CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

CHAPTER 2: PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE

AND FORMS OF ENERGY

Working substance in any thermodynamic system is required in order to

transport a required amount of energy of various form. One basic concepts that
underlies are the consideration of the properties of the working substance.
Depending on the properties of the substance, different amount of energy are being
carried in the streamline. So, at this point, we might think how important the
properties was. This chapters introduce the students of determining the properties
of a working substance as an essential values in solving parameters with regards to
forms of energy and applicable conversions.

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES:

At the end of this chapter, the students should be able to:

1. Identify the basic properties of working substance
2. Describe the basic forms of energy

1. BASIC PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE

With some notion to determine the basic properties of a working

substance, properties below are added in this section to give the reader an
overview of basic principles of thermodynamics.

 Density (Mass Density),

Density is the ratio of mass and the total volume of the object under
consideration. It primarily defines the compactness of microscopic particle of
a certain substance. It can be calculated using the formula below:
ρ = m/V

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

ρ = Generic symbol to define density (rho)

m = Total mass of the substance (if in Heterogeneous form)
V = Total Volume of the substance (if in Heterogeneous form)

 Specific Volume, v
Specific Volume is the ratio of volume and the total mass of the object
under consideration. It primarily defines the space that will occupy by a
certain mass under consideration. It can be calculated using the formula
below:
v = V/m
v = Generic symbol to define specific volume
m = Total mass of the substance (if in Heterogeneous form)
V = Total Volume of the substance (if in Heterogeneous form)

 Specific Weight (Weight Density),

Specific Weight is the ratio of substance weight to its total volume.
Apparently, in metric unit, it is the density multiplied by the value of
acceleration due to gravity constant as:
γ = mg/V
γ = Generic symbol to define specific weight (gamma)
m = Total mass of the substance (if in Heterogeneous form)
g = Acceleration due to gravity
V = Total Volume of the substance (if in Heterogeneous form)

 Specific Gravity (Relative Density), S.G.

Specific Gravity or Relative density is defined as the ratio of object’s
density to the density of some reference medium.
If in liquid state: S.G. = density of substance/density of
water
If in gaseous state: S.G. = density of substance/density of air

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

Density of water = 1000kg/m3, 9.81kN/m3, 62.4lb/ft3

Density of air = 1.20 kg/m3 at 101.325kPa and 21.2°C

Note that the following standard values above should be used,

unless otherwise specified that a special value must be used in specific
problem.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

SUPPLEMENTARY PROBLEMS

1. Estimate the density (kg/m3) of a solid log having a mass of 200kg, a diameter of
20cm and a length of 10m.

2. A composite wall was made through the combination of ‘cement’, ‘gravel’ and
‘sand’ with a volumetric ratio of 1:2:4 and a weight ratio of 2:3:5. If the specific
gravity of the object is 2.30 and that the total weight is 500kg, compute the density
of each component.

3. Three liquid substances of the same mass and have an S.G. of 1.20, 0.835 and 1.0
were being mixed to form a new compound. Estimate the resulting density.

4. A steam drum contains steam having an 86% quality. Assuming that the density
of Liquid part is 989kg/m3 and that of the vapor part is 1.23kg/m3, Estimate the
specific volume of the steam. (Note: 86% quality indicates the mass in vapor state)

5. Oil and water of S.G. of 0.78 and 1.0 are being mixed and filling a 20gallon basin.
If the oil is 30% less than the mass of the water, what is the resulting specific weight
(lb/ft3) of the mixture?

lb ft
6. The mass of fluid system is 0.311 slug, its density is 30 ft3 and g = 31 s2. Find a)

the specific volume, b) the specific weight and c) total volume.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

7. A cylindrical drum (2ft diameter, 3ft height) is filled with a fluid whose density
lb
is 40 ft3. Determine the specific volume and specific weight of the substance where
ft
g = 31.90 s2 .

8. A golden-colored cube is handed to you. The person wants you to buy it for $100,
saying that is a gold nugget. You pull out your old geology text and look up gold in
the mineral table, and read that its density is 19.3 g/cm3. You measure the cube and
find that it is 2 cm on each side, and weighs 40 g. What is its density? Is it gold?
Should you buy it?

9. A crystal of a chemical salt weighs 6.423g in air and 2.873g when immersed in an
oil having a specific gravity of 0.858. What is the specific gravity of the salt?

10. A piece of unknown material has an intricate shape. It has a mass of 126 g. You
submerge it to find it displaces 422 ml of water. What is the specific gravity of the
piece?

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

2. FORMS OF ENERGY

Energy is a measure of the capability of one substance or medium to

dissipate power once this stored energy is utilized. It may appear in many
form but the most common and usual form of energy are as follows:

 Kinetic Energy, KE
Kinetic Energy is well defined as the energy stored in a moving
body. The higher the speed/velocity of one object, the higher is the
measure of its kinetic energy. Assuming uniform properties
throughout the system, the kinetic energy is given by:
KE = ½ mv2
KE = Kinetic energy
m = mass of the body
v = velocity of the body

Note that v is the velocity of each lump of substance, assumed

constant over the entire system. If the velocity is not
constant for each lump, then the kinetic energy is found by
integrating over the system.

 Potential Energy, PE
The energy that a system possesses due to its elevation h above
some arbitrarily selected datum is its potential energy; it is
determined from the equation:

PE = mgh
PE = Potential energy
m = mass of the body
g = acceleration due to gravity
h = height of the body in some reference datum

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

 Potential Energy of Spring or Elastic bodies, PES

In the same manner, the increase in potential of an elastic body can
be measured proportionally in the amount of elastic deformation
it possesses. Mathematically, this energy can be calculated using
the equation below:

PES = ½ kx2
PEs = Potential energy of a spring or elastic body
k = spring constant or stiffness of an elastic body
x = measure of deformation of a body

 Internal Energy, U
Internal Energy is an energy developed through the movement of
the molecules within the substance brought about the change in
temperature. Any relative change in temperature of the substance
will correspond to the change of its internal energy. It can be
calculated using the formula below:
ΔU = mC(T2 – T1)

U = Generic Symbol to define Internal Energy

m = mass of the substance
C = Specific Heat capacity of the substance, it is also a measure of
thermodynamic capability of one substance to absorb and store
heat energy
T = Temperature

 Work (W)
Work is the product of the displacement of the body and the
component of the force in the direction of the displacement.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

Work is energy in transition; that is, it exists only when a force is

"moving through a distance”

o Work of a Nonflow System

The differential of work done as the piston moves from e to f is
represented by the equation:
dW = Fx dx = (pA)dL = pdV
which is the area under the curve e-f on the pV plane. Therefore,
the total work done as the piston moves from 1 to 2 is

2
𝑊 = ∫ 𝑝𝑑𝑉
1

Which is the area under the curve 1-m-n-2

The area under the curve of the process on the pV plane

represents the work done during a non-flow reversible process.

Work of Expansion

Work done by the system is positive (outflow of energy)

Work done on the system is negative (inflow of energy)

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

 Flow Work, WF
Flow work is a work due to the movement of volume brought
about by the displacement of the boundaries. Customarily, we
denote the differential ‘dv’ to show an instantaneous change of
volume within the process.

𝑾𝑭 = ∫ 𝑷𝒅𝑽

Since the ‘work’ can be also put into equation as W = Force x

distance, (W = F x L), in the same manner, F = Pressure x Area thus,
for flow work, we can have a more convenient equation as:

WF = ΔPV
WF = Generic symbol for Flow work
P = Pressure in the system
V = Volume under consideration

 Heat, Q

Heat is energy in transit (on the move) from one body or system to
another solely because of a temperature difference between the bodies
or systems.

Q is positive when heat is added to the body or system.

Q is negative when heat is rejected by the body or system.

 Enthalpy, H
The total energy of the substance that if harnessed, be capable of
doing work. This is equal to the sum of internal energy of the body
and Flow work.

H = ΔU+ ΔPV

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

 Entropy, S
Entropy has nothing to do with the measure of energy as entropy
depends on the state of the substance (dependent in pressure and
temperature correlation). Only, entropy can be well defined as the
measure of randomness of the molecules of a substance or
measure the fraction of the total energy of a system that is not
available for doing work. Due to energy stored in the body,
excitation of microscopic particle of the substance may be higher
or lower.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

SUPPLEMENTARY PROBLEMS

1. A 10-kg body falls from rest, with negligible interaction with its surroundings (no
friction). Determine its velocity after it falls 5 m.

2. A 2200-kg automobile travelling at 90 kph (25 m/s) hits the rear of a stationary,
1000-kg automobile. After the collision the large automobile slows to 50 kph (13.89
m/s), and the smaller vehicle has a speed of 88 kph (24.44 m/s). What has been the
increase in internal energy, taking both vehicles as the system?

3. A 0.8-lbm object travelling at 200 ft/sec enters a viscous liquid and is essentially
brought to rest before it strikes the bottom. What is the increase in internal energy,
taking the object and the liquid as the system? Neglect the potential energy change.

4. A 1500-kg vehicle travelling at 60 km/h collides head-on with a 1000 kg vehicle

travelling at 90 km/h. If they come to rest immediately after impact, determine the
increase in internal energy, taking both vehicles as the system.

5. Gravity is given by g = 9.81 - 3.32 X 10-6 h m/s2, where h is the height above sea
level. An airplane is travelling at 900 km/h at an elevation of 10 km. If its weight at
sea level is 40 kN, determine (a) its kinetic energy and (b) its potential energy
relative to sea level.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

6. Supposed that you eat a chocolate having a food calorific value of 120kcal and
20% of this energy was converted into useful body work. If you are weighing 50kg,
how high uphill can you walk neglecting other energy loss during the activity?

7. A certain thermodynamic substance is expanding following the relation where V

in m3 and pressure in kPa:

P = 4V2 + 2V +20

Determine the work in kJ exerted by the substance as the substance changes its
volume from 2m3 to 5m3.

8. An electric kettle was used to heat a liter of water. Determine the heat needed
(kJ) to bring the temperature of the water to its boiling point assuming that the
initial temperature of the water is 20°C. Use Specific heat of water as 4.187kJ/kg-K.

9. A 14.5 liters of gas at a pressure of 1720 kN/m2 is contained in the cylinder. It

was expanded at constant pressure until its volume becomes 130.5 liters.
Determine the work done by the gas.

10. A 5kg mass is attached to a spring. If the elongation of spring is 6cm determine
the potential energy of elastic spring. Acceleration due to gravity is 10m/s2

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

CHAPTER PROBLEMS:

1. A sling shot was released in a vertical direction using a rubber band having an
equivalent spring constant of 2N/mm. If the deflection of the rubber band amounts
to 10cm and the mass of the stone is 21g, determine the maximum height (above
the undeflected position of the sling) the shot can reach.

2. Please refer to the figure below. A storage tower was filled with different fluid
having densities of 720kg/m3, 1000kg/m3 and 1500kg/m3 respectively for fluid 1,
2 and 3. If the local barometric pressure is 14.3psi, determine the absolute pressure
at the base of the tank.

3. A stone having a mass of 20kg is being dropped at a height of 100m above the
ground. Neglecting any effect of surroundings in the object, determine the velocity
of the stone as it hits the ground.

4. A cargo truck weighing 5000kg and running at the speed of 50kph was hit
behind by a car weighing 2000kg and running at the speed of 100kph. Assuming
no energy was lost during collision and the two vehicles collide, determine their
speed just after the collision.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

5. A 250-volt electrical heater is used to warm 3Li/hr of water from 19 oC to 98oC.

Assume heat conversion loss of 25% of the total heat supplied, how much current
in amperes must be supplied to this heater.

6. In a 1200m above sea level cliff, stone with a mass of 40g was thrown vertically
upward with an initial velocity of 2m/s. Determine the potential energy of the
object at its peak position in reference with the sea level. Assume no energy loss.

7. In previous problem, determine the velocity of the stone as it hits the sea level
by converting all the potential energy into kinetic. Assume no energy loss.

8. An escalator in a shopping center is designed to move 50 people, 75 kg each, at

a constant speed of 0.6 m/s at 450 slope. Determine the minimum power input
needed to drive this escalator.

9. A 50kg seawater buoy having a volume of 5m3 is to carry a load that is placed
above the loading pan of the buoy. Determine the maximum safe loading capacity
of the buoy in order to keep the load just above the water surface. The specific
gravity of seawater is 1.28.

10. A steam drum contains steam having an 86% quality. Assuming that the
density of Liquid part is 989kg/m3 and that of the vapor part is 1.23kg/m3,
Estimate the specific volume of the steam. (Note: 86% quality indicates the mass in
vapor state)

11. A 56kg weight lifter has to carry a 1000lbs of load 10meters above his current
location. Determine the amount of energy needed in kcal.

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

12. Steam enters a turbine with an enthalpy of 1292Btu/lb and leaves with an
enthalpy of 1098 Btu/lb. The transferred heat is 13 Btu/lb. what is the work in hp
for a flow of 2 lb/sec?

13. An object (at earth) at rest with a mass of 3kg is being dropped 3m above the
spring whose constant is 10N/mm. If the spring has to stopped the falling object,
determine the magnitude of deflection of the spring right after the stoppage.
Assume no energy loss during operation.

14. Consider the problem 16, if the scenario happens at a planet with a local
acceleration due to gravitation of 12.73m/s2, determine the magnitude of
deflection of the spring right after the stoppage. Assume no energy loss during
operation.

15. Refer to the figure below. In a hydroelectric power plant, 70m3/s of water (ρ =
1010kg/m3) flows from an elevation of 125m to a turbine, where electric power is
generated. The overall efficiency of the turbine–generator is 84% (16% of total
energy was lost). Disregarding frictional losses in piping, estimate the electric
power output of this plant.

Refer to Problem 15

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CHAPTER 2 PROPERTIES OF WORKING SUBSTANCE AND FORMS OF ENERGY

16. Consider the figure below. An electric stove having a rating of 3kW is use to
boil a 6Li of tap water (Initially at 200C and whose density at this temperature is
1020kg/m3). If useful energy is around 62% of the total energy supplied by the
stove. Determine how long would it take to vaporized all the water in the pan.

17. In previous problem, determine the total kW-hr used by the electric stove in the
given condition.

18. A bullet with a mass of 20grams and a velocity 2000m/s has been brought to
rest by a bulletproof vest having a mass of 3kg and an specific heat of 2.02kJ/kg-
K. Treating the bodies as a system and neglecting any energy loss, determine the
change in temperature of the bulletproof vest right after the scenario.

19. Ice at freezing temperature has been brought to an insulated container

containing 2kg of commercial tungsten having an specific heat of 138J/kg-K and a
temperature of 780C. If equilibrium was attained at 250C, determine the mass of the
ice placed in the container.

20. Three (3) adjacent bodies whose initial temperatures are 1500C, 3500C and 600C
have specific heats of 2kJ/kg-K, 4kJ/kg-k and 3kJ/kg-K respectively. They are all
placed inside a closed adiabatic (perfectly insulated) container until the
equilibrium condition. If the objects have a masses of 5kg, 10kg and 1.5kg
respective, determine the temperature of the bodies at equilibrium. Write your
solution at the back of answer sheet attached.

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