Estimate the average thermal energy of a helium atom at
(i) room temperature (27 °C),
(ii) the temperature on the surface of the Sun (6000 K),
(iii) the temperature of 10 million Kelvin (the typical core temperature in the case of a star).
(i) At room temperature, T= 27°C = 300 K
Average thermal energy = 3/2 kT
Where k is Boltzmann constant = 1.38 × 10-23m2 kg s-2K-1
∴ 3/2 kT = 3/2 x 1.38 x 10-38 x 300
= 6.21 × 10-21J
Hence, the average thermal energy of a helium atom at room temperature (27°C) is 6.21 × 10-21J.
(ii) On the surface of the sun, T= 6000 K
Average thermal energy = 3/2 kT
= 3/2 x 1.38 x 10-38 x 6000
= 1.241 × 10-19J
Hence, the average thermal energy of a helium atom on the surface of the sun is 1.241 × 10-19J .
(iii) At temperature, T= 107K
Average thermal energy = 3/2 kT
= 3/2 x 1.38 x 10-38 x 107
= 2.07 × 10-16J
Hence, the average thermal energy of a helium atom at the core of a star is 2.07 × 10-16J.
Estimate the total number of air molecules (inclusive of oxygen, nitrogen, water vapour and other constituents) in a room of capacity 25.0 m3 at a temperature of 27 °C and 1 atm pressure.
An air bubble of volume 1.0 cm3 rises from the bottom of a lake 40 m deep at a temperature of 12 °C. To what volume does it grow when it reaches the surface, which is at a temperature of 35 °C?
Estimate the fraction of molecular volume to the actual volume occupied by oxygen gas at STP. Take the diameter of an oxygen molecule to be 3Å.
A metre long narrow bore held horizontally (and closed at one end) contains a 76 cm long mercury thread, which traps a 15 cm column of air. What happens if the tube is held vertically with the open end at the bottom?
Molar volume is the volume occupied by 1 mol of any (ideal) gas at standard temperature and pressure (STP: 1 atmospheric pressure, 0 °C). Show that it is 22.4 litres.
Three vessels of equal capacity have gases at the same temperature and pressure. The first vessel contains neon (monatomic), the second contains chlorine (diatomic), and the third contains uranium hexafluoride (polyatomic). Do the vessels contain equal number of respective molecules? Is the root mean square speed of molecules the same in the three cases? If not, in which case is vrmsthe largest?
From a certain apparatus, the diffusion rate of hydrogen has an average value of 28.7 cm3s-1. The diffusion of another gas under the same conditions is measured to have an average rate of 7.2 cm3s-1. Identify the gas.
[Hint:Use Graham's law of diffusion: R1/R2= (M2/M1)1/2, where R1, R2 are diffusion rates of gases 1 and 2, and M1 and M2 their respective molecular masses. The law is a simple consequence of kinetic theory.]
Some of the most profound statements on the nature of science have come from Albert Einstein, one of the greatest scientists of all time. What do you think did Einstein mean when he said : “The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible”?
The sign of work done by a force on a body is important to understand. State carefully if the following quantities are positive or negative:
(a) work done by a man in lifting a bucket out of a well by means of a rope tied to the bucket.
(b) work done by gravitational force in the above case,
(c) work done by friction on a body sliding down an inclined plane,
(d) work done by an applied force on a body moving on a rough horizontal plane with uniform velocity,
(e) work done by the resistive force of air on a vibrating pendulum in bringing it to rest.
A geyser heats water flowing at the rate of 3.0 litres per minute from 27 °C to 77 °C. If the geyser operates on a gas burner, what is the rate of consumption of the fuel if its heat of combustion is 4.0 x 104 J/g?
No physicist has ever “seen” an electron. Yet, all physicists believe in the existence of electrons. An intelligent but superstitious man advances this analogy to argue that ‘ghosts’ exist even though no one has ‘seen’ one. How will you refute his argument ?
Earthquakes generate sound waves inside the earth. Unlike a gas, the earth can experience both transverse (S) and longitudinal (P) sound waves. Typically the speed of S wave is about 4.0 km s-1, and that of P wave is 8.0 km s-1. A seismograph records P and S waves from an earthquake. The first P wave arrives 4 min before the first S wave. Assuming the waves travel in straight line, at what distance does the earthquake occur?
The transverse displacement of a wire (clamped at both its ends) is described as :
y (x, t) = 0.06 sin(2π/3x) cos(120πt)
The mass of the wire is 6 x 10-2 kg and its length is 3m. Provide answers to the following questions:
( I ) Is the function describing a stationary wave or a travelling wave?
( ii ) Interpret the wave as a superposition of two waves travelling in opposite directions. Find the speed, wavelength and frequency of each wave.
( iii ) Calculate the wire’s tension. [X and y are in meters and t in secs]
The ceiling of a long hall is 25 m high. What is the maximum horizontal distance that a ball thrown with a speed of 40 m s–1 can go without hitting the ceiling of the hall?
A constant force acting on a body of mass 3.0 kg changes its speed from 2.0 m s–1 to 3.5 m s–1 in 25 s. The direction of the motion of the body remains unchanged. What is the magnitude and direction of the force?
A car moving along a straight highway with a speed of 126 km h–1 is brought to a stop within a distance of 200 m. What is the retardation of the car (assumed uniform), and how long does it take for the car to stop?
A pipe 20 cm long is closed at one end. Which harmonic mode of the pipe is resonantly excited by a 430 Hz source? Will the same source be in resonance with the pipe if both ends are open? (Speed of sound in air is 340 m s-1).
A great physicist of this century (P.A.M. Dirac) loved playing with numerical values of Fundamental constants of nature. This led him to an interesting observation. Dirac found that from the basic constants of atomic physics (c, e, mass of electron, mass of proton) and the gravitational constant G, he could arrive at a number with the dimension of time. Further, it was a very large number, its magnitude being close to the present estimate on the age of the universe (~15 billion years). From the table of fundamental constants in this book, try to see if you too can construct this number (or any other interesting number you can think of). If its coincidence with the age of the universe were significant, what would this imply for the constancy of fundamental constants?
A ball is dropped from a height of 90 m on a floor. At each collision with the floor, the ball loses one tenth of its speed. Plot the speed-time graph of its motion between t = 0 to 12 s.
A block of mass 25 kg is raised by a 50 kg man in two different ways as shown in Fig. 5.19. What is the action on the floor by the man in the two cases? If the floor yields to a normal force of 700 N, which mode should the man adopt to lift the block without the floor yielding?