Asked by qp

A metal sample is heated and placed into the water in a calorimeter at room temperature. Which statement best describes how the calorimeter can be used to determine the specific heat capacity of the metal sample?
Energy transfers to the metal from the water and calorimeter until they are all at room temperature.
Energy transfers from the metal to the water and calorimeter until they are all at room temperature.
Energy transfers to the metal from the water and calorimeter until they all reach a single temperature.
Energy transfers from the metal to the water and calorimeter until they all reach a single temperature.

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
"Energy transfers from the metal to the water and calorimeter until they all reach a single temperature."

Explanation: the hot metal cools, losing heat that is gained by the cooler water and calorimeter until thermal equilibrium. Use energy conservation: |Q_metal| = Q_water + Q_calorimeter, with Q = mcΔT (or include calorimeter heat capacity).