What does it mean if a substance is experiencing sensible heat transfer?

When a substance is experiencing sensible heat transfer, it means that the substance undergoes a change in temperature while remaining in the same state of matter. This typically occurs when heat is added to or removed from the substance, leading to an increase or decrease in temperature, but without any phase transition, such as melting or boiling.

For instance, when you heat water on a stove, the temperature of the water increases as heat is added, which is an example of sensible heat transfer. The water remains in the liquid state throughout this process. This contrasts with latent heat transfer, where the substance changes state—such as ice melting into water—without a change in temperature.

The other options describe different scenarios that do not correspond to sensible heat transfer. For example, changing state without a temperature change indicates latent heat transfer, while experiencing no heat transfer is not relevant to this concept. Losing energy without changing temperature also refers to a different process altogether, such as in the context of phase changes.