GASES

CHEM 1211K / Chapter 9

A gas is a state of matter that has no definite volume or fixed shape, easily expands and compresses,
has low density, and exert pressure.

PRESSURE
Pressure is defined as force per unit area. There are several different units of pressure: atmospheres (atm),
millimeters of mercury (mmHg), torr, pascal (Pa), and pounds per square inch (psi).

1 atm = 760 mm Hg = 760 torr = 101.325 kPa = 101325 Pa = 14.70 psi

At sea level, average atmospheric pressure is equal to 1 atm. The atmospheric pressure decreases with increasing
elevation.

GAS RELATIONSHIPS – PRESSURE, VOLUME, TEMPERATURE, MOLES

Boyle’s Law states that volume of a gas in inversely proportional to its pressure, at constant temperature.

𝑃1 𝑉1 = 𝑃2 𝑉2

Charles’s Law states that the volume of a gas is directly proportional to its temperature, at constant pressure.

𝑉1 𝑉2
=
𝑇1 𝑇2

Temperature is expressed in the Kelvin scale. The relationship between Kelvin and Celsius is K = °C + 273, and
absolute zero is 273 K (0°C).

The combination of Boyles’ Law and Charles’s Law results in the Combined Gas Law.

𝑃1 𝑉1 𝑃2 𝑉2
=
𝑇1 𝑇2

Avogadro’s Law states that the volume of gas is directly proportional to the number of moles of gas, at constant
temperature and pressure.

𝑉1 𝑉2
=
𝑛1 𝑛2

Standard Temperature and Pressure (STP) is defined as 0° C (273 K) and 1 atm of pressure. The
standard molar volume of an ideal gas is 22.4 L per mole at STP.
IDEAL GAS LAW
An ideal gas is a gas that obeys the gas laws described above. Gases exhibit ideal behavior under conditions of
relatively low pressure and high temperature. The ideal gas law equation is given below.

𝑃𝑉 = 𝑛𝑅𝑇

P = pressure (atm)
V = volume (L)
n = moles (mol)
R = ideal gas constant, 0.08206 (L atm)/(mol K)
T = temperature (K)

The ideal gas law is a useful equation since it contains multiple variables. Pressure, volume, moles, and
temperature are calculated by straightforward rearrangement of the equation. The ideal gas law can also used to
calculate density (g/L), molecular weight (g/mol), and concentration (mol/L).

At high pressures and low temperatures, gases no longer obey the ideal gas law and exhibit non-ideal behavior.

DALTON’S LAW OF PARTIAL PRESSURES

Often samples of gas are mixtures of two or more different types of gases. The total number of moles in a mixture
of gases is equal to the sum of the moles of each gas in the mixture.

𝑛𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 = 𝑛𝑎 + 𝑛𝑏 + 𝑛𝑐 …

Dalton’s law of partial pressures states that the total pressure of a mixture of ideal gases is equal to the sum
of the partial pressures of each gas in the mixture. The pressure of an individual gas in a mixture is called its
partial pressure.

𝑃𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 = 𝑃𝑎 + 𝑃𝑏 + 𝑃𝑐 …

The mole fraction of a gas is the ratio of its moles to the total number of moles of all gases in the mixture.

𝑛𝑎
𝑋𝑎 =
𝑛total

The ideal gas equation can be used for total pressure and total moles of a gaseous mixture, or to isolate the partial
pressure and moles of an individual gas in a mixture of gases.

𝑃𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑉 = 𝑛𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑅𝑇

𝑃𝑎 𝑉 = 𝑛𝑎 𝑅𝑇

Rearranging the above ideal gas equations for moles, and substituting into the mole fraction equation yields
another definition of Dalton’s Law of Partial Pressures.

𝑃𝑎 = 𝑋𝑎 × 𝑃𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙
KINETIC MOLECULAR THEORY
Kinetic molecular theory explains the behavior of gases as defined by the gas laws, and is based on the following
basic postulates.

1. Gases consist of very small molecules that are very far apart. Most of the volume of a gas is empty space
because the molecules are much smaller than the distance between them.
2. Gas molecules are in continuous, random, straight-line motion. Molecules only change direction from
collisions between molecules or the container walls.
3. Collisions between gas molecules and container walls are elastic (no net energy gain or loss). There is no
attractive or repulsive forces acting on gas molecules.
4. Pressure exerted by gas molecules is a result of collisions.

The average kinetic energy of gas molecules is directly proportional to its Kelvin temperature, and molecules of
different gases have equal average kinetic energy at a given temperature. Kinetic energy is energy due to motion,
and is dependent on mass and velocity.
1
KE = 𝑚𝑣 2
2
Mass and velocity of gas molecules are inversely proportional; lighter molecules have higher average velocities,
and heavier molecules have lower average velocities. The mathematical description of the molecular speed is the
Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution function. The average speed is derived from the distribution of widely varying
speeds of a huge number of molecules.

The root mean square speed of a gas at a given temperature is calculated using the following equation.

3𝑅𝑇
𝑢𝑅𝑀𝑆 = √
𝑚

uRMS = root mean square speed (m/s)

R = ideal gas constant, 8.314 J/(mol K)
T = temperature (K)
m = molecular weight (kg/mol)