why things heated together have different temperatures?

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Like if a put a toast with jam on top in the microwave and warm it up altogether, jam feels a lot hotter than bread. Why?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

1. Energy transfer through different materials is different. This the same reason that touching any metal object on a hot day feels hotter than touching a branch right next to it.

We have an equation “Q = mcΔT” which states that: “c” the specific heat capacity of an object affects the the amount of energy is transferred from the change in temperature. Higher the specific heat capacity, the faster heat is transferred.

2. Microwaves don’t “heat” objects in the commonly thought of way. Microwaves emit electromagnetic waves in the “microwave” category (around 10^8hz and a wavelength of around 1cm). This wave shakes the water particles in the object and transfers energy to the water. This shaking of particles is what we know as “heat” and thus the water, and therefore the surrounding food is heated. Foods that transfer energy faster or foods with more water may be hotter than others that are not.

3. Solids tend to transfer energy (heat) faster (especially in small quantities). This is due to the fact that in fluids, they tend to create a “convection current” which transfers heat instead of conduction (liquids tend to do both). So the solid bread transfers heat faster than a viscous fluid like jam that can’t create a convection current.

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