# A student is investigating the specific heat capacity of cooking oil. She pours a measured volume of oil into an insulated container, adds an electrical immersion heater, and records the temperature every 30 seconds. She repeats the experiment replacing the oil with the same volume of water. Describe how the student should carry out a fair and reliable investigation, and explain what she should do with her repeated results to improve the quality of the data.

> OCR A-Level Physics B: Advancing Physics (H557) — 1.1 Practical skills assessed · Describe · 5 marks

> The student wants to compare the specific heat capacity of cooking oil with that of water using an electrical immersion heater and a thermometer.

## Mark scheme (5 marks)

1. Use the same mass (or volume) of oil and water in each experiment
2. Use the same heater power / voltage and current / energy input for both liquids, or heat for the same length of time
3. Start both experiments at the same initial temperature
4. Repeat the experiment (for each liquid) and calculate a mean (average) temperature reading / result
5. Identify and exclude anomalous results before calculating the mean

## Key terms

- [specific heat capacity](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/specific-heat-capacity)

## Related

- [Revision notes for OCR A-Level Physics B: Advancing Physics (H557)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Describe" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
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Source: [GradeNine](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/q/a-student-is-investigating-the-specific-ccb09748) · Published by Druglandscape Ltd.