A small-scale adiabatic calorimeter has been constructed as part of a larger project to study nano-particles and to facilitate specific heat measurements on samples where it is difficult to obtain enough material to run on the current large-scale adiabatic apparatus. This calorimeter is designed to measure sample sizes of less than 0.8 cc over a temperature range from 13 K to 350 K. Specific heat results on copper, sapphire, and benzoic acid show the accuracy of the measurements to be better than ±0.4% for temperatures higher than 50 K. The reproducibility of these measurements is generally better than ±0.25%. Experimental specific heat data was collected on this new apparatus for synthetic akaganeite, β-FeOOH, for samples with varying degrees of hydration. Our results yield values for Δ_0^298.15S°m of 79.94 ±0.20 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 85.33 ±0.021 J•K^-1•mol^-1 for samples of β-FeOOH0.551H2O and β-FeOOH0.652H2O, respectively. From this data, we were able to determine the standard molar entropy for bare β-FeOOH, as Δ_0^298.15S°m = 53.8 ±3.3 J•K^-1•mol^-1, based on subtractions of the estimated contribution of water from the hydrated species. Additionally, the specific heats of α-uranium, titanium diboride, and lithium flouride have been measured on a low-temperature, semi-adiabatic calorimeter down to 0.5 K. For the α-uranium, the specific heat of a polycrystalline sample was compared to that of a single crystal, and it was found that there was a significant difference in the specific heats, which has been attributed to microstrain in the polycrystal. The third law entropy for the polycrystal at 298.15 K, Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated from these heat capacities is 50.21 ±0.1 J•K^-1•mol^-1, which is good in agreement with previously published values of polycrystal samples. For the single crystal Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated using the thermodynamic microstrain model, is 49.02 ±0.2 J•K^-1•mol^-1. The low-temperature specific heats of titanium diboride and lithium fluoride have been measured from 0.5 K to 30 K as part of a larger project in the construction of a neutron spectrometer. For this application, the measured specific heats were used to extrapolate the specific heats down to 0.1 K with lattice, electronic, and Schottky equations for the respective samples. The resultant specific heat values at 0.1 K for TiB2 and 6LiF are 4.08E-4 ±0.27E-4 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 9.19E-9 ±0.15E-9 J•K^-1•mol^-1, respectively.
","abstract_html":"<p>A small-scale adiabatic calorimeter has been constructed as part of a larger project to study nano-particles and to facilitate specific heat measurements on samples where it is difficult to obtain enough material to run on the current large-scale adiabatic apparatus. This calorimeter is designed to measure sample sizes of less than 0.8 cc over a temperature range from 13 K to 350 K. Specific heat results on copper, sapphire, and benzoic acid show the accuracy of the measurements to be better than ±0.4% for temperatures higher than 50 K. The reproducibility of these measurements is generally better than ±0.25%. Experimental specific heat data was collected on this new apparatus for synthetic akaganeite, β-FeOOH, for samples with varying degrees of hydration. Our results yield values for Δ_0^298.15S°m of 79.94 ±0.20 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 85.33 ±0.021 J•K^-1•mol^-1 for samples of β-FeOOH0.551H2O and β-FeOOH0.652H2O, respectively. From this data, we were able to determine the standard molar entropy for bare β-FeOOH, as Δ_0^298.15S°m = 53.8 ±3.3 J•K^-1•mol^-1, based on subtractions of the estimated contribution of water from the hydrated species. Additionally, the specific heats of α-uranium, titanium diboride, and lithium flouride have been measured on a low-temperature, semi-adiabatic calorimeter down to 0.5 K. For the α-uranium, the specific heat of a polycrystalline sample was compared to that of a single crystal, and it was found that there was a significant difference in the specific heats, which has been attributed to microstrain in the polycrystal. The third law entropy for the polycrystal at 298.15 K, Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated from these heat capacities is 50.21 ±0.1 J•K^-1•mol^-1, which is good in agreement with previously published values of polycrystal samples. For the single crystal Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated using the thermodynamic microstrain model, is 49.02 ±0.2 J•K^-1•mol^-1. The low-temperature specific heats of titanium diboride and lithium fluoride have been measured from 0.5 K to 30 K as part of a larger project in the construction of a neutron spectrometer. For this application, the measured specific heats were used to extrapolate the specific heats down to 0.1 K with lattice, electronic, and Schottky equations for the respective samples. The resultant specific heat values at 0.1 K for TiB2 and 6LiF are 4.08E-4 ±0.27E-4 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 9.19E-9 ±0.15E-9 J•K^-1•mol^-1, respectively.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Lang, Brian E."],"institution":"Brigham Young University - Provo","degree_name":"PhD","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":null,"date_issued":"","date_published":null,"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:28:20Z","subjects":["specific heat","heat capacity","microstrain","nuclear materials","instrumentation","PID controls","thermodynamics","Biochemistry","Chemistry"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/785","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Lang, Brian E."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2005-10-12T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Brigham Young University - Provo"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["PhD"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["specific heat","heat capacity","microstrain","nuclear materials","instrumentation","PID controls","thermodynamics","Biochemistry","Chemistry"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/785","https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/etd/article/1784/viewcontent/ETD_CISOPTR_805.pdf"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Physical and Mathematical Sciences; Chemistry and Biochemistry"]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["A small-scale adiabatic calorimeter has been constructed as part of a larger project to study nano-particles and to facilitate specific heat measurements on samples where it is difficult to obtain enough material to run on the current large-scale adiabatic apparatus. This calorimeter is designed to measure sample sizes of less than 0.8 cc over a temperature range from 13 K to 350 K. Specific heat results on copper, sapphire, and benzoic acid show the accuracy of the measurements to be better than ±0.4% for temperatures higher than 50 K. The reproducibility of these measurements is generally better than ±0.25%. Experimental specific heat data was collected on this new apparatus for synthetic akaganeite, β-FeOOH, for samples with varying degrees of hydration. Our results yield values for Δ_0^298.15S°m of 79.94 ±0.20 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 85.33 ±0.021 J•K^-1•mol^-1 for samples of β-FeOOH0.551H2O and β-FeOOH0.652H2O, respectively. From this data, we were able to determine the standard molar entropy for bare β-FeOOH, as Δ_0^298.15S°m = 53.8 ±3.3 J•K^-1•mol^-1, based on subtractions of the estimated contribution of water from the hydrated species. Additionally, the specific heats of α-uranium, titanium diboride, and lithium flouride have been measured on a low-temperature, semi-adiabatic calorimeter down to 0.5 K. For the α-uranium, the specific heat of a polycrystalline sample was compared to that of a single crystal, and it was found that there was a significant difference in the specific heats, which has been attributed to microstrain in the polycrystal. The third law entropy for the polycrystal at 298.15 K, Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated from these heat capacities is 50.21 ±0.1 J•K^-1•mol^-1, which is good in agreement with previously published values of polycrystal samples. For the single crystal Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated using the thermodynamic microstrain model, is 49.02 ±0.2 J•K^-1•mol^-1. The low-temperature specific heats of titanium diboride and lithium fluoride have been measured from 0.5 K to 30 K as part of a larger project in the construction of a neutron spectrometer. For this application, the measured specific heats were used to extrapolate the specific heats down to 0.1 K with lattice, electronic, and Schottky equations for the respective samples. The resultant specific heat values at 0.1 K for TiB2 and 6LiF are 4.08E-4 ±0.27E-4 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 9.19E-9 ±0.15E-9 J•K^-1•mol^-1, respectively.
"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application:pdf"]},{"key":"dc:source","label":"Dc Source","values":["Brigham Young University - Provo"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Specific Heat and Thermodynamic Properties of Metallic Systems: Instrumentation and Analysis"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Lang, Brian E."],"dc:date":["2005-10-12T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description":["Physical and Mathematical Sciences; Chemistry and Biochemistry"],"dc:description.abstract":["A small-scale adiabatic calorimeter has been constructed as part of a larger project to study nano-particles and to facilitate specific heat measurements on samples where it is difficult to obtain enough material to run on the current large-scale adiabatic apparatus. This calorimeter is designed to measure sample sizes of less than 0.8 cc over a temperature range from 13 K to 350 K. Specific heat results on copper, sapphire, and benzoic acid show the accuracy of the measurements to be better than ±0.4% for temperatures higher than 50 K. The reproducibility of these measurements is generally better than ±0.25%. Experimental specific heat data was collected on this new apparatus for synthetic akaganeite, β-FeOOH, for samples with varying degrees of hydration. Our results yield values for Δ_0^298.15S°m of 79.94 ±0.20 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 85.33 ±0.021 J•K^-1•mol^-1 for samples of β-FeOOH0.551H2O and β-FeOOH0.652H2O, respectively. From this data, we were able to determine the standard molar entropy for bare β-FeOOH, as Δ_0^298.15S°m = 53.8 ±3.3 J•K^-1•mol^-1, based on subtractions of the estimated contribution of water from the hydrated species. Additionally, the specific heats of α-uranium, titanium diboride, and lithium flouride have been measured on a low-temperature, semi-adiabatic calorimeter down to 0.5 K. For the α-uranium, the specific heat of a polycrystalline sample was compared to that of a single crystal, and it was found that there was a significant difference in the specific heats, which has been attributed to microstrain in the polycrystal. The third law entropy for the polycrystal at 298.15 K, Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated from these heat capacities is 50.21 ±0.1 J•K^-1•mol^-1, which is good in agreement with previously published values of polycrystal samples. For the single crystal Δ_0^298.15S°m, calculated using the thermodynamic microstrain model, is 49.02 ±0.2 J•K^-1•mol^-1. The low-temperature specific heats of titanium diboride and lithium fluoride have been measured from 0.5 K to 30 K as part of a larger project in the construction of a neutron spectrometer. For this application, the measured specific heats were used to extrapolate the specific heats down to 0.1 K with lattice, electronic, and Schottky equations for the respective samples. The resultant specific heat values at 0.1 K for TiB2 and 6LiF are 4.08E-4 ±0.27E-4 J•K^-1•mol^-1 and 9.19E-9 ±0.15E-9 J•K^-1•mol^-1, respectively.
"],"dc:format":["application:pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/785","https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/etd/article/1784/viewcontent/ETD_CISOPTR_805.pdf"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:publisher":["Brigham Young University - Provo"],"dc:source":["Brigham Young University - Provo"],"dc:subject":["specific heat","heat capacity","microstrain","nuclear materials","instrumentation","PID controls","thermodynamics","Biochemistry","Chemistry"],"dc:title":["Specific Heat and Thermodynamic Properties of Metallic Systems: Instrumentation and Analysis"],"dc:type":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["PhD"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:28:20Z"}