Mechanical equivalent of heat

Principle

In this experiment, a metal test body is rotated and heated by the friction due to a tensed band of synthetic material.The mechanical equivalent of heat for problem 1 is determined from the defined mechanical work and from the thermal energy increase deduced from the increase of temperature. Assuming the equivalence of mechanical work and heat, the specific thermal capacity of aluminium and brass is determined.

Benefits

• Elegant set-up to measure conversion of mechanical energy in thermal energy
• Perfect as demonstration experiment and very suitable as an introductory student experiment

Tasks

1. Determination of the mechanical equivalent of heat.
2. Determination of the specific thermal capacity of aluminum and brass.

Learning objectives

• Mechanical equivalent of heat
• Mechanical work
• Thermal energy
• Thermal capacity
• First law of thermodynamics
• Specific thermal capacity