What is the specific heat of a material if a 6.0 g sample absorbs 50 J when it is heated from 30°C to 50°C?

1 Answer
Nov 9, 2015

Cs= 0.4167J/(gC)

Explanation:

Use the equation q=mC_sDeltaT

You are given the q in the form of J. You are given the mass in grams and also the initial and final temperature. DeltaT = T_f-T_i.

If you plug in the known variables the equation will look like:
50J=6g(C_s)20C

At this point you just solve for C_s using some algebra.

50J/(6g)(20C)

It is really helpful to keep units in the equation when solving. Let the units lead the way in solving thermochemistry problems.