CHM012

Chemistry for
Engineers
Topic 5: Gases
Bryan M. Montalban, M.Sc., R.Ch. Sept 24, 2020
Department of Chemistry
College of Science and Mathematics
MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology

bryan.montalban@g.msuiit.edu.ph Tel. | Page

 Characteristics of Gases
✔ Physical properties of gases are all similar.
✔ Composed mainly of nonmetallic elements with simple formulas and low molar masses.
✔ Unlike liquids and solids, gases
⮚ expand to fill their containers.
⮚ are highly compressible.
⮚ have extremely low densities.
✔ Two or more gases form a homogeneous mixture.

Properties Which Define the State of a Gas Sample:

❖ Temperature
❖ Pressure
❖ Volume
❖ Amount of gas, usually expressed as number of moles

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 Pressure
❖ Barometer - a device used to measure atmospheric pressure
❖ Mechanism
⮚ The tube is completely filled with mercury and placed in an inverted dish of
mercury
⮚ Mercury flows out of the tube until the pressure of the column is equal to
the pressure of the air on the surface of the mercury dish

Common units of Pressure:

• mm Hg
• torr
• Standard atmosphere (atm):

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 Pressure
Pressure is defined as force per unit area

• The unit for force is the newton (N)

• The unit of area is meters squared (m2)
• The SI unit for pressure would be N/m2, which is also called the pascal (Pa)
1 standard atmosphere = 101,325 Pa
1 atmosphere = 105 Pa

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 Manometer
❖ Manometer – is a device used to measure pressure
of gas in a container

❖ Pressure of the gas is given by h - represents the

difference in mercury levels

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 Example
The pressure of a gas is measured as 49 torr. Convert this pressure to both atmospheres and pascals.

Solution

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 ‘ s Law
Boyle
✔ Boyle’s law states that pressure and volume are
inversely related

Where K is a constant for a given sample of air at a

specific temperature.

✔ This law can also be written as:

Used in predicting the new volume of a gas when the

pressure changes or vice versa
(a) Plot of P versus V
(b) Plot of V versus 1/P
❖ A gas that strictly adheres to Boyle’s law is called an
ideal gas

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 Example
Sulfur dioxide (SO2), a gas that plays a central role in the formation of acid rain, is found in the exhaust of automobiles
and power plants. Consider a 1.53-L sample of gaseous SO2 at a pressure of 5.6x103 Pa. If the pressure is changed to
1.5x104 Pa at a constant temperature, what will be the new volume of the gas?

Solution

given: V1 = 1.53 L P1 = 5.6x103 Pa P2 = 1.5x104 Pa T = constant V2 = ?

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 Charles Law
✔ The volume of a fixed amount of gas at constant pressure is
directly proportional to its absolute temperature.

✔ The volume becomes zero when the temperature is 0 K, called

absolute zero, giving the relationship,

b - proportionality constant
❖ Charles Law T - Temperature in Kelvins

✔ This means, if we compare two conditions:

✔ Also, if we make a graph of V vs. T, it will be linear.

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 Example
A sample of gas at 15°C and 1 atm has a volume of 2.58 L. What volume will this gas occupy at 38°C and 1 atm?

Solution

given: T1 = 15oC + 273.15 = 288.15 K T2 = 38oC + 273.15 = 311.15 K

P1 = 1 atm P2 = 1 atm
V1 = 2.58 L V2 = ?

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 ‘ s Law
Avogadro
✔ The volume of a gas at constant
temperature and pressure is directly
proportional to the number of moles of the
gas.

✔ Also, at STP, one mole of gas occupies 22.4

L.

Mathematically:

✔ This means, if we compare two conditions:

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 Example
Suppose we have a 12.2 L sample containing 0.50 mole of oxygen gas (O2) at a pressure of 1 atm and a temperature
of 25oC. If all this O2 were converted to 0.33 mole of ozone (O3) at the same temperature and pressure, what would
be the volume of the ozone?

Solution

given: T1 = 25oC + 273.15 = 298.15 K T2 = 25oC + 273.15 = 298.15 K

P1 = 1 atm P2 = 1 atm
V1 = 12.2 L O2 V2 = ?
n1 = 0.50 mol O2 n2 = 0.33 mol O3

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 Ideal Gas Law
Boyle’s Law Charles Law Avogadro’s Law

• These laws illustrate the volume of a gas and how it depends on pressure, temperature, and the number of moles
of gas.

✔ All gas laws can be combined to give the ideal gas law, where
R is the universal gas constant (R = 0.08206 L atm mol-1 K-1)

✔ This law can be rearranged to give:

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 Example
A sample containing 0.35 mole of argon gas at a temperature of 13oC and a pressure of 568 torr is heated at 56oC and a
pressure of 897 torr. Calculate the change in volume that occurs
Solution

given: T1 = 13oC + 273.15 = 286.15 K T2 = 56oC + 273.15 = 329.15 K

P1 = 568 torr = 0.75 atm P2 = 897 torr = 1.18 atm
V1 = ? V2 = ?
n1 = 0.35 mol Ar n2 = 0.35 mol Ar

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 Example
A sample of methane gas having a volume of 2.80 L at 25oC and 1.65 atm is mixed with a sample of oxygen gas
having a volume of 35.0 L at 31oC and 1.25 atm. The mixture is then ignited to form carbon dioxide and water.
Calculate the volume of CO2 formed at a pressure of 2.50 atm and a temperature of 125oC

Solution

given: CH4 O2 CO2

P 1.65 atm 1.25 atm 2.50 atm
V 2.80 L 35.0 L ?
T 25°C + 273 = 298 K 31°C + 273 = 304 K 125°C + 273 = 398 K

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 Example - continuation

Determine the limiting reactant:

Therefore Methane is the Limiting reactant.

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 Density and Molar Mass of Gases
❖ Density is defined as: ❖ Ideal gas equation is:

⮚ If we express the ideal gas equation in terms of volume (V), and substitute to the density, we get:

✔ Density of a gas:

✔ Molar mass of a gas:

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 Example
The density of a gas was measured at 1.50 atm and 27°C and found to be 1.95 g/L. Calculate the molar mass of the gas

Solution

given: P = 1.50 atm T = 27oC + 273.15 = 300.15 K d = 1.95 g/L M=?

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 Daltons Law of Partial Pressure
✔ Assumption: If two gases that don’t react with each other are combined in a container, they act as if they are alone
inside the container.
⮚ Therefore, for a mixture of gases in a container, the total pressure exerted equals the sum of the pressures that
each gas would exert if it were alone.

where P1, P2, P3 and so on are the partial pressures of gases.

⮚ Thus, the partial pressure of each gas can

be individually calculated when it is
assumed that each gas behaves ideally.

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 Example
Mixtures of helium and oxygen can be used in scuba diving tanks to help prevent “the bends.” For a particular dive, 46
L of He gas at 25oC and 1.0 atm and 12 L O2 gas at 25oC and 1.0 atm are pumped into a tank with a volume of 5.0 L.
Calculate the partial pressure of each gas and the total pressure in the tank at 25oC
Solution

given: PHe = 1.0 atm PO2 = 1.0 atm Ptotal = ? PHe, tank = ? PO2, tank = ?
VHe = 46 L VO2 = 12 L Vtank = 5.0 L T = 25oC + 273.15 = 298.15 K

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 Mole Fraction and Partial Pressures
⮚ Because each gas in a mixture acts as if it is alone, we can relate amount in a mixture to partial pressures:

⮚ That ratio of moles of a substance to total moles is called the mole fraction, χ.

⮚ Therefore, the relationship between the mole faction and the partial pressure of a gas is:

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 Example
The partial pressure of oxygen was observed to be 156 torr in air with a total atmospheric pressure of 743 torr.
Calculate the mole fraction of O2 present.

Solution

given: PO2 = 156 torr Ptotal = 743 torr XO2 = ?

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 Example
A sample of solid potassium chlorate (KClO3) is heated in a test tube and decomposes by the following reaction:

The oxygen produced is collected by

displacement of water at 22oC at a total pressure
of 754 torr. The volume of the gas collected is
0.650 L, and the vapor pressure of water at 22oC
is 21 torr. Calculate the partial pressure of O2 in
the gas collected and the mass of KClO3 in the
sample that was decomposed.

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 Example - continuation
Solution

given: Gas Collected Water Vapor Unknowns

P Ptotal = 754 torr PH2O = 21 torr PO2 = ?
V 0.650 L
T 22°C + 273 = 295 K mass KClO3 = ?

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