UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA

Physics Department

PHY 232 TEST 2: PROPERTIES OF MATTER BASIC THERMODYNAMICS AND

INTRODUCTION TO NUCLEAR PHYSICS

Duration: 1.5 hrs Date: 14 November, 2014

Constants:

Gas constant (R) = 8.31 J mole-1 K-1

Volume of 1 mole at STP = 22.4 litres
Pressure of ideal gas at STP = 1 atm=1.013*105 N/m2
Temperature of an ideal gas at STP = 273 K
Avogadro Number NA = 6.022 x 1023 mole-1
Boltzmann constant kB = 1.38 x 10-23 JK-1
==============================================================

SECTION A
(Answer ALL Questions in this section. Each question carries 2 marks)
A1. What is entropy?
A2. State the Kelvin-Plank statement or provide an illustration for this impossible engine
A3. What is the coefficient of performance (COP) for an ideal refrigerator that maintains a
freezer compartment at -18 oC, when the condenser temperature is 24 oC.

A4. State the expression for calculating Mass Defect in nuclear physics.

A5. Steam enters a turbine at 800 oC and is expelled at 120 oC. What is the maximum
efficiency of this turbine?
SECTION B
(Answer ANY TWO QUESTIONS in this section and each question carry 20 marks)
B1.
(a) (i) Draw a schematic diagram of energy transfer for a heat engine. [2 marks]
(ii) Provide a properly labeled diagram of an Otto/petrol engine on a PV-diagram. [8 marks]

(b) A heat engine performs 200 J of work in each cycle and has an efficiency of 30%. For each
cycle, how much energy is:
(i) drawn from the hot reservoir? [4 marks]
(ii) expelled to the surrounding? [1 mark]
1
c) Show that the change in entropy for an isobaric process is given by
∆ S=n C v ln
( )
Tf
Ti
+nRln
( )
Tf
Ti
[5 marks]

B2.

a) Provide a properly labeled sketch of a Carnot Cycle on a PV-diagram and label all the
processes that are involved. [8 marks]

b) A Carnot engine operates between the temperatures TH = 850 K and Tc = 300 K. The engine
delivers 1200 J of work in each cycle, which takes 0.25 s.

(i) Calculate the efficiency of the Carnot cycle. [2 marks]

(ii) What is the average power of this engine? [2 marks]
(iii) How much energy is input as heat from the hot reservoir per cycle? [5 marks]
(iv) How much energy is delivered as heat to the cold reservoir every cycle? [3 marks]

B3.
(a) (i) Give three examples of decay processes and name the particles which could be
emitted. [6 marks]

(ii) The half-life of the radioactive nucleus 88Ra226 is 1.6 x 103 years. Calculate the decay
constant for this nucleus. [2 marks]

(b) ( i) Define binding energy of a nucleus. [2 marks]

( ii) Calculate the mass defect, binding energy and binding energy per nucleon for the iron
56
26Fe .
[6 marks]
1 56
[Use: m(1H ) = 1.007825u, mn = 1.008665u, MA(26Fe ) = 55.93494u, 1u = 931.494
MeV/u]

(c) Calculate the Q-value for the decay of 88Ra226 → 86Rn222 + 2He4 [4 marks]
[Use: MX = 226.025403u, MY = 222.017570u, Mα =4.002603u, 1u = 931.494 MeV/u]

END OF QUESTIONS