A potato chip burned and gave off enough energy to heat up 0.5 kg of water from 20oC to 25o. The specific heat of water is 4,184 J/kgoC. Assuming that the energy gained by the water is the heat produced by the chip, then how many Joules of energy are in a chip?

Energy produced by the chip = 10,460 Joules.

Explanation:

The specific heat of water is one calorie/gram ° C = 4.186 joules/gram ° C, which is higher than any other common substance. As a result, water plays a very important role in regulating temperature. The specific heat per gram for water is much greater than that of a metal, as described in the water-metal example. Replace the mass (m), the temperature change (ΔT), and the specific heat (c) of the solution in the equation Q = c x m x ΔT, where Q is the heat absorbed by the solution. For specific heat of water we goes as given in the question 4,184 J/kg°C

Q = 4184*0.5 * (25-20)

=10,460 Joules.

Thus heat gained by water (Q) = Energy produced by the chip = 10,460 Joules.