High School

The specific heat of a certain type of cooling oil is 1.75 J/(g°C). How much heat energy is needed to raise the temperature of 2.58 kg of this oil from 23°C to 191°C?

a) 0 J
b) 752,520 J
c) 1,750 J
d) 4,186 J

Answer :

Option b, to find the needed heat energy, the formula Q = mcΔT is used. With the specific heat of the oil at 1.75 J/(g°C) and a mass of 2.58 kg, the energy required to raise the oil's temperature from 23°C to 191°C is 752,520 J.

To calculate the amount of heat energy needed to raise the temperature of a given mass of a substance, we use the formula Q = mcΔT, where Q is the heat energy transferred, m is the mass of the substance, c is the specific heat capacity, and ΔT is the change in temperature.

In this case, the specific heat (c) of the oil is 1.75 J/(g°C), the mass (m) of oil is 2.58 kg (which is equal to 2580 g since there are 1000 grams in a kilogram), and the change in temperature (ΔT) is 191°C - 23°C = 168°C. Plugging these values into the formula gives us Q = 2580 g × 1.75 J/g°C × 168°C, which equals 752,520 J.