SECTION 1

SC.912.P.10.4, SC.912.P.10.5
Temperature and
Objectives
Relate temperature to the kinetic
Thermal Equilibrium
energy of atoms and molecules. Key Terms
temperature internal energy thermal equilibrium
Describe the changes in the
temperatures of two objects
reaching thermal equilibrium. Defining Temperature
Identify the various temperature When you hold a glass of lemonade with ice, such as that shown in
Figure 1.1, you feel a sharp sensation in your hand that we describe as
scales, and convert from one
scale to another.
“cold.” Likewise, you experience a “hot” feeling when you touch a cup of
hot chocolate. We often associate temperature with how hot or cold an
object feels when we touch it. Our sense of touch serves as a qualitative
SC.912.P.10.5 Relate temperature to the
indicator of temperature. However, this sensation of hot or cold also
average molecular kinetic energy. depends on the temperature of the skin and therefore can be misleading.
The same object may feel warm or cool, depending on the properties of
the object and on the conditions of your body.
Determining an object’s temperature with precision requires
FIGURE 1.1
a standard definition of temperature and a procedure for making
Hot and Cold Objects at low temperatures feel cold measurements that establish how “hot” or “cold” objects are.
to the touch, while objects at high temperatures feel hot.
However, the sensation of hot and cold can be misleading.
Adding or removing energy usually changes temperature.
Consider what happens when you use an electric range to
cook food. By turning the dial that controls the electric current
delivered to the heating element, you can adjust the element’s
temperature. As the current is increased, the temperature of
the element increases. Similarly, as the current is reduced, the
temperature of the element decreases. In general, energy must
be either added to or removed from a substance to change
its temperature.

SENSING TEMPERATURE

Fill one basin with hot tap water. Place your left hand in the hot MATERIALS
Fill another with cold tap water, water and your right hand in the • 3 identical basins
and add ice until about one-third cold water for 15 s. Then place • hot and cold tap water
of the mixture is ice. Fill the third both hands in the basin of • ice
basin with an equal mixture of hot lukewarm water for 15 s. Describe SAFETY
and cold tap water. whether the water feels hot or cold The temperature of the
to either of your hands. hot water must not exceed
50°C (122°F).

300 Chapter 9
Temperature is proportional to the kinetic FIGURE 1.2
energy of atoms and molecules.
Temperature and Kinetic Energy When energy is
The temperature of a substance is proportional to
added to the gas in (a), its average kinetic energy, and thus its
the average kinetic energy of particles in the temperature, increases as shown in (b).
substance. A substance’s temperature increases
as a direct result of added energy being distrib-
uted among the particles of the substance, as Energy
added
shown in Figure 1.2.
A monatomic gas contains only one type of
atom. For a monatomic gas, temperature can be
understood in terms of the translational kinetic
energy of the atoms in the gas. For other kinds of (a) (b)
substances, molecules can rotate or vibrate, so
other types of energy are also present, as shown
in Figure 1.3.
The energies associated with atomic motion are referred to as temperature a measure of the
internal energy, which is proportional to the substance’s temperature average kinetic energy of the particles
in a substance
(assuming no phase change). For an ideal gas, the internal energy
depends only on the temperature of the gas. For nonideal gases, as well as internal energy the energy of a
for liquids and solids, other properties contribute to the internal energy. substance due to both the random
The symbol U stands for internal energy, and ∆U stands for a change in motions of its particles and to the
potential energy that results from the
internal energy. distances and alignments between
the particles

FIGURE 1.3

EXAMPLES OF DIFFERENT FORMS OF ENERGY

Form of Macroscopic Microscopic
Energy type
energy examples examples
translational airplane in flight, roller CO2 molecule in linear kinetic energy
coaster at bottom of rise motion

rotational spinning top CO2 molecule spinning kinetic energy

about its center of mass

vibrational plucked guitar string bending and stretching kinetic and potential energy
of bonds between atoms
in a CO2 molecule

Heat 301
 Temperature is meaningful only when it is stable.
Imagine a can of warm fruit juice immersed in a large beaker of cold
water. After about 15 minutes, the can of fruit juice will be cooler, and the
water surrounding it will be slightly warmer. Eventually, both the can of
fruit juice and the water will be at the same temperature. That temperature
thermal equilibrium the state in will not change as long as conditions remain unchanged in the beaker.
which two bodies in physical contact
with each other have identical Another way of expressing this is to say that the water and can of juice are
temperatures in thermal equilibrium with each other.
Thermal equilibrium is the basis for measuring temperature with
thermometers. By placing a thermometer in contact with an object and
Did YOU Know? waiting until the column of liquid in the thermometer stops rising or
As a thermometer comes into thermal falling, you can find the temperature of the object. The reason is that the
equilibrium with an object, the object’s thermometer is in thermal equilibrium with the object. Just as in the case
temperature changes slightly. In most of the can of fruit juice in the cold water, the temperature of any two
cases the object is so massive compared objects in thermal equilibrium always lies between their initial
with the thermometer that the object’s temperatures.
temperature change is insignificant.

Matter expands as its temperature increases.

Increasing the temperature of a gas at constant pressure causes the volume
of the gas to increase. This increase occurs not only for gases, but also for
Conceptual Challenge
liquids and solids. In general, if the temperature of a substance increases,
1. Hot Chocolate If two cups of so does its volume. This phenomenon is known as thermal expansion.
hot chocolate, one at 50°C and You may have noticed that the concrete roadway segments of a
the other at 60°C, are poured sidewalk are separated by gaps. This is necessary because concrete
together in a large container, expands with increasing temperature. Without these gaps, thermal
will the final temperature of the expansion would cause the segments to push against each other, and they
double batch be would eventually buckle and break apart.
a. less than 50°C? Different substances undergo different amounts of expansion for a
b. between 50°C and 60°C? given temperature change. The thermal expansion characteristics of a
c. greater than 60°C? material are indicated by a quantity called the coefficient of volume
expansion. Gases have the largest values for this coefficient. Liquids have
Explain your answer.
much smaller values.
2. Hot and Cold Liquids A
In general, the volume of a liquid tends to decrease with decreasing
cup of hot tea is poured from
temperature. However, the volume of water increases with decreasing
a teapot, and a swimming
temperature in the range between 0°C and 4°C. Also, as the water freezes,
pool is filled with cold
it forms a crystal that has more empty space between the molecules than
water. Which one has
a higher total internal
does liquid water. This explains why ice floats in liquid water. It also
energy? Explain. explains why a pond freezes from the top down instead of from the
bottom up. If this did not happen, fish would likely not survive in freezing
temperatures.
Solids typically have the smallest coefficient of volume expansion
values. For this reason, liquids in solid containers expand more than the
container. This property allows some liquids to be used to measure
changes in temperature.

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Measuring Temperature
In order for a device to be used as a thermometer, it must make use of
a change in some physical property that corresponds to changing
temperature, such as the volume of a gas or liquid or the pressure of
a gas at constant volume. The most common thermometers use a glass
tube containing a thin column of mercury, colored alcohol, or colored
mineral spirits. When the thermometer is heated, the volume of the liquid
expands. (The cross-sectional area of the tube remains nearly constant
during temperature changes.) The change in length of the liquid column
is proportional to the temperature change, as shown in Figure 1.4.
FIGURE 1.4

Mercury Thermometer The

Calibrating thermometers requires fixed temperatures. volume of mercury in this
A thermometer must be more than an unmarked, thin glass tube of thermometer increases slightly when
liquid; the length of the liquid column at different temperatures must the mercury’s temperature increases
be known. One reference point is etched on the tube and refers to when from 0°C (a) to 50°C (b).
the thermometer is in thermal equilibrium with a mixture of water and
ice at one atmosphere of pressure. This temperature is called the ice point
or melting point of water and is defined as zero degrees Celsius, or 0°C. (a)
A second reference mark is made at the point when the thermometer
is in thermal equilibrium with a mixture of steam and water at one Volume of mercury at
atmosphere of pressure. This temperature is called the steam point or 0˚C = 0.100 mL = Vi
boiling point of water and is defined as 100°C. 0˚C
A temperature scale can be made by dividing the distance between
the reference marks into equally spaced units, called degrees. This process
is based on the assumption that the expansion of the mercury is linear
(proportional to the temperature difference), which is a very good
approximation.
(b) 50˚C

Temperature units depend on the scale used.

The temperature scales most widely used today are the Fahrenheit,
Volume of mercury at
Celsius, and Kelvin scales. The Fahrenheit scale is commonly used in the 50˚C = 0.101 mL = 0˚C
United States. The Celsius scale is used in countries that have adopted the Vi + 0.001 mL
metric system and by the scientific community worldwide. Celsius and
Fahrenheit temperature measurements can be converted to each other
using this equation.

Celsius-Fahrenheit Temperature Conversion

T = __9 T + 32.0
F 5 C

( )
Fahrenheit temperature = __95 × Celsius temperature + 32.0

The number 32.0 in the equation indicates the difference between the
ice-point value in each scale. The point at which water freezes is 0.0
degrees on the Celsius scale and 32.0 degrees on the Fahrenheit scale.

PHY_CTXESE02758_Y_9_1_1.ai
Sam Valentino
Heat 303
8.22.12
1st pass
FIGURE 1.5 Temperature values in the Celsius and
Fahrenheit scales can have positive, nega-
Determining Absolute Zero for an Ideal Gas This graph tive, or zero values. But because the kinetic
suggests that if the gas’s temperature could be lowered to −273.15°C, energy of the atoms in a substance must be
or 0 K, the gas’s pressure would be zero.
positive, the absolute temperature that is
proportional to that energy should be
Pressure-Temperature Graph for an Ideal Gas positive also. A temperature scale with only
positive values is suggested in the graph of
pressure versus temperature for an ideal gas
at constant volume, shown in Figure 1.5. As
the gas’s temperature decreases, so does its
Pressure

pressure. The graph suggests that if the

temperature could be lowered to −273.15°C,
the pressure of the sample would be zero.
-273.15˚C = 0 K This temperature is designated in the Kelvin
0 scale as 0.00 K, where K is the symbol for
-273.15 -200 -100 0 100 200 300
the temperature unit called the kelvin.
Temperature (˚C)
Temperatures in this scale are indicated by
the symbol T.
A temperature difference of one degree is the same on the Celsius and
HRW • Holt Physics
Kelvin scales. The two scales differ only in the choice of zero point. Thus,
PH99PE-C10-001-009-A
the ice point (0.00°C) equals 273.15 K, and the steam point (100.00°C)
equals 373.15 K (see Figure 1.6). The Celsius temperature can therefore be
converted to the Kelvin temperature by adding 273.15.

Celsius-Kelvin Temperature Conversion

T = TC + 273.15
Kelvin temperature = Celsius temperature + 273.15

Kelvin temperatures for various physical processes can range from

around 1 000 000 000 K (109 K), which is the temperature of the interiors of
the most massive stars, to less than 1 K, which is slightly cooler than the
boiling point of liquid helium. The temperature 0 K is often referred to as
absolute zero. Absolute zero has never been reached, although laboratory
experiments have reached temperatures of just a half-billionth of a degree
above absolute zero.

FIGURE 1.6

TEMPERATURE SCALES AND THEIR USES

Scale Ice point Steam point Applications

Fahrenheit 32°F 212°F meteorology, medicine, and nonscientific uses (United States)

Celsius 0°C 100°C meteorology, medicine, and nonscientific uses (outside United
States); other sciences (international)

Kelvin (absolute) 273.15 K 373.15 K physical chemistry, gas laws, astrophysics, thermodynamics,
low-temperature physics

304 Chapter 9
 GO ONLINE

Interactive Demo
Temperature Conversion HMHScience.com

Sample Problem A What are the equivalent Celsius and

Kelvin temperatures of 72.0°F?

ANALYZE Given: TF = 72.0°F

Unknown: TC = ?
T=?

SOLVE Use the Celsius-Fahrenheit equation to convert Fahrenheit into Celsius.

TF = __95 TC + 32.0

TC = __59 (TF − 32.0)

TC = __59 (72.0 − 32.0)°C

= 22.2°C

TC = 22.2°C

Use the Celsius-Kelvin equation to convert Celsius into Kelvin.

T = TC + 273.15
T = (22.2 + 273.15) K
= 295.4 K

T = 295.4 K

1. The lowest outdoor temperature ever recorded on Earth is −128.6°F, recorded at

Vostok Station, Antarctica, in 1983. What is this temperature on the Celsius and
Kelvin scales?

2. On January 21 in 1918, Granville, North Dakota, had a surprising change in

temperature. Within 12 hours, the temperature changed from 237 K to 283 K.
What is this change in temperature in the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales?

3. The normal human body temperature is 98.6°F. A person with a fever may record
102°F. Express these temperatures in degrees Celsius.

4. A pan of water is heated from 23°C to 78°C. What is the change in its temperature
on the Kelvin and Fahrenheit scales?

5. Some volcanic lavas in Hawaii reach very high temperatures. Express the
temperature 2192°F in degrees Celsius.

Heat 305
 SECTION 1 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Reviewing Main Ideas
1. A hot copper pan is dropped into a tub of water. If the water’s temperature
rises, what happens to the temperature of the pan? How will you know
when the water and copper pan reach thermal equilibrium?
2. Oxygen condenses into a liquid at approximately 90.2 K. To what
temperature does this correspond on both the Celsius and Fahrenheit
temperature scales?
3. The boiling point of sulfur is 444.6°C. Sulfur’s melting point is 586.1°F
lower than its boiling point.
a. Determine the melting point of sulfur in degrees Celsius.
b. Find the melting and boiling points in degrees Fahrenheit.
c. Find the melting and boiling points in kelvins.
4. Which of the following are true for popcorn kernels and the water molecules
inside them during cooking, just before the kernels pop?
a. The temperature of the kernels increases.
b. The water molecules are destroyed.
c. The kinetic energy of the water molecules increases.
d. The mass of the water molecules changes.

Interpreting Graphics
5. Two gases that are in physical contact with each other consist of
particles of identical mass. In what order should the images shown in
Figure 1.7 be placed to correctly describe the changing distribution of
kinetic energy among the gas particles? Which group of particles has
the highest temperature at any time? Explain.
FIGURE 1.7
Kinetic Energy Distribution

(a) (b) (c)

Critical Thinking
6. Have you ever tried to make popcorn
and found that most of the kernels did
not pop? What might be the reason that
they did not pop? What could you do to
try to make more of the kernels pop?

306 Chapter 9