Re: Specific Heat

[John Denker <jsd@AV8N.COM>]

Quoting Tony Wayne <wayne@PEN.K12.VA.US>:

> WITHIN A PHASE, does the specific heat of a substance have any varian=
> ce=20
> with temperature?

Yes.

It can vary by many, many orders of magnitude.  For example data
and explanation, see
   http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/solids/phonon.html

For that matter "WITHIN A PHASE" as you merely _approach_ a
critical point, there's not just 'some' variation in the
specific heat ... there's an infinite variation in the
specific heat!
  http://www.uic.edu/classes/phys/phys461/phys532/notes/notes03.html

> In other words, does the specific heat of water=
> =20
> (liquid phase) have a range from say 4185.8 to 4186.3 J/C=95kg (arbit=
> rary=20
> numbers for example only) from 0 to 100 degrees C?

That's a different question.  Water is highly anomalous.  Its
specific heat is remarkably high, and has remarkably little
variation with temperature.  Also, it is liquid over only a
modest range of absolute temperature (297 is 75% of 397).