Moles and gases

Threshold Questions
1 Each part of this question refers to a particular sample of gas whose pressure and
temperature are altered. Fill in the gaps in the table for each sample of gas.

Initial conditions Final conditions

volume temperature pressure volume temperature pressure

10.0 L 25 °C 101.3 kPa 25°C 150.0 kPa

500.0 mL – 23 oC 80.0 kPa 23 oC 80.0 kPa

3.2 L 100 oC 115 kPa 5.0 L 150 oC

25.0 L 300 K 0.20 MPa 16.0 L 125 kPa

118 mL 27 oC 100 kPa 500 K 95 kPa

2 The diagram shows two simple 17th century devices using the gas laws for measuring the
temperature and pressure of the atmosphere.

a Would the level of the coloured water in the tube of the Galileo air thermometer rise or
fall if the air inside the thermometer was heated with a hairdryer?

b Would the level of the coloured water in the spout of the Goethe barometer rise or fall
if the atmospheric pressure suddenly decreased?
3 A flexible balloon designed for upper atmosphere research is filled with gas at S.T.P. so
that its volume is 30.0 litres. If it rises in the atmosphere to a region where the
temperature is –50 oC and the air pressure is 41.0 kPa:

a What is the balloon's volume?

b What is the gas pressure inside the balloon?

4 One of the cylinders of an automobile engine has a volume of 400 mL, the engine takes in
air at 100 kPa and 17 oC then a piston compresses the air into 50 mL at 77 oC. What is the
final pressure of this compressed air in the cylinder?

5 In a certain experiment a student collected 35.0 mL of hydrogen gas at 27 oC and

106.5 kPa. What would be its volume at S.T.P.?

Intermediate Questions
6 The effect of temperature on the volume of a sample of air at constant pressure is easily
studied with the apparatus shown. As the air expands or contracts, the bead of mercury
can move to right or left inside the glass tube which is closed at the left end. The pressure
acting is always equal to atmospheric pressure because the right end of the tube is open.
The diagram shows the air trapped at 25 oC.

Estimate the reading on the ruler if the apparatus was placed into a container of:

a iced water at 0 oC

b boiling water at 100 oC

c boiling freon at –30 oC

d boiling ethanol at 78 oC

e melting tin at 232 oC

7 A 5.00 litre cylinder contains helium gas. At 25 oC the pressure gauge on the cylinder reads
1.00 MPa. How many party balloons, each of 3.00 L volume at R.T.P., can be inflated by
the helium in the cylinder? (Hint: the cylinder cannot be completely emptied in this
manner).

8 Why do aerosol spray cans often carry the written warning:

CAUTION: DO NOT DISPOSE OF IN A FIRE EVEN WHEN EMPTY?

9 A certain gas has a temperature of 0 oC. To what Celsius temperature must the gas be
heated so that both its volume and pressure are doubled?

10 The liquid visible in a cigarette lighter is butane whose boiling point is 0 °C.

a How can butane particles exist in a liquid form at room temperature?

b Why does butane gas stream out of the lighter when its valve is opened?
11 In 1662 Robert Boyle reported data from his experiment with a J–tube manometer similar
to that shown. The length of the short column of air on the left (which was proportional to
its volume) was measured as liquid mercury was added, little by little, into the open arm of
the manometer.

Some of Boyle’s actual measurements, converted into metric units, are tabulated alongside.

Pressure “Volume” Pressure

(cm Hg) of air (cm) “Volume”
74.0 121.9

77.6 116.8

81.1 111.8

85.1 106.7

89.7 101.6

94.0 96.5

99.7 91.4

105.6 86.4

112.2 81.3

119.5 76.2

127.8 71.1

138.0 66.0

149.4 61.0

162.7 55.9

179.5 50.8

197.8 45.7

223.2 40.6

255.1 35.6

298.6 30.5

a Evaluate the term “Pressure Volume” for each cell in the last column of the table.

b Sketch a graph of pressure (vertical axis) against volume (horizontal axis).

c Express mathematically the relationship between the two quantities.

d Explain this relationship using the kinetic (particle) theory of gases.

12 The density of dry air at S.T.P. is 1.29 g/L. Calculate its density at:

a R.T.P. (i.e. 25 oC and 101.3 kPa)

b 200 oC and 200 kPa

13 How does the density of a sample of any gas change (i.e. increase or decrease) when:

a its temperature is increased while its pressure remains the same?

b its pressure is increased while its temperature remains the same?

14 At the bottom of a mountain the air is at 100 kPa pressure and 32 oC. At the top of the
mountain the air is at 95 kPa and –5 oC. Evaluate the ratio (density of air at the top of the
mountain) ÷ (density of the air at the bottom of the mountain).

Advanced Questions
15 The graphs show pressure vs. temperature data first for 1.0 gram of neon, and then for
1.0 gram of argon contained in the apparatus below at various different temperatures.

a Express mathematically the relationship between the two quantities.

b Explain this relationship using the kinetic (particle) theory of gases.

c Ideally all gases should only have zero pressure when at zero Kelvin. Explain why both
neon and argon drop to zero pressure at a temperature above 0 K.

d Explain why 1.0 gram of neon has a higher pressure than 1.0 gram of argon when both
gases are at the same temperature.

Neon
Liquid 300
bath
Pressure (kPa)

Argon
200

100

gas in metal
sphere 0
0 100 200 300 400
Temperature (Kelvin)