Tutorial 3

SCI1301

1 (i) Explain using diagrams where necessary, the meaning of the terms crest, amplitude, frequency, wavelength and period of a transverse wave. (ii) Derive the relationship between the wavelength, the period and the speed of a wave. (iii) Figure 1 below shows the variation with time t of P, the excess pressure at a point in a wave in air. The speed of the wave is 340 ms-1.

Determine 1. The amplitude, 2. The frequency, 3. The wavelength. 2 (i) State two properties of glass which makes it a particularly suitable material to use in the construction of a mercury-in-glass thermometer. (ii) Mercury is a liquid metal that expands only a small amount when it is heated. However, there are many liquids which expands a great deal more. State any three reasons why mercury is still often preferred in thermometers. 3 (a) (i) Arrange the radio, visible, infra-red, ultra violet and X-rays regions of the electromagnetic spectrum in order of increasing wavelength and give a typical wavelength for each region. (ii) Briefly describe the effects of ionizing electromagnetic waves on the human body and elaborate on the available protective measures to reduce their effects. (b) (i) State the four basic assumptions of the kinetic theory of gases. (ii) An ideal gas is allowed to expand suddenly, with no thermal energy entering or leaving the gas. The temperature of the gas is observed to change. 1. Explain, by reference to the first law of thermodynamics, what happens to the internal energy of the gas. 2. Hence state whether the temperature of the gas will rise or fall as a result of this expansion.

Tutorial 3

SCI1301

4 (a) (i) Explain the meaning of the term thermal equilibrium. (ii) State Zeroth law of thermodynamics and explain its usage in temperature measurements. (b) (i) A scale of temperature needs the following: 1. A thermometric property 2. Two fixed points 3. A numerical scale Give three examples of thermometric properties and the types of thermometers in which they are used. (ii) What features are desirable in a thermometric property if it is to be used for thermometry?

5. (a) (i) Explain the main difference between a transverse and a longitudinal wave. (ii) State an example of each of the above types of waves. (b) (i) Explain what is meant by an adiabatic change. (ii) Explain in details what happens to the temperature of an ideal gas during an adiabatic expansion. Your answer should make reference to the first law of thermodynamics. (c) A cylinder fitted with a frictionless piston contains an initial volume of 4.0 x 10-4 m3 of an idea gas at a pressure of 1.2 x 105 Pa and a temperature of 320 K. In the first stage, the gas is heated at constant pressure to 480 K. In stage two, the gas is cooled at constant volume to the original temperature of 320 K. The heat extracted from the gas during the second stage is 60 J. (i) Illustrate these changes on a p-V diagram labeled with the appropriate values of pressure and volume. (ii) How much work does the gas do in pushing back the piston in stage one? (iii) What is the total heat input in stage one? 6 (a) (i) Explain what is meant by the compressions and rarefactions of a longitudinal wave and give an example of such a wave. (ii) A sound wave of frequency 512 Hz travels from a rod into air. The speed of sound is 4800 ms-1 in the rod and 330 ms-1 in the air. Find the wavelength of sound in the rod and in air. (iii) The upper and lower limits for the frequency of the notes from a piano are 3.4 kHz and 34 kHz respectively. Find the corresponding upper and lower limits for the wavelength of the notes in air.

Tutorial 3

SCI1301

(b)(i) A container of gas has a volume of 0.10 m3 at a pressure of 2.0 x 105 N/m2 and a temperature of 27C. Find the new pressure if the gas is heated at constant volume to 87C. (ii) The gas is now reduced to 1.0 x 105 N/m2 at constant temperature. What is the new volume of the gas? (iii) The gas is cooled to -76C at constant pressure. Find the new volume of the gas.

7 (a) (i) The ideal gas equation is given by pV = nRT State the meaning of each of the symbols in the equation. (ii) A large cylindrical tank contains 0.750 m3 of nitrogen gas at 27 oC and 1.50 x 105 Pa (absolute pressure). The tank has a tight-fitting piston that allows the volume to be changed. What will be the pressure if the volume is decreased to 0.480m3 and the temperature is increased to 157 oC? (b) State the first law of thermodynamics. (c) A gas in a cylinder expands from a volume of 0.110 m3 to 0.320 m3. Heat flows into the gas just rapidly enough to keep the pressure constant at 1.80 x 105 Pa during the expansion. The total heat added is 1.15 x 105 J. (i) Find the work done by the gas. (ii) Find the change in internal energy of the gas. (iii) Does it matter whether or not the gas is ideal? Why or Why not?