Thermal equilibrium and aluminum

[ariana0923]

(This is not a homework question...it's a theoretical question based on an experiment that was conducted.)

If you have an aluminum block and a copper block of equal mass, but the copper block is 100 degrees C and the alum. block is 0 degrees C, they reach roughly 30 degrees C at thermal equilibrium according to an experiment.

So as you can see, the aluminum block influenced the final temp, since the final temp was closer to aluminum's initial temp. Why is this? Is it because aluminum is a better insulator of cold?

 

[Bob S]

Check the heat capacity per gram. Aluminum is 2.35 x larger.

 

[astrokreng]

Thermal equilibrium occurs when two objects or systems reach the same temperature, and there is no net transfer of heat between them. In this experiment, the aluminum and copper blocks were initially at different temperatures, but they reached a final temperature closer to the aluminum's initial temperature. This is because aluminum has a higher thermal conductivity compared to copper. This means that aluminum is better at transferring heat, both from and to its surroundings, compared to copper. As a result, the aluminum block was able to absorb more heat from the copper block, causing the final temperature to be closer to the aluminum's initial temperature. This does not necessarily mean that aluminum is a better insulator of cold, but rather that it is better at conducting heat.