a steel has a steel lid that is stuck tightly to the can. is it possible to open the can by running it under hot water?
1. yes
2. no
3. yes but only if the bottom of the can is submerged in ice water while the top is run by hot water.
4. no but could open the can by submerging in ice water
1 is the answer. The water would have to be super hot.
To determine if it is possible to open the can by running it under hot water, we need to understand the properties of the materials involved. Steel expands when heated and contracts when cooled. So, heating the can with hot water can potentially cause the steel lid to expand and loosen its grip on the can.
However, if only the top of the can is exposed to hot water, the bottom remains unaffected and will not experience the expansion necessary to loosen the lid. Therefore, option 1, where only the top of the can is exposed to hot water, is unlikely to work.
On the other hand, option 3 suggests running hot water on the top of the can while submerging the bottom in ice water. This method can create a temperature differential - hot on top and cold on the bottom - which could cause the lid to expand and loosen. The expansion of the lid due to the hot water combined with the contraction of the bottom due to the ice water might help in opening the can. So, option 3 is a possible solution.
Option 4, submerging the can in ice water only, is less likely to achieve the desired result. The cold temperature might cause the steel to contract, potentially making it even harder to open the can.
In summary, the best option for loosening a steel lid stuck tightly to a can would be to try running hot water on the top of the can while keeping the bottom submerged in ice water (option 3).