How to Calculate Heat Transfer in Food Calories for Diets

One of the interesting things about calories (as used by food) is that they are actually a measurement of heat transfer. Calories, as we think of them for food, are actually kcal, which means that they are 1,000 calories. A calorie is the amount of energy that is needed to heat up one milliliter of water by one degree Celsius. You can follow this guide for figuring out the heat transfer in food calories for diets.

Things You'll Need

• Soda can
• Water
• 3 straightened paper clips
• Piece of cork
• Ring stand
• Thermometer
• Precision scale
• Lighter

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Instructions

• 1

  Create your water reservoir. The best way to do this is using a soda can. Punch four holes (evenly spaced around the circumference of the can) about 2 to 3 centimeters from the top of the can.

• 2

  Hang the reservoir. Push straightened paper clips through the holes and use those to hang the can from a ring stand.

• 3

  Measure out a certain amount of water (around 200 milliliters) and pour it into the can. Measure its temperature with the thermometer.

• 4

  Make your food stand. To make a simple one, bend one end of a straightened paper clip into a small ring and stick the other end into a piece of cork (this will serve as the base).

• 5

  Weigh out a small amount of your desired foot item (a few grams is best) using a precision scale (one that is able to accurately weigh a few grams of an item). Place the weighed food on the food stand, and move the food stand to just under the soda can.

• 6

  Set the food on fire. When the flame goes out, measure the temperature of the water in the soda can.

• 7

  Measure the mass of what remains of the burnt food (in grams, using the precision scale).

• 8

  Take the volume of water (in milliliters) and multiply that amount by the temperature change of the water (in degrees Celsius). Divide this amount by the amount of food that was burned (initial weight of food minus final weight). Finally, divide this amount by 1,000. This will give you the calorie content in calories per gram of food.