Volumetric heat capacity

Volumetric heat capacity (VHC) describes the ability of a given volume of a certain substance to store heat while undergoing a given temperature change.

It is different from specific heat capacity in that the VHC depends on the volume of the material, while the specific heat is based on the mass of the material. If given a specific heat value of a substance, one can convert it to the VHC by multiplying the specific heat by the density of the substance.

The volumetric heat capacity is defined has having SI units of J/m³/K or Imperial units of BTU/ft³/°F.

See also: temperature (heat capacity), heat capacity