Hello, Molly,
I believe I had responded to an earlier gas law problem similar to this, so I'll be brief with my comments. Please let me know if there is a part you'd like help on.
We can use a gas law relationship in a case where there in no gain or loss of the number of moles of the gas. It is:
P1V1/T1 = P2V2/T2
Where P, V, and T are pressure, volume and temperature (in Kelvin), respectively. The subscripts 1 and 2 mean initial and final.
Make a table with the values and rearrange the equation to solve for the unknown, In this case, the unknown is P2. The volume remains constant in this problem, so V1 = V2
P2 = P1*(V1/V2)*(T2/T1) = P1*(T2/T1)
Set up a table and enter the data. Pay attention to see if the units cancel to leave kiloascals. Also be certain that temperatures are in Kelvin.
Before we do the calculation, make a prediction as to what should happen. We are heating a fixed volume of gas in a closed chamber. Dangerous! I'll bet it goes up. How much? Well, by the ratio of the two temperatures, in K.
T1= 25 + 273 = 298K
T2 = 52 + 273 = 325K
The increase toT2 is around 10%, so I would guestimate a 10% rise in pressure, to around 57 kPa. Now we are ready to judge whether our answer is headed in the right direction and by the correct amount.
P2 = (52.1 kPa)*(325K/298K) = 56.8 kPa
We guesstimated 57, so I'm happy and moving on,
Bob
