Physics Theory : Sensible Heat & Heat Capacity

Sensible heat is the heat gained or lost by a body resulting in a change in temperature.

Latent heat or hidden heat is the heat gained or lost by a body during a change of state when it does not result in any change in temperature.

Heat capacity or thermal capacity of a body is defined as the amount of heat required to raise its temperature by 1^oC.
The SI unit of heat capacity is J/^oC (Joules per degree Celsius).

Specific heat capacity of a substance is defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a unit mass of it by 1 ^oC.
∴ Specific Heat Capacity = Heat capacity / Mass.
The SI unit of specific heat capacity is J/(kg ^oC).
However, a commonly used unit is J/(g ^oC).

Water has a specific heat capacity of about 4.2 J/(g ^oC), or 4200 J/(kg ^oC) in SI units.
More accurately, the specific heat capacity of water is 4.184 J/(g ^oC) or 4184 J/(kg ^oC).
The very high value for the specific heat capacity of water is responsible for land breezes, sea breezes and the weather.

The amount of sensible heat gained or lost by a body is given by the product of its heat capacity (mass × specific heat capacity) and the temperature change.
Thus, the formula worth-remembering is:
Q = m × c × (t₁ − t₂), where
Q is the amount of sensible heat gained or lost by the body,
m is the mass of the body,
c is the specific heat capacity of the material, and
t₁ and t₂ are the two temperatures denoting the temperature change.