Heat temperature and kinetic energy - Essay Example

As particles of matter are in constant motion even in the coldest voids of space, there is always a measurable amount of heat energy produced. The continuous movements of the atoms and molecules within the body, where they randomly hit each other produce heat or thermal energy. Heat is also like work. It can never be contained within the body. Instead, it is energy in transit, transferring from one body into another. It can also transmit from the system to its environment or vice versa. Heat in the body can be of two forms: potential and kinetic energy (Smith, Van Ness, Abott, 2001).

Heat always travels from a body with high temperature to a lower one. Temperature is the main driving force for heat transfer between bodies. According to (Killam, Daou, n.d ), atoms and molecules don’t travel with the same rate of speed. There is a certain range of energy in molecules that dictates their speed whether slow or fast. Temperature therefore is “the measure of the average heat or thermal energy of the particles in a substance”. Temperature is measured through thermometers, using a uniform tube filled with alcohol, mercury or some other fluids.

There is a reflected numerical values indicated for the degree of hotness and coldness of a certain object (Smith, Van Ness, Abott, 2001). Heat and temperature is closely related to each other. As observed, the presence of heat makes the temperature rise. However, they are not of the same thing. Heat is the energy produced due to the motion of molecules while temperature is the measurement of the energy produced by the body. Heat is dependent upon the rate of movement of the particles such as the number of particles in motion, their speed, mass and the type of particles within the body.

Temperature, on the other hand is independent of these things. Heat caused the temperature to rise and the removal of heat cause the temperature to lower down. Object with higher temperature reveals that the molecules in that body are moving with higher energy. To state it more clearly, “temperature is not energy, but a measure of it. Heat is energy” (Killam, Daou, n.d). Heat has effects to the body from which it is transferred. A certain body is capable of handling such heat energy. This is referred to as heat capacity.

As defined by (Smith, Van Ness, Abott, 2001), the smaller the change in temperature within a body that is caused by the transfer of that given quantity of heat, there is greater capacity for it. There are two kinds of heat capacity that can be applied in homogenous fluids: heat capacity at constant volume and the heat capacity at constant pressure. Every type has certain conditions or properties that must be considered with relevance to their differences in volume and pressure. Heat capacity can also be further divided into three different terms: heat capacity, specific heat capacity and the molar heat capacity.

According to Jorgensen (n.d), molar heat capacity is the required energy for one mole of substance to raise 1 degree Celcius. Specific heat is the measurement of energy that can raise a material with a certain mass into a difference of 1 degree in Centigrade. They are both intrinsic properties of a certain substance. They are not dependent on the quantity of material present. Heat capacity on the other hand, is an extensive property of