Substances A and B with the same mass and the same initial temperature absorb the same amount of heat energy. The final temperature of A is higher than the final temperature of B. Which substance would have the higher specific heat? Why?

Answer 1

We know q = mass x specific heat x delta T; therefore, let's solve for specific heat (which we can conveniently call X).

X_A = qA/(massA x delta T)

X_{B</sbu> = qB/(massB x delta T).
If qA = qB and massA = massB, then the only difference is delta T. Which is the larger delta T. A larger delta T (in the denominator) means a what (smaller?) X.}