Skip to ContentGo to accessibility page
OpenStax Logo
Physics

Performance Task

PhysicsPerformance Task

Performance Task

11.3 Phase Change and Latent Heat

20.

You have been tasked with designing a baking pan that will bake batter the fastest. There are four materials available for you to test.

  • Four pans of similar design, consisting of aluminum, iron (steel), copper, and glass
  • Oven or similar heating source
  • Device for measuring high temperatures
  • Balance for measuring mass

Instructions

Procedure
  1. Design a safe experiment to test the specific heat of each material (i.e., no extreme temperatures should be used)
  2. Write down the materials needed for your experiment and the procedure you will follow. Make sure that you include every detail, so that the experiment can be repeated by others.
  3. Carry out the experiment and record any data collected.
  4. Review your results and make a recommendation as to which metal should be used for the pan.
    1. What physical quantities do you need to measure to determine the specific heats for the different materials?
    2. How does the glass differ from the metals in terms of thermal properties?
    3. What are your sources of error?

Teacher Support

Teacher Support

  • NGSS-HS-PS3-3: Design, build, and refine a device that works within given constraints to convert one form of energy into another form of energy.
    1. The specific heat of aluminum is greatest, so that the aluminum pan will take longest to reach a given temperature. Copper has the lowest specific heat, and so will reach a given temperature fastest.
    2. Compare the time it takes for the glass pan and the aluminum pan to reach a specific temperature. Although their specific heats are comparable, the thermal conductivity is greater in aluminum, making it heat faster than the glass, which is an insulator.
PreviousNext
Order a print copy
Citation/Attribution
Reuse and redistribution of this content in digital or print format:
  • This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's prior written permission.
  • This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License, which means that you can reuse and modify the material only for noncommercial purposes, must attribute Texas Education Agency (TEA), and must distribute any derivative works under the same license. The original material is available at: https://www.texasgateway.org/book/tea-physics . Changes were made to the original material, including updates to art, structure, and other content updates.
  • Any commercial printing of this textbook, including using a local or custom printer, must be approved by OpenStax, and proper citation provided.
  • OpenStax-copyrighted images, activities, assessments, and similar components of this book are subject to the same licensing – CC-BY-NC-SA. They can be used for noncommercial purposes with attribution. Commercial use requires permission.
  • Permission requests: Anyone who intends to incorporate this content (including text, images, and other components) into large language models, use it in AI offerings, use it commercially (including in print), and/or has questions about another use case is welcome to complete our reuse request form.
Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a noncommercial print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:

    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/physics/pages/1-introduction

  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a noncommercial digital format, then for every page that includes OpenStax content, you must license the derivative work under the same CC-BY-NC-SA license as the original, and include on every digital page view the following attribution:

    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/physics/pages/1-introduction

Citation information

The information below includes the information needed to generate citations in most major styles (APA, MLA, etc.); you must reformat and organize the information as needed to fit the requirements of the style. Use the information below to generate a citation. We recommend using a citation tool such as this one.

© Jul 8, 2026 Texas Education Agency (TEA). The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo, and Rice University name, and Rice University logo trademarks, or wordmarks are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.