if i mix 40 gallons of 50 degree water and 40 gallons of 80 deg. water, does that make it 65 degrees?

Question

i’m just wondering how fluid & heat transfer works, if you mix water that is 20 or 30 degrees apart in temperature does the hot or cold have an advantage or does it meet in the middle and equalize?

In: 6

Answer 1

It’s close enough, but not exactly. Your 40 gallons of water at different temperatures don’t even have the same mass. So while it’s close enough to correct for water at these temperatures, you shouldn’t assume it generalizes for all materials, where the specific heat or volume or any other factor can vary a lot more.