Definitions for calorimetry

This page provides all possible meanings and translations of the word calorimetry

Princeton's WordNet

  1. calorimetry(noun)

    measurement of quantities of heat


  1. calorimetry(Noun)

    The science of measuring the heat absorbed or evolved during the course of a chemical reaction or change of state.

  2. calorimetry(Noun)

    A wide headband that covers the ears, for wearing on cold days.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Calorimetry(noun)

    measurement of the quantities of heat in bodies


  1. Calorimetry

    Calorimetry is the act of measuring the heat of chemical reactions or physical changes, or the science of making such measurements. Calorimetry is performed with a calorimeter. The word calorimetry is derived from the Latin word calor, meaning heat and the Greek word μέτρον, meaning measure. Scottish physician and scientist Joseph Black, who was the first to recognize the distinction between heat and temperature, is said to be the founder of the science of calorimetry. Indirect calorimetry calculates heat that living organisms produce by measuring either their production of carbon dioxide and nitrogen waste, or from their consumption of oxygen. Lavoisier noted in 1780 that heat production can be predicted from oxygen consumption this way, using multiple regression. The Dynamic Energy Budget theory explains why this procedure is correct. Heat generated by living organisms may also be measured by direct calorimetry, in which the entire organism is placed inside the calorimeter for the measurement. A widely used modern instrument is the differential scanning calorimeter, a device which allows thermal data to be obtained on small amounts of material. It involves heating the sample at a controlled rate and recording the heat flow either into or from the specimen.

U.S. National Library of Medicine

  1. Calorimetry

    The measurement of the quantity of heat involved in various processes, such as chemical reactions, changes of state, and formations of solutions, or in the determination of the heat capacities of substances. The fundamental unit of measurement is the joule or the calorie (4.184 joules). (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed)

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"calorimetry." STANDS4 LLC, 2015. Web. 29 Nov. 2015. <>.

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