L. R. & S. M.

VISSANJI ACADEMY
SECONDARY SECTION - 2016-17
CHEMISTRY-GRADE: IX

STUDY OF GAS LAWS

Introduction[Additional Information]

Change of state is always accompanied by a change in Volume. Usually as a substance is heated

Solid Liquid Gas

There is an increase in volume and since the mass does not change there is a decrease in the density

This is true for all substances at all temperatures EXCEPT for water between the temperatures 0 oC and 4oC.
For water as the temperature is raised from 0oC to 4oC the volume decreases. So at 4o C water has minimum
Volume and Maximum density.
Water is different to most everything on Earth at approximately 4 degrees Celsius water reaches its densest
point. Amazingly, as water cools further, it actually becomes less dense. Water is the only substance on this
planet where the maximum density of its mass does not occur when it becomes solidified.

So, why does ice float? Like most things that float, ice floats because it is less dense than liquid water. Ice is
about 9% less dense. When ice forms, it takes up about 9% more space than it did as a liquid. Thus, a 1 liter
container of ice weighs less than a 1 liter container of liquid water, and the lighter material floats to the top.

It is also a common cause of the flooding of houses when frozen water pipes burst in a thaw. As the ice
melts, it puts the pipe walls under substantial stress through expansion until a crack occurs at a weak point,
and so relieves the imposed stress.

The result of these properties is that ice floats on liquid water, which is an important factor in Earth's
climate. It has been argued that natural bodies of water would freeze from the bottom up without this
property resulting in the annual loss of wild life and vegetation.

Factors that affect the boiling point and melting point of a substance:
1. The melting point is lowered and the boiling point of a liquid is raised by the presence of and
substance dissolved in the liquid
e.g adding salt to water.

2. By increasing the pressure the melting point is lowered and the boiling point is raised
e.g Pressure cooker

GAS LAWS [to be learnt]

To study the behaviour of gases ,as regards volume temperature and pressure these experiments were carried
out:
1. The relationship between Volume and Pressure at constant Temperature [BOYLES LAW]
2. The relationship between Volume and Temperature at constant Pressure [CHARLES LAW]
Assuming a fixed mass of gas for all the laws.

Boyles Law
Robert Boyle developed the law relating Volume and
Pressure of a fixed mass of air at constant temperature using
a glass J shaped tube having the shorter arm closed.
Mercury is added to the J shaped tube until both sides are at the same level . As the longer arm is open the
pressure is equal to Atmospheric Pressure which we know is equivalent to 76 cm (Hg). Also the volume of
gas i.e. the air in the closed arm of the tube is measured V1

A further 76 cm (Hg) is added to the original tube which doubles the pressure. Ensuring that the temperature
is kept constant the volume of gas i.e. the air in the closed arm of the tube V2 is found to be half of the
original volume V1
i.e if P2 = 2 P1 Then
V2 = V1
Boyle found therefore by doubling the pressure the volume of gas was halved.
OR
The volume of gas is INVERSELY PROPORTIONAL to the pressure exerted, at constant temperature.
1
Volume
Pressure
1
V
P
1
V Constant
P
P.V Constant at constant Temperature

Boyles Law states that for a fixed mass of gas at constant temperature the volume is inversely proportional
to the pressure.

V m3

CHARLES LAW
1/P
Charles investigated the variation of volume with temperature for
a fixed mass of gas at constant pressure. A plot of Volume versus
temperature was plotted for temperatures in oC and was found to
be as follows

If the line is extrapolated back along the x axis

it is found that the intercept on the x axis is
-273oC so if we add +273oC to every temperature i.e change oC into Kelvin the graph becomes

V(m3)

O
C + 273 = Temp in Kelvin

A straight line through the origin

Therefore at constant pressure
Volume Temperatur e (Kelvin)
V T @ constant Pressure
V
Constant at constant Pressure
T

Charles Law states that for a fixed mass of gas at constant pressure the volume is proportional to the
temperature in Kelvin.

IDEAL GAS LAW

This is the general equation for the behaviour of gases which incorporates all three gas laws and it states that
for a fixed mass of gas

Pressure by Volume divided by absolute temperature is always a constant

PV
Constant for a fixed mass of gas
T
Or

It is important to remember that when using any of the gas laws the temperature value must be converted
into Kelvin to be used in any of the equations.

Standard Temperature and Pressure

STP is used widely as a standard reference point for expression of the properties and processes of ideal
gases. The standard temperature is the freezing point of water and the standard pressure is one standard
atmosphere. These can be quantified as follows:

Standard temperature: 0C = 273.15 K

Standard pressure = 1 atmosphere = 760 mmHg =

= 101.4 x 103 Pa = 101.4 kPa

Problem Sheet Gas Laws

Question 1. The volume of a fixed mass of gas is 25 cm3 at a pressure of 76 cm( Hg). Calculate the volume
at a pressure of 70 cm(Hg) assuming that the temperature remains constant. Given density of mercury =
13,600 kgm-3

Question 2. The volume of a fixed mass of gas is 400 cm3 at 25oC. Calculate its volume at 50oC assuming
that the pressure remains constant.

Question 3. The pressure on a fixed mass of gas at 15oC is 1.05 x 105 Pa. Calculate the temperature at
which the pressure has decreased to 1 x 105 Pa assuming that the volume remains constant.
Question 4 In the morning, when the temperature is 285 K, a bicyclist finds that the absolute pressure in his
tires is 498 kPa. That afternoon he finds that the pressure in the tire has increased to 530 kPa. Ignoring
expansion of the tires, find the afternoon temperature..

Question 5. At S.T.P. the volume of a fixed mass of gas is 60 cm3. Calculate its volume at a pressure of 70
cm ( Hg) and a temperature of 50oC.

REVIEW

Boyles Law: At a constant temperature and constant amount of gas, PRESSURE and VOLUME are
inversely proportional to one another.

PV=constant
P1V1 = P2V2

Charles Law: At a constant pressure and constant amount of gas, TEMPERATURE and VOLUME are
directly proportional to one another.

V/T=constant
V1/T1=V2/T2

Combined Gas Law: Combines Boyles, Charles, and Gay-Lussacs laws into one expression. With this
equation we can see how changing more than one variable affects our unknown.

P1V1/T1 = P2V2/T2

Factor Variable Units Useful Conversions

atm
1 atm = 760 mmHg
Torr
1 atm = 760 Torr
Pressure P Pa
1 atm = 101326 Pa
kPa
1 atm = 101.326 kPa
mmHg
1 L = 1000 mL
L
1 L = 0.001 m3
Volume V mL
or
m3
1000 L = 1 m3
Moles N moles n = mass of substance/its molar mass
Temperature T K K = C + 273.15
Values of R:
0.0821 Latm/molK
Gas Constant R (see Values of R in the next column)
8.3145 m3Pa/molK
62.364 LTorr/molK

So, which value of R should I use? Because of the various value of R you can use to solve a problem. It
is crucial to match your units of Pressure, Volume, number of mole, and Temperature with the units of
R.

STANDARD TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE (STP): Sometimes word problems will tell you
that you are at standard conditions or at STP. This means standard conditions of temperature and
pressure. Heres what you should know:
The universal value of STP is 1 atm (for pressure) and 0C (for temperature). *NOTE that you
always need to use Kelvin for temperature, so standard temperature should be 273.15 K.
o P=1 atm, 760 mmHg, 760 torr, 101.3 kPa
o T=273.15 K

***1 mole of gas will take up 22.4 L of volume at STP.

 KINETIC MOLECULAR THEORY OF GASES
1. Gases are composed of many tiny particles separated by large distances and whose volume is negligible
compared to the volume of their container.
2. Attractive forces between particles are negligible due to their high velocities and large separation from
other particles.
3. Gas particles travel at high velocities, randomly colliding with each other and with the walls of their
container creating pressure.
4. Their velocity and Kinetic Energy are directly proportional to their absolute temperature.
5. Gas particles have constant Kinetic Energy at a constant temperature and thus their collisions with the
walls of their container and other gas particles are perfectly elastic.

PROPERTIES OF GASES
1. Transparency: Gases are mostly empty space and offer little interference to light.
2. Gases are readily compressed by applying pressure.
3. Gases can expand without limit due to their weak attractive forces and high KE.
4. Gases diffuse (mix with one another) due to their random motion and high velocity.
5. Gases expand when heated. As temperature and thus KE increase particles travel faster and exert
greater pressure on the walls of their container.

STANDARD MOLAR VOLUME OF GASES

It is observed that 1 mole of any gas (6.02 1023 particles) occupies 22.41 L at
0 C, i.e., at 273.15 K and at standard atmospheric pressure (1.0 atm). These standard conditions for gases
are referred to as STP. Memorize them.
Ideal gases (theoretical gases) obey this rule exactly.
Almost all real gases follow this quite closely except at very high pressures and at very low temperatures
where some deviation occurs.