Solving an Automobile Cooling System Question: 18L to kg Conversion

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a problem related to an automobile cooling system, specifically focusing on the conversion of volume (liters) to mass (kilograms) for water in the context of calculating heat absorption during a temperature change.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore the conversion of liters of water to kilograms, with some referencing the density of water and questioning the accuracy of different values for this conversion.

Discussion Status

The conversation includes various interpretations of the mass of water in relation to its volume, with some participants providing differing figures and questioning the basis for these values. There is an ongoing exploration of the definitions and assumptions related to the density of water.

Contextual Notes

Participants reference the definition of a liter in relation to the mass of water, with some citing sources to support their claims about the conversion factor. There is a noted discrepancy between commonly accepted values for the mass of water per liter.

Ryan231
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I've got a question to solve.. Just need 1 thing..

An automobile cooling system holds 18L of water. How much heat does it absorb if its temperature rises from 20ºC to 90ºC?

I need to find how many kg of water I have... and then plug into

Q =mc(T1-T2)

Q = (m)(4186)(-70)

Look good? just need help with converting 18L of water into kg\

Sorry this seems like a school question... I'm just not sure about converting from L to kg.. seemed like general physics to me
 
Last edited:
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If memory serves me correct, 1 liter of water has a mass of approximately 1 kilogram.

EDIT: to be more precise, 1 liter weighs 0.96 kilograms.
 
18L*.96 = 17.28kg of water...

So. Q= (17.28)(4186)(70)
= 5063385.6J

I think that's right?
 
Density of Water

As I understand it, the gram was defined as the mass of 1 cm^3 of water (at 4°C). That would make 1 liter of water exactly 1 kg. Where are you getting the .96 figure?
 
davidchandler said:
As I understand it, the gram was defined as the mass of 1 cm^3 of water (at 4°C). That would make 1 liter of water exactly 1 kg. Where are you getting the .96 figure?
Um...I went on wikipedia and did a search on liter
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liter

They said that
One litre of water weighs almost exactly one kilogram. Similarly: 1 ml of water weighs about 1 g; 1000 litres of water weighs about 1000 kg (1 tonne)

Its that almost exactly thing that made me do s ome searching.
here is where I got 0.96 from.
 
Last edited:

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