A piece of aluminum house siding is 3.23m long?

Question

A piece of aluminum house siding is 3.23 m long on a cold winter day of -28°C. How much longer is it on a very hot summer day at 37°C?

____mm

Answer 1

Assume linear expansions with constant expansion coefficient:

ΔL/L₀ = α · ΔT

<=>

ΔL = α · ΔT · L₀

The coefficient of linear thermal expansion for aluminum is:

α = 23×10⁻⁶K⁻¹

So

ΔL = 23×10⁻⁶K⁻¹ · (37 - (28) )K · 3.23m

= 4.83×10⁻³m

= 4.83mm