Physics Study Guide For Test January 21st 2010

Thermal Physics

• Avagadro’s Number= 6.02 X 1023= number of molecules/atoms

in one mole of a substance/element.

•
• States of Matter
Solids Liquids Gases
• Fixed shape and • No fixed shape • No fixed shape or
volume • Fixed volume volume
• Molecules held in • Force between • No forces between
place by a strong molecules is not so molecules (ideally)
force strong so • Move very freely
• Do not move molecules can
move around

• Internal energy/thermal energy is the total energy (KE) of the

molecules of a substance plus any PE associated with the forces
between the molecules (intermolecular forces).
• Heat is the thermal energy transferred between two bodies in
thermal contact due to a difference in temperature between the two
bodies. Heat flows from the object with the higher temperature to
the one at a lower temperature until they reach thermal equilibrium
when their temperatures are the same.
• Temperature is a measure of how hot or cold an object is, and its
temperature determines the direction of the heat flow. Temperature
is the average kinetic energy of the molecules of a substance.
• Temperature is measured on a fixed scale such as Fahrenheit,
Celsius or Kelvin.
• Molecules that are cold move slowly, while molecules that are hot
move faster and are farther apart.
• The thermal capacity or specific heat capacity ( c ) of a body is
the amount of heat needed to raise its temperature by 1°C. The unit
is J°C-1.
• The heat energy, Q, which has to be supplied to a mass, m, and
specific heat capacity, c, to raise its temperature by ∆T is given by
the following relationship: Q=cm∆T
○ Q is measured in joules
○ m is measured in kilograms
○ ∆T is measured in °C
 ○ c is measured in joules/kg°C
• In doing problems involving different objects, the law of
conservation of energy holds. Heat gained=Heat lost, Q1=Q2
• Putting heat energy into a material does not necessarily increase its
temperature. It may change its state. E.g. solid to liquid, liquid to
gas. This is called a change of state or a phase change.
• Change from a solid to a liquid is called fusion
• Change from a liquid to a solid is called freezing
• Change from a liquid to a vapor is called vaporization
• Change from a vapor to a liquid is called condensation

• During a phase changer there is a change in heat energy but there

is no change in temperature.

•
• The rate of evaporation can be increased by
○ Increasing the surface area; this increases the number of
molecules near the surface, giving more of them a chance to
escape.
○ Blowing across the surface. After molecules have left the
surface they form a small vapor cloud above the liquid. If this
is blown away it further allows the molecules to leave the
surface more easily.
○ Raising the temperature, this increases the kinetic energy of
the liquid molecules enabling more to escape.
• The heat energy that is taken in or give out by a substance when it
changes state its called latent heat.
• The specific latent heat of a material is the amount of heat
required to change the state of 1 kg of the material without change
of temperature. It is measured in J kg-1. The equation to find specific
latent heat is: L=Q/m.
• VIt=Energy
• IV=Power