Lesson 7: Gas Laws

❖Introduction to Gas Laws

- The volume of a gas changes due to pressure,
temperature. The molar volume of a gas is
generally defined under STP condition (Standard
Temperature and Pressure).
- Standard temperature is 0°C. In calculations for
gases, the temperature is always converted to
Kelvin. Equation: Temperature in Kelvin = °C + 273.
Standard pressure is 1.00 atmospheres. Conversions
for Pressure: 1 atmosphere = 101.3 kilopascals
(kPa), 1 atmosphere = 760 mm Mercury (mmHg) and
1 atmosphere = 29.92 inches Hg.
- The molar volume of any ideal gas at STP is 22.4
liters. This means that one mole of any gas at STP
will occupy a volume of 22.4 liters.
Properties of Gases
- Gases have four physical properties that relate to each
other in a specific manner: volume, pressure,
temperature, and number of particles.
- These properties relate in such a manner that if one is
changed, then at least one of the other values must also
change. Examples:
*If the gas in a closed, flexible system of gases
(balloon) is heated, the volume that the gas occupies will
increase.
*If the gas in a container of fixed volume (aerosol can)
is heated, then the pressure of the gas inside the
container increases.
*If the amount of gas (number of moles) is increased in
a fixed volume container (aerosol can), then the pressure
of the gas inside the container increases.
❖ Boyle’s Law
- Boyle's law states that the pressure of an ideal
gas increases as its container volume decreases.
Chemist and physicist Robert Boyle published the
law in 1662. The gas law is sometimes called
Mariotte's law or the Boyle-Mariotte law because
French physicist Edme Mariotte independently
discovered the same law in 1679.
- Boyle's law is a gas law where at a constant
temperature, the volume of an ideal gas is
inversely proportional to its pressure. The law can
be used to find the pressure or volume of a system
when the temperature is held constant P1V1 = P2V2
where P1 = initial pressure, V1 = initial volume, P2 =
final pressure, V2 = final volume.
Example # 1
A container holds 500 mL of CO2 at 20° C and
742 torr. What will be the volume of the CO2
if the pressure is increased to 795 torr?
P1 = 742 torr V1 = 500 mL
P2 = 795 torr V2 = ?
P1V1 = P2V2
V2 = P1V1
P2
V2 = 742 torr (500 mL) = 467 mL
795 torr
Example # 2
A balloon contains 7.2 L of He. The pressure is
reduced to 2.00 atm and the balloon expands to
occupy a volume of 25.1 L. What was the initial
pressure exerted on the balloon?
V1 = 7.2 L P1 = ?
V2 = 25.1 L P2 = 2.00 atm
P1V1 = P2V2
P1 = P2V2
V1
P1 = 2.00 atm (25.1 L) = 6.97 atm
7.2 L
❖ Charles’ Law
- The physical principle known as Charles' law states that
the volume of a gas equals a constant value multiplied by
its temperature as measured on the Kelvin scale (zero
Kelvin corresponds to -273.15 degrees Celsius).
- The law's name honors the pioneer balloonist Jacques
Charles, who in 1787 did experiments on how the volume of
gases depended on temperature. The irony is that Charles
never published the work for which he is remembered, nor
was he the first or last to make this discovery. In fact,
Guillaume Amontons had done the same sorts of
experiments 100 years earlier, and it was Joseph Gay-
Lussac in 1808 who made definitive measurements and
published results showing that every gas he tested obeyed
this generalization.
Example # 1
A container holds 50.0 mL of nitrogen at 25°C
and a pressure of 736 mm Hg. What will be its
volume if the temperature increases by 35°C?
T1 = 25°C + 273 = 298 K V1 = 50.0 mL
T2 = 35°C + 273 = 308 K V2 = ?
V1/T1 = V2/T2
V2 = V1T2
T1
V2 = 50.0 mL (308 K) = 51.7 mL
298 K
Example # 2
A sample of hydrogen has an initial temperature of 50°C.
When the temperature is lowered to -5.0°C, the volume of
hydrogen becomes 212 cm3. What was the initial volume
of Hydrogen?
T1 = 50°C + 273 = 323 K V1 = ?
T2 = -5.0°C + 273 = 268 K V2 = 212 cm3
V1/T1 = V2/T2
V1 = V2T1
T2
V1 = 212 cm3 (323 K) = 256 cm3
268 K
❖ Gay-Lussac’s Law
- When the temperature of a sample of gas in a rigid
container is increased, the pressure of the gas increases as
well. The increase in kinetic energy results in the
molecules of gas striking the walls of the container with
more force, resulting in a greater pressure. The French
chemist Joseph Gay-Lussac (1778 - 1850) discovered the
relationship between the pressure of a gas and its absolute
temperature. Gay-Lussac's Law states that the pressure of
a given mass of gas varies directly with the absolute
temperature of the gas, when the volume is kept constant.
Gay-Lussac's Law is very similar to Charles's Law, with the
only difference being the type of container. Whereas the
container in a Charles's Law experiment is flexible, it is
rigid in a Gay-Lussac's Law experiment.
Example # 1
A 30.0 L sample of nitrogen inside a rigid, metal container at
20.0°C is placed inside an oven whose temperature is 50.0°C. The
pressure inside the container at 20.0°C was at 3.00 atm. What is
the pressure of the nitrogen after its temperature was increased
to 50.0°C?

T1 = 20°C + 273 = 293 K P1 = 3.00 atm

T2 = 50°C + 273 = 323 K P2 = ?
P1/T1 = P2/T2
P2 = P1T2
T1
P2 = 3.00 atm (323 K) = 3.31 atm
293 K
Example # 2
A gas has a pressure of 699.0 mmHg at
40.0°C. What is the temperature at standard
pressure?
T1 = 40°C + 273 = 313 K P1 = 699.0 mmHg
T2 = ? P2 = 760.0
P /T = P /T mmHg
1 1 2 2

T2 = T1P2
P1
T2 = 313 K (760.0 mmHg) = 340 K
699.0 mmHg
❖ Avogadro’s Law
- Avogadro’s Law (sometimes referred to as
Avogadro’s hypothesis or Avogadro’s principle) is a
gas law; it states that under the same pressure and
temperature conditions, equal volumes of all gases
contain the same number of molecules. The law is
named after Amedeo Avogadro who, in 1811,
hypothesized that two given samples of an ideal
gas—of the same volume and at the same
temperature and pressure—contain the same
number of molecules; thus, the number of
molecules or atoms in a specific volume of ideal
gas is independent of their size or the molar mass
of the gas.
Example # 1
5.00 L of a gas is known to contain 0.965 mol. If the
amount of gas is increased to 1.80 mol, what new volume
will result (at an unchanged temperature and pressure)?

n1 = 0.965 mol V1 = 5.00 L

n2 = 1.80 mol V2 = ?
V1/n1 = V2/n2
V2 = V1n2
n1
V2 = 5.00 L (1.80 mol) = 9.33 L
0.965 mol
Example # 2
A cylinder with a movable piston contains 2.00 g of Helium at room
temperature. More helium was added to the cylinder and the volume
was adjusted so that the gas pressure remained the same. How many
grams of helium were added to the cylinder if the volume was changed
from 2.00 L to 2.70 L? (The temperature was held constant.)

n1 = 2.00 g (1 mol) / 4 g = 0.5 mol V1 = 2.00 L

n2 = ? V2 = 2.70 L
V1/n1 = V2/n2
0.675 mol – 0.5 mol = 0.175 mol
n2 = n1V2 0.175 mol (4 g) / 1 mol = 0.7 g
V1
n2 = 0.5 mol (2.70 L) = 0.675 mol
2.00 L
Example # 2
A cylinder with a movable piston contains 2.00 g of Helium at room
temperature. More helium was added to the cylinder and the volume
was adjusted so that the gas pressure remained the same. How many
grams of helium were added to the cylinder if the volume was changed
from 2.00 L to 2.70 L? (The temperature was held constant.)

n1 = 2.00 g (1 mol) / 4 g = 0.5 mol V1 = 2.00 L

n2 = ? V2 = 2.70 L
V1/n1 = V2/n2
0.675 mol (4 g) / 1 mol = 2.7 g
n2 = n1V2 2.7 g – 2.00 g = 0.7 g
V1
n2 = 0.5 mol (2.70 L) = 0.675 mol
2.00 L
❖Ideal Gas Law
The pressure (P), volume (V), and temperature
(T) of an ideal gas are related by a simple
formula called the ideal gas law.
PV = nRT
Where P is the pressure of the gas, V is the
volume taken up by the gas, T is the
temperature of the gas, R is the gas constant,
and n is the number of moles of the gas.
R = 8.31 J/K⋅mol R = 0.08206 L⋅atm/K⋅mol

Pressure in Pascals (Pa) Pressure in atmospheres (atm)

Volume in cubic meters (m3) Volume in liters (L)

Temperature in Kelvin (K) Temperature in Kelvin (K)

Example # 1
Determine the volume of occupied by 2.34 g
of carbon dioxide gas at STP.
n = 2.34 g (1 mol) / 44 g = 0.053 mol
T = 273 K R = 0.08206 L⋅atm/K⋅mol
P = 1 atm V=?
PV = nRT
V = nRT
P
V = 0.053 mol (0.08206 L⋅atm/K⋅mol) (273 K)
1 atm
= 1.19 L
Example # 2
A sample of argon gas at STP occupies 56.2 liters.
Determine the number of moles of argon.
n=?
T = 273 K R = 0.08206 L⋅atm/K⋅mol
P = 1 atm V = 56.2 L
PV = nRT
n = PV
RT
V = ______1 atm (56.2 L)_________
0.08206 L⋅atm/K⋅mol (273 K)
= 2.51 mol
❖ Combined Gas Law
- The combined gas law combines the
three gas laws: Boyle's Law, Charles' Law,
and Gay-Lussac's Law. It states that the ratio of
the product of pressure and volume and
the absolute temperature of a gas is equal to a
constant. When Avogadro's law is added to the
combined gas law, the ideal gas law results.
Unlike the named gas laws, the combined gas
law doesn't have an official discoverer. It is
simply a combination of the other gas laws that
works when everything except temperature,
pressure, and volume are held constant.
Example # 1
A balloon has a volume of 50.0 L at 25°C and 820
mmHg. What volume will it occupy at 650 mmHg and
10°C?
V1 = 50.0 L V2 = ?
P1 = 820 mmHg P2 = 650 mmHg
T1 = 25°C + 273 = 298 K T2 = 10°C + 273 = 283 K
P1V1/T1 = P2V2/T2
V2 = P1V1T2
T1P2
V2 = 820 mmHg (50.0 L) (283K)
298 K (650 mmHg)
= 59.9 L
Example # 2
A 700 mL gas sample at STP is compressed to a volume of
200 mL and the temperature is increased to 30°C. What is
the new pressure of the gas?
V1 = 700 mL V2 = 200 mL
P1 = 1 atm P2 = ?
T1 = 273 K T2 = 30°C + 273 = 303 K
P1V1/T1 = P2V2/T2
P2 = P1V1T2
T1V2
P2 = 1 atm (700 mL) (303 K)
273 K (200 mL)
= 3.88 atm