Activity 1: Thermal Conductivity Goal: To determine the thermal conductivity of several different materials.

Setup & Procedure:

In this experiment, your group will be in charge of testing and determining the relative thermal conductivity of one of several materials. We will determine the conductivity using two wells of water at different temperatures. The temperature of both wells will be monitored for five minutes (or until thermal equilibrium is established), and then repeated until a total of three trials have been completed. You will need to save graphs of your temperature vs. time data for each trial that you conduct. The initial and final temperatures of the water in the wells will allow us to calculate the amount of thermal energy transferred through the material separating the water samples.

Figure 1: Side view of foam box with metal plate.

Helpful Hints:
It is very important that you ensure that your metal plate is well sealed within your foam box. Before conducting your first trial, test the box by adding water to one side of the box. If water leaks to the other side, obtain some clay putty and apply a thin bead along the perimeter where the metal plate comes in contact with the foam box. Test again to ensure the clay has fixed the leak. Use as little clay as possible. Before beginning your experimentation, you should also determine the volume of each well in the foam box. This will make it convenient for you to quickly setup for trials 2 and 3. Use the supplied graduated cylinders and record your 3 volumes as precisely as possible. Remember that the density of water is 1.00 g/cm . Finally, it is important that you ensure that the temperature probes are isothermal with the hot and cold water baths. Immerse the probes in beakers filled with the hot and cold water for at least 60 seconds prior to testing.

Data: Identity of Metal Plate:_______ Mass of Metal Plate (g): ___________ Dimensions of Metal Plate: Length________ Width________ Thickness _________ Area of Metal Plate (cm2):___________ Trial 1 Hot Mass (g) Ti Tf Cold Hot Trial 2 Cold Hot Trial 3 Cold

Analysis: The thermal conductivity of a substance can be determined using the following equation:

Where Q is heat, x is the thickness, A is the area, t is time, and T is temperature 1. 2. 3. 4. Determine the heat lost by the hot water well for each trial. Determine the heat gained by the cold water well for each trial. How do your answers to 1 and 2 compare? How can you explain this? Calculate the thermal conductivity value (k) for your metal, including appropriate unit label.

Present: As a group, prepare a presentation of your material findings, which includes: Basic material properties (research this!) Theoretical thermal properties Experimental thermal conductivity (include all experimental data, neatly organized) Discussion on experimental error related to this lab activity Consider: Based upon the class experimentation, which material is best suited for the following situations? Situation A: You need a material that can be used to quickly remove thermal energy from a microprocessor chip within a laptop enclosure. Situation B: Research online and suggest a material that maintains a constant temperature, ensuring that an encapsulated volatile liquid does not freeze or vaporize.