Question

(true or false) There is only one tool used to heat equipment in the laboratory.

Answer 1

Heat is energy (Joules) and it can come from a positive temperature difference of the system with the environment or it can come from the environment doing work on the system. If the environment is hotter than the system and the system is not 100% insulated the system gains heat. If the environment does work on the system, as when an external force pushes down on an air-filled piston, then the system gains energy and thus heat.

Therefore, heat sources can be anything that is hotter than the system or that can do work on the system; for each method, there are various ways that are possible.