Cooling a Hot Object

The cooling of a hot object, say in a container of water, is an example of an approach to thermal equilibrium. The amount of cooling depends upon the masses, specific heats, and original temperatures of the objects. In this example, the possibility of vaporization of the water is neglected , which is unrealistic if the temperature of the hot object is well above 100 C.

Hot object Water container Mass of object = gm Specific heat c = cal/gm C c= joule/gm C Initial temperature = C Mass of water = gm Initial water temperature = C

(cal/gm C)( gm)(-) = (1cal/gm C)( gm)(-)

= C