GAS LAWS

A. Boyles Law
For a fixed amount of gas at constant temperature, gas volume is inversely proportional to gas pressure.

1 2
2 1
v P
v P
=


Example: A certain was occupying a volume of 10L at 720 mm Hg. At constant temperature, the gas was compressed
resulting to a pressure of 800 mm Hg. What was the new volume of the gas?
Answer:
1
2 1
2
P
720 mm Hg
v v 10 L 9 L
P 800 mm Hg
= = =






B. Charles Law
For a fixed amount of gas at constant pressure the gas volume is directly proportional to the absolute temperature of the gas (i.e.,
in Kelvin scale).

1 1
2 2
v T
v T
=


Example: Air inside a 5 L frictionless piston at 25C was heated up to 50C. What was the new volume of the
air?
Answer:
2
2 1
1
T
273 50 C
v v L 5.42 L
T 273 25 C
+
= = =
+
5

C. Gay-Lussacs Law
For a fixed amount of gas at constant volume, gas pressure is directly proportional to gas temperature.

1 1
2 2
P T
P T
=


Example: Oxygen gas at 30C and 10 atm was further pressurized to 15 atm by heating the tank. What was the new
temperature of the oxygen gas?
Answer: ( )
2
2 1
1
P
15atm
T T 30 273 K 454.5K 181.5 C
P
= = + = =
10atm


D. Avogadros Law
At a fixed pressure and temperature, the volume of a gas is directly proportional to the amount of gas.

1 1
2 2
v n
v n
=


At STP or standard temperature and pressure (0C and 1 atm) the volume of a mole of gas is 22.4 L.

E. The Ideal Gas Law
At low pressure and high temperature, all gases follow the above gas laws. The combination of all the above laws is called the
Ideal Gas Law and it follows the following equation:
PV = nRT, where R is the ideal gas constant equal to
L atm
0.0821
mole K

The equation can also be expressed as:
1 1 2 2
1 2
PV P V
... nR
T T
= = =


Example: Carbon dioxide occupies a volume of 3L at 1.5 atm and 47C. How many moles of carbon dioxide
are there? If it is cooled down to 30C and subjected to a pressure of 2 atm, what is the new volume of the gas?

Answer: PV = nRT

1 1 2 2
1 2
1 2
2 1
2 1
PV (1.5 atm)(3 L)
n 0.17 mole
RT Latm
0.0821 (47 273)K
moleK
PV P V
T T
PT
1.5 atm (30 27)K
V V 3 L 2.13 L
P T 2 atm (47 273)K
= = =
| |
+
|
\ .
=
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| = = =
|
|
+
\ .
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F. Daltons Law of Partial Pressures
The total pressure of a gaseous mixture is equal to the sum of the partial pressure of the individual gases that make up the
mixture.
The partial pressure of a component gas is simply the pressure that gas is exerting on a container as if it were alone.

Example: Air at standard atmospheric pressure is typically 78.084% nitrogen, 20.946% oxygen, 0.934%?argon, and
0.036% carbon dioxide. What are the partial pressures of each gas in mm HG?
Answer: Conversion: 1 atm = 760 mm Hg
Partial pressure of:
Nitrogen: 0.78084 x 760 = 593.44 mm Hg
Oxygen: 0.20946 x 760 = 159.19 mm Hg
Argon: 0.00934 x 760 = 7.10 mm Hg
Carbon Dioxide: 0.00036 x 760 = 0.27 mm Hg

G. Grahams Law of Effusion
Effusion the escape of a gas through an orifice or hole. The rate of effusion of a gas is inversely proportional to the square root
of its molecular weight.

1 2
2 1
r MW
r MW
=

Expressing Solution Concentration

1. Percent solution

a. % by mass = (mass of solute / mass of solution) x 100%

Example: A sample of 0.892 g of naphthalene (C10H8) is dissolved in 54.6 g of benzene (C6H6). What is the percent by
mass of naphthalene in this solution?
Answer: percent by mass
0.892g
100%
0.892g 54.6g
1.61%
=
+
=


b. % by volume = (volume of solute/volume of solution) x 100%
c. ppm = (mass of volume of solute/mass or volume of solution) x 1,000,000
d. proof = twice the % of alcohol in solution

2. Mole Fraction (X) the no. of moles of a component divided by the total number of moles of all components in the solution.





A
A
A B
B
B
A B
n
X
n n
n
X
n n
=
+
=
+
Note: A = solute B = solvent

Example: Determine the mole fractions of both substances in a solution containing 26.0 of
NaCl and 125.0 g of water.
Answer:

A
2
A
2
B
2
26.0gNaCl
58.5g/ moleNaCl
X
26.0gNaCl 125.0gwater
58.5/ moleNaCl 18g/ moleH O
X 0.06
125.0gwater
18g/ moleH O
X
26.0gNaCl 125.0gwater
58.5/ moleNaCl 18g/ moleH O
(
| |
(
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(
\ .
= (
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( | |
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( |
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\ .
( \ .

=
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\ .
=
|
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+
|
\ .
\
B
X 0.94
(
(
(
(
|
(
|
(
|
( .

=




3. Molarity (M) no. of moles of solute per liter of solution.

moles of solute
M =
liter of solution


Example: What is the molar concentration of a solution containing 16.0g CH3OC in 200 mL of solution?
Answer:

16.0g
32.0g/mole
M=
0.2 liter
mole
M=2.5
liter
| |
|
\ .

4. Molarity (m) no. of moles of solute per kg. of solvent.

number of moles solute
m =
kg solvent


Example: The molarity of a solution of C2H5OH in water is 1.25 mol/kg. How many grams of alcohol are dissolved
in 2.5 kg of water?
Answer:

1.25mole 46g
g=2.5kg
kg mole
g=143.75g
| |
|
\ .



5. Normality (N) no. of equivalent weight of solute per liter of solution.

grams of solute
N =
(eqv wt. of solute) x (liter of soln)


The equivalent weight of solute is determined by its change in valence in the particular reaction used. It follows that:

molecular mass (g/mole)
eqv. wt. (g/eqv) =
change in valence (eqv/mole)