In: Chemistry
Consider two gases, A and B, each in a 1.0 L container and each at the same temperature and pressure. The mass of gas A in the container is 0.54 g and the mass of gas B in the container is 0.40 g
a. Which container has more molecules?
b. Which gas sample has the largest average kinetic energy?
c. Which gas sample has the fastest average velocity?
d. The molecules A are larger than B and thus hit the walls with more force, so how can the pressure in the two containers be equal to each other?
Volume (V), Temperature (T) and Pressure (P) are all constant. So, moles (n) must be constant as well. Equal numbers of moles means Gas A molecules must be heavier than Gas B molecules.
(a) n is constant, Gas A and Gas B have same number of molecules.
(b) T is constant, average kinetic energy (KEavg) is expressed as
KEavg =( 3/2) RT
Since R and T are constant, so, average kinetic energy will be same.
(c) Gas B is lighter than Gas A. So, Gas B will have a faster average velocity.
(d) The heavier Gas A molecules collide more forcefully, but gas B molecules have a faster average velocity and collide more frequently.