jäähdytyslaki

Jäähdytyslaki, also known as Newton's Law of Cooling, describes the rate at which an object cools down. It states that the rate of heat loss of a body is directly proportional to the difference in temperatures between the body and its surroundings. In simpler terms, the hotter an object is compared to its environment, the faster it will lose heat and cool down. As the object's temperature approaches that of its surroundings, the rate of cooling slows down.

This law is a fundamental concept in thermodynamics and heat transfer. It applies to various situations, from cooling a cup of hot coffee to understanding how planets lose heat to space. The mathematical formulation of the law involves a differential equation that relates the change in temperature over time to the temperature difference. While Newton's Law of Cooling is a good approximation for many scenarios, it assumes that the heat transfer mechanism is primarily convection and that the specific heat capacity of the object remains constant. In reality, radiation can also play a significant role, especially at higher temperatures, and material properties can change with temperature, leading to deviations from the idealized model. Despite these limitations, it provides a valuable and intuitive understanding of the cooling process.