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Thermal Conductivity Investigation

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Thermal Conductivity Investigation

The school radio station needs a safe way to keep a mug of warm water warm during a long broadcast. A team compares a metal strip, a wooden strip and a plastic strip. Study the results, then decide what the station should use. In this model, each strip starts at 20°C and one end is placed in warm water; the measured temperature is taken at the other end. Do not try this with hot water without adult supervision.

Read the results

After 8 minutes, the far-end temperatures were recorded at regular intervals. All three rods were the same length and thickness, and the same starting temperature was used.

Time (min)

Metal

Wood

Plastic

Investigate and explain

Use evidence from the results where you can. Write complete answers for explanation questions.

1.Choose the best definition of thermal conductivity.

How well a material transfers thermal energy
How much heat a material contains
How quickly a material melts
How hot a material can become

2.From 0 to 8 minutes, how many degrees Celsius did the far end of each rod warm up? Show or state the calculation for metal, wood and plastic.

3.Rank the rods from greatest to least thermal conductivity using the 8-minute results. Give one piece of data as evidence.

4.True or false: at every measured time after 0 minutes, the metal rod’s far end was warmer than the other two rods.

TrueFalse

5.Why did the metal rod warm at its far end more quickly than the wooden rod? Use the terms thermal energy and conductor or insulator.

6.The station wants to wrap the mug so that less thermal energy escapes. Which rod material would make the best model for the wrap: metal, wood or plastic? Explain your choice.

7.Materials that transfer thermal energy easily are thermal . Materials that slow this transfer are thermal .

8.The team kept rod length, thickness and starting temperature the same. Why is changing only the material important when comparing the results?

9.Give one practical improvement that could make the temperature measurements more reliable. Explain how it helps.

10.A saucepan has a metal base and a wooden handle. Explain why these materials suit those different parts.

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Year 5

Thermal Conductivity Investigation

Thermal Conductivity Investigation

Read the results

Investigate and explain

3 printable pages

About This Worksheet

Free in Kuraplan

Print-Ready

AI-Generated

For Teachers & Parents

Need a custom version of this worksheet?

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