Sensible heat — Hyunjoo Park

When the exchange of heat changes the temperature of the body or system, this heat is called sensible heat.

$Q = mC_p\Delta T$ where $Q$ is the thermal energy, $C_p$ is the specific heat capacity $\text{J}/(\text{kg}\cdot\text{K})$ at constant pressure, $m$ is the mass of the matter and $\Delta T$ is the temperature change. (Since $\Delta T$ is a temperature difference, it has the same value in °C and K.)

Sensible heat is the opposite of latent heat.

$Q_{sens} = E_{sens}$ Transferred energy $Q$ is equal to stored energy $E$ when there are no losses.

When to use

Use when the temperature changes and there is no phase change. Don’t use when there is a phase change → Latent heat

Typical trap

$C_p$ is often given in $\text{kJ}/(\text{kg}\cdot\text{K})$ , so convert to $\text{J}/(\text{kg}\cdot\text{K})$ .