Temperature and Thermal Energy

Matter is made up of tiny particles called

atoms and molecules. These particles are
always in motion even if the objects they
make up isn’t moving at all. As you recall, the
energy of motion is called kinetic energy. The
faster particles move, the more kinetic energy
they have. What is temperature?
TEMPERATURE is a measure of the average
kinetic energy of the individual particles in an
object.
Consider this:
Try to imagine a mug of hot cocoa and a glass
of cold chocolate milk on the table. The hot
cocoa has a higher temperature than the
cold chocolate. Its particles are moving
faster, so they have greater average kinetic
energy. If the chocolate milk is heated, its
particles will move faster, so their kinetic
energy will increase. This means that the
temperature of milk will rise.
We know that temperature is measured by
the use of thermometer. The thermometer
commonly available in our school is the
liquid thermometer, which has a column of
either mercury or alcohol. When the
thermometer is placed in contact with any
object the mercury column either rises or
drops.
Why does the liquid inside the tube of the
thermometer go up or down?
This happens because the mercury inside
the tube expands or contracts in response
to a change in temperature.
When the thermometer bulb is placed in
hot water, the liquid inside the tube
expands. As it does, it takes more space
and so it goes up the tube. When the bulb
is placed in cold water, the liquid
contracts and so it goes down the tube.
In Physics, this is called Thermal Expansion,
another effect of heat transfer.
But thermal expansion does not apply only to the liquid
inside the thermometer. In fact, it applies to almost
everything around us, be it a solid, a liquid, or a gas.
There are so many applications of thermal expansion
around us. Some are beneficial to us; others can also
be a burden to us.
Have you ever loosened a tight jar lid by holding it
under a stream of hot water?
This works because the metal lid expands a little.
Do you know why?
As the thermal energy of a substance increases, its
particles spread out and the substance expands.
This is true even when the substance is not
changing state. The expanding of matter
when it is heated is known as Thermal
Expansion.
When a substance is cooled, thermal energy
is released. This means that the motion of
the particles slows down and the particles
move closer together. So as a substance is
cooled, it contracts, or decreases in size.
One application of thermal expansion is a
thermometer.
There are three common scales for measuring
temperature:
Fahrenheit Scale = most common scale in the
United States. On this scale, the number 32
is assigned to the temperature at which
water freezes. The number 212 is assigned
to the temperature at which water is boils.
The interval between these two
temperatures is divided into 180 equal
intervals called degrees Fahrenheit (0F)
Celsius Scale = The temperature scale used in most of
the world. On this scale, the number 0 is assigned to
the temperature at which water freezes. The number
100 is assigned to the temperature at which water
boils. The interval between freezing and boiling is
divided into 100 equal parts, called degrees Celsius
(0C).
Kelvin Scale = The temperature scale commonly used in
Physical science. Units on the Kelvin scale are the same
size as those on the Celsius scale, and are called kelvins
(K). Any temperature on the Kelvin scale can be
changed to Celsius degrees by adding 273 to it. So the
freezing point of water on the Kelvin scale is 273 K and
the boiling point is 373 K.
Why is the number 273 so special?
Experiments have led scientists to
conclude that -2730C is the lowest
temperature possible. At this
temperature, called absolute zero, no
more energy can be removed from
matter. The Kelvin scale is defined so
that zero on the Kelvin scale is absolute
zero.
 Thermal Energy
The total energy of all the particles in a substance
is called thermal energy, or sometimes internal
energy. Even if two samples of matter are at
the same temperature, they do not necessarily
have the same total energy.
The more particles a substance has at a given
temperature, the more thermal energy has. For
example, 2 liters of hot cocoa at 750C has more
thermal energy than 0.15 liter at 750C.
So, temperature is a measure of the average
kinetic energy of individual particles.
Thermal energy is the total energy of all the
particles.
Thermal energy does not depend on just
temperature and the number of particles in
a substance. It also depends on how the
particles are arranged. In the next activity
we will learn about how energies differ for
solids, liquids, and gases.
 Phase Change-Three States of Matter
Another change/effect that may occur when
heat is added to or taken out from an object
is Phase Change.
For example, you know that water can change
from solid (ice) to liquid (water) or from
liquid to gas (steam).
The next activity will allow us to observe the
changes that takes place when ice turns to
liquid water.
 Three States of Matter
The solid and the liquid are both the same substance –
water. Water can exist in three different forms. In fact,
all matter exists in three states – solid, liquid, and gas.
Although the chemical composition of a substance
remains the same, the arrangement of the particles that
make up the matter differ from one state to another.
SOLIDS
An ice cube, a coin, a book are all solids. The
particles that make up a solid are packed together in
relatively fixed positions. Particles of solid cannot move
out of their positions. They can only vibrate back and
forth. This is why solids retain a fixed shape and volume.
LIQUIDS.
Water, orange juice, and the molten steel are
all liquids. The particles that make up a liquid are
close together, but they are not held together as
tightly as those of a solid. Because liquid particles
can move around, liquids don’t have a definite
shape. But liquids do have a definite volume.
GASES.
Air, helium, and the neon are all gases. In a
gas, the particles are moving so fast that they don’t
even stay close together. Gases expand to fill all the
space available. They do not have a fixed shape or
volume.
 Changes of State
The physical change from one state of matter to
another is called a change of state. A change of state
occurs between the solid and liquid states, and
between the liquid and gas states.
The state of a substance depends on the amount of
thermal energy it possesses. The more thermal energy
a substance has, the faster its particles move. Since a
gas has more thermal energy than a liquid, the
particles of gas move faster than the particles of the
same substance in the liquid or solid state. Particles in
a liquid move faster than particles in the solid state.
Matter will change from one state to another if
thermal energy is absorbed or released.
As the thermal energy increases, a substance
changes from a solid to a liquid and then to a gas.
A substance changes from a gas to a liquid and
then to a solid as thermal energy is removed from
it.
Freezing, melting, condensation, and vaporization
are conditions under which thermal energy is
changing but temperature remains the same.
Under these conditions matter is changing from
one state to another.
During a change of state, the addition or loss
of thermal energy changes the arrangement
of the particles. But the average kinetic
energy of those particles does not change.
Since temperature is average kinetic energy,
the temperature does not change as a
substance changes state.
Solid – Liquid Changes of State
Matter goes through changes between the
solid and liquid states of matter. These
changes are known as Melting and Freezing.
Melting
The change of state from a solid to a liquid is
called melting. Melting occurs when a solid
absorbs thermal energy. As the thermal
energy of the solid increases, the rigid
structure of its particles begins to break
down. The particles become free to move
around. The temperature at which a solid
changes to a liquid is called the melting
point.
Freezing
The change of state from a liquid to a solid is
called freezing. Freezing occurs when a
substances loses thermal energy. The
temperature at which a substance changes
from a liquid to a solid is called its freezing
point. For a given substance, the freezing
point and the melting point are the same.
The only difference between the two is
whether the substance is gaining or
releasing thermal energy.
 Liquid – Gas Changes of State
These changes are known as vaporization and
condensation.
Vaporization.
The process by which matter changes from
the liquid to the gas state is called
vaporization. During this process, particles
in a liquid absorb thermal energy. This
causes the particles to move faster.
Eventually they move fast enough to escape
the liquid, as gas particles.
If vaporization takes place at the surface
of a liquid, it is called evaporation.
At higher temperatures, vaporization can
occur below the surface of a liquid as
well. This process is called boiling.
When a liquid boils, gas bubbles formed
within the liquid to the surface. The
temperature at which a liquid boils is
called boiling point.
Condensation
You have seen that beads of water appear on
the outside of a cold drinking glass or on
the bathroom mirror after you take a
shower. This occurs because water vapor
that is present in the air loses thermal
energy when it comes in contact with the
cold glass. When a gas loses a sufficient
amount of thermal energy, it will change
into a liquid. A change from the gas state to
the liquid state is called condensation.