What it seems to be saying to me is that more energy is absorbed as molecule rotational (electrical potential) energy rather than vibrational (kinetic) energy. Very interesting.
Robert Crawley Elite Precision Fabricators, Inc. Programmer (936) 449-6823 http://epfi.cjb.net/ ----- Original Message ----- From: Bruce Moomaw <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Planetary Sciences Group <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: ISSDG <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Jupiter List <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Europa Icepick <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, June 29, 2002 5:50 AM Subject: Water's specific heat (or, Help, Mr. Wizard!) > > I've finally found a website with a little information as to just why water > has such a huge ability to absorb heat energy with a minimal change in > temperature (www.phy.olemiss.edu/PhysSci/PhysSci108/Chapter15_phys108.pdf ): > > "An object's temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of its > molecules... Objects do not contain heat; they contain internal energy. The > internal energy of an object is the sum of the kinetic energy of its > molecules plus the rotational and vibrational energy of its molecules plus > the potential energy of its molecules... Heat absorbed by a material can go > into increasing the kinetic energy of the molecules (thereby increasing the > temperature of the material) or into othe forms of internal energy like > rotational motion of molecules (which does not increase the temperature of > the material)... Water has the highest specific heat of common materials > because much of the energy it absorbs goes into electrical potential energy > between water molecules and into roatation and vibration of the molecules." > > Two questions from a scientific dummy: > > (1) Does the "electrical potential energy" reference mean that water > molecules tend to absorb some heat energy by stretching the distance of > their hydrogen atoms farther from the central oxygen atom? > > (2) I've run across another site saying that a water molecule absorbs heat > as vibrational energy by constantly flexing the angle between its two > hydrogen atoms. But how can vibrational energy NOT be another form of > kinetic energy of a substance's molecules? Surely, when a solid rises in > temperature, its molecules vibrate more rapidly without actually coming > detached from one another (at least until it melts). > > Help! > > == > You are subscribed to the Europa Icepick mailing list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Project information and list (un)subscribe info: http://klx.com/europa/ > > == You are subscribed to the Europa Icepick mailing list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Project information and list (un)subscribe info: http://klx.com/europa/
