
temperature of the resulting extra water.

Write an equation for the energy lost by the initial water, using T as the final temperature.

Solve for the final temperature of the mixture, assuming no exchange of energy with the
surroundings.

…………………..………………°C

7. An electrical heating element is used to heat an insulated container of water from

room temperature to boiling point and then to vaporise a small amount of the water.
The data from this procedure is shown below:

Room temperature = 20⁰C Starting mass of water = 120g

PD across heater = 11.8V
Current through heater = 4.8A
Total time of procedure = 15 minutes

a) Calculate the total energy transferred to the water during the procedure [2]

total energy transferred = ………………………..J

b) Calculate the minimum time from turning the heater on before the water started to
boil [2]

minimum time of heating………………………….s

c) Calculate the minimum mass of water left after the heater was turned off [2]

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 minimum mass of water left in container = ………………………g
d) Explain why it was necessary to use the term “minimum” in the above questions.
…………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………[2]

8. A coffee machine passes steam at 100 °C into 0.18 kg of cold coffee to warm it.
Assuming the specific heat capacity of coffee is the same as that of water, what
mass of steam must be supplied if the temperature of the coffee is raised from 14 °C
to 85 °C.

9. 3 kg of molten lead (melting point 600 K) is allowed to cool down until it has solidified.
The temperature of the lead falls from 605 K to 600 K in 10 s, remains constant at 600 K
for 300 s, and then falls to 595 K in a further 8.4 s. Assume that the rate of loss of energy
is constant, and the specific heat capacity of solid lead is 140 J kg–1 K–1.
Calculate:
a the rate of loss of energy from the lead

[2]

b the specific latent heat of fusion of the lead

[2]

c the specific heat capacity of liquid lead.

[2]

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14.1-14.5 Synoptic Questions
1. Fig. 6.1 shows a tube containing small pellets of lead. When the tube is inverted the
pellets of lead fall freely through a vertical height equal to the length of the tube. The
pellets are warm after the tube has been inverted many times.

The tube is used in an experiment to determine the specific heat capacity of lead. The
following results are obtained.
total mass of lead pellets = 0.025 kg
number of inversions = 50
length of tube = 1.2 m
change in temperature of the lead = 4.5 °C

a. Use this information to calculate the specific heat capacity of the lead.

specific heat capacity ........................................................... J kg−1 K−1[4]

b. State two assumptions you have made in your calculation of the specific heat
capacity.

[2]

c. State and explain the change, if any, you would expect to see in the
temperature rise if the mass of the lead pellets is doubled.

[2]

2. Lasers are often used to form precision-welded joints in titanium. To form one such
joint it is first necessary to increase the temperature of the titanium to its melting
point. Fig. 5.1 shows the joint and the volume of titanium to be heated.

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 The photon beam from the laser is focused onto the shaded volume of the joint and is
converted into thermal energy in the titanium.

The wavelength of the photons is 1.1 × 10−6 m.

a. Show that the energy of a photon in the beam is 1.8 × 10−19 J.

[1]

Photons are emitted from the laser at a constant rate of 6.3 × 1019 s−1.

b. Estimate the time taken to raise the temperature of the shaded volume of
titanium shown in Fig. 5.1 to melting point. Use the data below for your calculations.

initial temperature = 20 °C
melting point of titanium = 1700 °C
density of titanium = 4.5 × 103 kg m−3
specific heat capacity of titanium = 520 J kg−1 K−1
shaded volume of titanium being heated = 8.1 × 10−12 m3.

time = ........................................................... s [3]

c. In practice it takes a longer time to reach the melting point.

State and explain two factors that will increase the time taken.

[2]

d. To complete the weld more photons must be focused onto the joint. During
this final stage the temperature remains constant. Explain why this is to be
expected.

[1

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