LAB REPORT
SCHOOL OF PHYSICS
PHYS1000
SURNAME: NGOBESE STUDENT NO.: 2739414
FIRST NAME: NONTANDO
PARTNER (S): OWETHU NGQUPANZA
DATE: 16/08/2023 LAB GROUP TLT
TITLE: E5 - Thermal Expansion of a Solid
INTRODUCTION:: The majority of structures expand when heated and contract when
cooled. When we examine how water acts, we can find that it exhibits anomalous thermal
expansion: the volume of one gram of water shrinks when the temperature is increased from 0
degrees Celsius – 4 degrees Celsius. The thermal expansion has to be taken into account in the
design of mechanical structures.
Principal objective:
The aim of this experiment is to study the thermal expansion of brass and stainless steel and
obtain linear thermal expansion coefficients.
Secondary objective (if any):
To determine linear expansion of a solid.
PROCEDURE: described in the Phys1000 Laboratory Manual
1
, RESULTS
Brass:
d 8*10^- 2 m ±1*10^-3
a 2.6*10^- 3 m ± 1*10^-3
D 1m ± 1*10^-2
l0 5.1*10^-2 m± 1*10^-2
T1 140C ± 10C
T2 850C ± 10C
T 710C ± 10C
Stainless steel:
d 8*10^-2 m ± 1*10^-3m
a 2.6*10^-3 m ± 1*10^-3m
D 1m ± 1*10-2m
l0 5.1*10^-2m ± 1*10^-2m
T1 16 0C± 10C
T2 880C ± 10C
T 72 0C ± 10C
The linear expansion coefficients for brass and stainless steel can be obtained from the above
data.
αbrass 2.9*10 -4 1/0C ± 3*10-6 1/0C
αss 2.4*10-4 1/0C ± 2*10-6 1/0C
2
SCHOOL OF PHYSICS
PHYS1000
SURNAME: NGOBESE STUDENT NO.: 2739414
FIRST NAME: NONTANDO
PARTNER (S): OWETHU NGQUPANZA
DATE: 16/08/2023 LAB GROUP TLT
TITLE: E5 - Thermal Expansion of a Solid
INTRODUCTION:: The majority of structures expand when heated and contract when
cooled. When we examine how water acts, we can find that it exhibits anomalous thermal
expansion: the volume of one gram of water shrinks when the temperature is increased from 0
degrees Celsius – 4 degrees Celsius. The thermal expansion has to be taken into account in the
design of mechanical structures.
Principal objective:
The aim of this experiment is to study the thermal expansion of brass and stainless steel and
obtain linear thermal expansion coefficients.
Secondary objective (if any):
To determine linear expansion of a solid.
PROCEDURE: described in the Phys1000 Laboratory Manual
1
, RESULTS
Brass:
d 8*10^- 2 m ±1*10^-3
a 2.6*10^- 3 m ± 1*10^-3
D 1m ± 1*10^-2
l0 5.1*10^-2 m± 1*10^-2
T1 140C ± 10C
T2 850C ± 10C
T 710C ± 10C
Stainless steel:
d 8*10^-2 m ± 1*10^-3m
a 2.6*10^-3 m ± 1*10^-3m
D 1m ± 1*10-2m
l0 5.1*10^-2m ± 1*10^-2m
T1 16 0C± 10C
T2 880C ± 10C
T 72 0C ± 10C
The linear expansion coefficients for brass and stainless steel can be obtained from the above
data.
αbrass 2.9*10 -4 1/0C ± 3*10-6 1/0C
αss 2.4*10-4 1/0C ± 2*10-6 1/0C
2
