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Specific Heat

Here is the definition of specific heat:

the amount of heat necessary to move 1.00 gram of a substance 1.00 °C

Note the two important factors:

1) It's 1.00 gram of a substance
2) and it moves 1.00 °C

Keep in mind the fact that this is a very specific value. It is only for one gram going one degree. The specific heat is an important part of energy calculations since it tells you how much energy is needed to move each gram of the substance one degree.
Every substance has its own specific heat and each phase has its own distinct value. In fact, the specific heat value of a substance changes from degree to degree, but we will ignore that.
The units are usually Joules per gram-degree Celsius (J / g °C). Sometimes the unit J/ kg-K is used. This last unit is technically the most correct unit to use, but since the first one is quite common, you will need to know both.
Here are the specific heat values for water: Phase J g¯1 °C¯1 J kg¯1 K¯1 Gas 2.02 2.02 x 103 Liquid 4.184 4.184 x 103 Solid 2.06 2.06 x 103
Notice that one set of values is simply 1000 times bigger than the other. That's to offset the influence of going from grams to kilograms in the denominator of the unit.
Notice that the change from Celsius to Kelvin does not affect the value. That is because the specific heat is measured on the basis of one degree. In both scales (Celsius and Kelvin) the jump from one degree to the next are the same "distance." Sometimes a kid will think that 273 must be involved somewhere. Not in this case. Specific heat values can be looked up in reference books. They are determined by experiment. In the ChemTeam classroom, you will not need to memorize any specific heat values EXCEPT those for the three phases of water.