AE

245 (2014): HW 1

Problem 1 5 points
A perfectly insulated cylinder with a
massless, fricDonless and insulaDng piston
encloses 1 kg of air at a temperature of 300 K
as shown in g. 1. The air is loaded by a mass
of 1 Kg, placed on the piston as shown. The
external atmospheric pressure is 1 atm.
If the mass is removed and the piston is
allowed to come to equilibrium.

a) Find the nal state of the cylinder-piston
system (i.e. Pressure, temperature and
Volume)

b) Is this expansion a reversible process?
JusDfy your answer?

Fig. 1

Problem 2 5 points
Case 1: Consider an insulated cylinder of volume V,
divided into two equal parts by a massless and
fricDonless piston (see g 2a). The piston is held in
place iniDally by a pin as shown. One half has a
mass M of air at an iniDal temperature To and the
other half is vacuum. The pin is now removed and
the piston is allowed to come to equilibrium
a) What is the work done by the gas?
b) Calculate the entropy change.

Case 2: Redo the above problem for the system
shown in g. 2b where the piston is now loaded by
a massless spring with spring constant K. Assume
that the compression in the spring in the iniDal
state is zero.

Fig. 2a

Fig. 2b

Problem 3 10 points
An insulated cylinder of volume V, is divided into two
equal parts by a massless and fricDonless parDDon
(see g 3). The two sides of the box contain equal
masses (M) of O2 and N2 at the same pressure and
temperature. The parDDon is now pulled out and the
gases are allowed to mix.

a) Assuming that no chemical reacDons occur, what
is the net change in the enthalpy and entropy of
the gas in the cylinder.
b) Next the insulaDon on the box is taken o and O2
and N2 react to form NO. What is the net change
in entropy from the iniDal state to the nal state
at equilibrium? Assume the equilibrium constant
is Kp and the chemical potenDals of all species are
known.

N2
po, To
O2
po, To
Fig. 3