- Fixed mass of gas
Constant Volume
When we did the experiment in class, this is what we got:
We extended the line backwards to the point at which there was zero pressure. If the pressure is zero then the molecules are no longer moving and are thus unable to crash into the walls of the container. Each molecule has zero kinetic energy. Using the rule:
Average kinetic energy of one molecule = 3/2 kT
Zero kinetic energy will mean zero temperature. So we call this point (-273oC) ABSOLUTE ZERO.
Finally we can re-plot the graph with a temperature scale in Kelvin starting from Absolute Zero.
Now we have a proportional pattern and we can conclude that:
- Pressure is proportional to absolute temperature
- Double the Kelvin temperature, double the pressure
- p/T = a constant
- p1/T1 = p2/T2
