Final answer:
To determine the mass of the water sample, use the principle of heat transfer and the equation Q = mcΔT. Set up the equation with the known values and solve for the mass of the water sample.
Step-by-step explanation:
In order to determine the mass of the water sample, we need to use the principle of heat transfer. The heat absorbed by the copper sample will be equal to the heat absorbed by the water sample, assuming no phase changes occur. The equation for heat transfer is Q = mcΔT, where Q is the heat absorbed, m is the mass, c is the specific heat capacity, and ΔT is the change in temperature.
Since the change in temperature is the same for both the copper and water samples, we can set up the equation as follows:
mcΔT(copper) = mcΔT(water)
Given that the mass of the copper sample is 3.25 kg, we can rearrange the equation to solve for the mass of the water sample:
m(water) = (mcΔT(copper))/(cΔT(water))
Substituting the known values, we get:
m(water) = (3.25 kg * c(copper) * ΔT(water))/(c(water) * ΔT(copper))